The countdown, which is available in overview form in the October 2007 issue of Game Developer magazine, is also accompanied this year by a major Top 20 Publishers 2007 report from CMP Technology’s Game Developer Research Division. This detailed supplement lists the numerical reputation scores, written comments, and partner feedback for the publishers in the final listing, alongside game release and review score specifics by platform, and is now available for purchase.
Countdown winner Nintendo prevailed due to top marks in the reputation survey for its game publishing, alongside competitive revenue and average review score marks, leaving Electronic Arts in second place for this year. After Nintendo and EA, completing the top five are: Activision, keeping its #3 spot for the second year running; Ubisoft, surging up four spots from #8 to #4, with the company’s early support for Nintendo’s DS and Wii apparently paying off; and THQ moving up two spots to #5, following historically high revenues and a more balanced slate of licensed titles and original games. Joining the list for the first time is import game publisher Atlus USA, which placed at #18 and helped contribute to Atari dropping off the Top 20.
The 2007 rankings were calculated by considering number of releases by SKU, average review scores, and estimated publisher revenue from August 2006 to July 2007. It also included the results of a survey conducted to gather opinions on the major video game software publishers. More than 300 industry professionals from all parts of the game production process were asked to give their opinions – including comments - on the reputations of each publisher in the survey. In addition, scores and commentary were gathered from respondents who had direct experience with the publishers in the recent past, either as workers or partners, including milestone, marketing and pay feedback.
“Adding reputation-based feedback to our survey for the first time has brought an interesting, more well-rounded angle to the much-anticipated countdown,” said Simon Carless, publisher, Game Developer magazine and Game Developer Research. “As we can see from the new rankings, the rise of casual gaming, coupled with these new reputational elements, has contributed markedly to ranking shifts, and we’re eager to see how these industry changes affect the report in subsequent years.”
The full Top 20 Publishers 2007 countdown is available in the October 2007 edition of Game Developer Magazine. For more information about this issue and to access it in digital format, visit www.gdmag.com. A full Top 20 Publishers 2007 report featuring all statistics, ratings and complete survey feedback is available.