MTVN + GameTrailers.com: Game Head

At the risk of uncritically passing along press releases, I noticed MTV’s new idea to integrate GameTrailers.com into its video game television show ‘Game Head.’ While there is not much to report beyond the obvious, it is a good example of the way in which games are, and are not, being appropriated by traditional media companies.

My personal opinion is that games are there to be played, not to be endlessly watched. I can see the opportunity to create a cross-platform that has lots of cool previews, but my problem is that this may just grow into a market in which blockbuster games compete for eye-balls. Sure, you can check what it looks like before you buy it, but that’s all you can do. Where are the free downloadable demos? If we can pipe “millions of trailers a month” (GameTrailers.com) through a website, then surely we can also make some more playable demos available? Instead of becoming a marketing venue for game companies (I didn’t say big), why not become a testing ground? By creating some type of feedback loop to the production process, there are lots of opportunities to save some money and make use of the expertise (beta-testing) of all the people that spend hours playing these games. But perhaps that’s the kind of logic that traditional media companies cannot comprehend.