When a game company folds a small piece of the gaming community folds with it. Reactions to such recent announcements as GodGames and Dynamix’s demise and the financial woes of Loki Software and others have worried many game consumers.

Recently a cross section of gamers were asked to share their thoughts on what’s going to happen next in the industry in response to the flurry of layoffs, cancelled titles and closed development houses. Their top concerns are highlighted below.

"The most obvious, and sad, prospect of the game industry’s future is that economic interests will force out game quality even more than it does today." Henric, 31, Sweden, 12 years console gaming and 5 years PC gaming

"I am worried that the game publishers will make the developers do lame projects with impossible deadlines like "Kiss Psycho Circus" instead of letting the developers have time to create a quality game that has been bug tested completely. Give us games with good content and great multiplayer capabilities. However this seems impossible when publishers treat games as they would "mystery meat" in the early 1900's meatpacking plants - you never no what the hell is in it but sell it anyways." John, 20, Texas

"The only concern I have for the future of the gaming market is the continued path towards mediocrity. Don’t misconstrue what I’m saying. Great graphics, a finely tuned gaming engine and immersive game play are important. However, I truly fear the coming of ‘Tomb Raider 39: The Geriatric Years’ or ‘Unreal 13: It Still Drags On.’ Thom, 29, Florida, gaming off and on since I was 12

"My only concern is the monopolizing of the industry by the big names pushing out the small companies, or the small companies just not getting the support that is necessary. If the competition isn't there for the big names, the industry will be dictated by what they feel should be released, and really not hold an open ear to what the games community is crying out for." Jason, 21, Texas, 8 year gamer

"I don't feel comfortable leaving it up to the big companies to create my games. We also need some people to take a risk now and again to try something new. I'm not saying the big companies won't do that per say, but they tend to play it safe sooner than small companies that have to prove themselves." Marcel, 24, Holland

"I think games will very much be only sequels to bestsellers (i.e. Tomb Raider) and every now and then a new developer will pop up with a good game which does moderate sales because it was pirated, people will give it bad (word-of-mouth) because it is not like Counterstrike, and the masses won't buy it because they never knew it was out while they were playing games like Deer Hunter." Henning, 22, Germany, gaming since the Amiga 1000

"It's funny that once a groundbreaking title is released (e.g. Myst, Tomb Raider, etc.) you see so many versions of basically the same idea. Then people get bored and sales drop and then there are layoffs and so on and so-forth. The industry has seen this before, and it really doesn't mean a damn thing. Consumers will still buy their games as long as they make the packages FLASHY enough and if they provide enough ‘doctored’ screenshots on the back of the box." Beau, Texas, 24, playing since Intellivision

Concern 4: Gameplay will suffer.

"Game content hasn't kept up with game technology. The downturn in the game industry is a natural result of the fact that too many games are the same. Who needs their hundredth first person shooter? The decision makers in the game industry think that violent action is all consumers’ want. Now that sales are falling, perhaps they'll rethink that assumption." Jeff, 46, New York

"More and more of the money men are completely ignoring the developers in order to create the ordinary and expected. Most games that get turned out are the same old tired stuff with a few flashier graphics. The ‘creatives’ are there to create and in no way should they be influenced by the ‘suits’. Jeff, 17, Kentucky

"All the big companies are losing their nerve. They've forgotten what made them and their predecessors so successful, and that was the courage to try things that are new and unprecedented. Worse than this are the companies who pump out lifeless ‘shovelware’ titles designed to appeal to certain demographics. The idea is that their customers will buy the games because of the subject and not the content (which they will be ignorant of until it's too late). Many of these companies are enjoying success for now, but what happens when people get tired of the same run-around? The rug will be pulled out from under those companies which forgot how to dare, and as their profits dwindle to nothing they will be too foolish to see what was the cause of their downfall." Corbett, 23, Montana

"I remember when the companies creating new technology would make a content rich game to show off the new mechanics of their babies and when a publisher wouldn't be so full of PR that they were caught in their own over hype/lies. Over hype is killing games. So many letdowns." Sean, 25, Ontario, gamer since he broke his Pong machine in the late 70's

Concern 6: Patience of publishing houses will continue to deteriorate.

"As developers seek to push the technology, they begin to push release dates. The next wave of great games is simply taking longer and longer to arrive. The industry did not foresee this change, and the publishers simply kept development times the same as they had been on weaker engines. The developer in turn is forced to create a lesser product. The backing to create an innovative title simply has not been there, and thus there haven’t been many huge games. Publishers just have to learn that in order to get a good game out, they need to have the proper amount of time and money. Otherwise we’ll continue to see games that could have been revolutionary turn out to be bug infested and never reach the success that we so desperately need in a game at the moment." Chris, 18, California, gaming since Doom

"In the beginning, game developers had so little to work with, yet they did so much because of their love for the field and their belief in its future. Now, with so much more, most developers have lost their ‘love’ of their work and that elusive breath of creativity seems to be mired in people’s appetites for money." Paul, 19, Montana, gaming since before the days of Wolfenstein 3D and Crystal Caves

Concern 8: This is a phase, right?

"The industry is going through growing pains along with the normal business practice of eliminating the 'weaker' competition - I hope." Rick, 52, Florida

"The recent closures won't affect how I buy games. It does, however, make me wary about my goals of becoming a level designer or programmer. It leaves doubts as to whether or not this market will still be nearly as popular, or even still around, by the time I get out of college." Jake, 15, Maryland, playing since the age of 3

"For people who are thinking of this as a profession this has to be somewhat scary when you see any gaming company close. It makes you think, ‘Is the market going to be stable, or is there going to be any job for me when I graduate?’ There are plenty of gaming companies out there, but there are only a handful that make games that last." Kevin, 22, North Carolina

"It is a matter of targeting your audience and keeping their interest by offering quality merchandise. Some larger gaming companies have realized this but others are only interested in the ‘buck’. Taking a condescending tone and pushing developers faster without taking the time to fully ‘debug’ only results in dissatisfied customers and lost revenues. Gamers are not a bunch of ‘dumb headed computer geeks’ to look down on and milk. If you take that tone, the word gets around and your ‘customers’ will go elsewhere, or do without." Laurie, 50, Arizona, game player since 1996