Japan

In recent years much criticism has been levied against the Japanese games industry by prominent developers such as Jonathan Blow (Braid, The Witness) and Keiji Inafune (Mighty No. 9) for its over reliance on cinematic spectacle and their inclination to hold the player’s hand a shade too tightly. There are exceptions to this rule however. Games such as Dark Souls and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild prove that Japanese developers are capable of creating games that neither condescend nor confuse.

A notable trend is the strong focus on portable consoles such as mobile, the 3DS and the PS Vita in Japan due to the limited size of its metropolitan apartments and the absurdly long hours that many young people have to work. Unsurprisingly then, the hybrid Nintendo Switch console has been a roaring success. The size of Japan’s city’ buildings has also been the reason why Nintendo consoles from the GameCube onwards have been so compact, often being the smallest in their generation.

Another interesting trend in Japan has been the huge increase in the popularity of dating simulators. With many young people unable to create a healthy work life balance, many seek to bond with digital companions. To the western populace this may seem like something out of a sci-fi film but in Japan this is a common occurrence.

USA

In the eighth generation of consoles, the two most common structural forms of games made in the USA  are currently the customizable sandbox games in the vain of the Elder Scrolls, Fallout or Minecraft, or the service games such as Overwatch, World of Warcraft or Telltale games’ catalogue. Sandbox games account for many of the single player games produced and focus on player expression and creation. They typically feature massive worlds, which are becoming easier to churn out thanks to advancements in development technology in the last few years. They play on two fundamentally American sentiments — the will to define one’s own identity and the desire to supersize everything.

Service games, by contrast, are predominantly, though not exclusively, multiplayer. It is the preeminent distribution model of the competitive genre. It helps to maintain engagement within a game’s competitive scene by changing the status quo and consequently keeping the game fresh. Alternatively, developers such as Telltale Games have used this model to create serialised narratives. Telltale Games also typically have an emphasis on player choice similar to the sandbox games.

A final noteworthy mention is the popularity of shooting mechanics. From Call of Duty to Overwatch and even Battlefield from the European studio Dice, the sale charts demonstrate that American gamers can’t get enough of shooters.

Europe

It is easy to look at the European game industry and claim that the games produced by triple A developers differ little from those in North America. This however, is a fallacy. The first distinction that one can make is one of customizability. Many American games either contain customisable protagonists, such as in Bethesda games, or invisible protagonists such as those found in first person shooters. European games have a stronger focus on character. From Just Cause to the Witcher, European games typically feature a protagonist, such as Rico Rodriguez or Garret from the two aforementioned games. As well as that, trade mark games from French publisher Ubisoft are third person action games, which typically put more of a focus on the main character than first person fair.

Sales-wise, the persistent difference between Europe and America is FIFA. The popularity of soccer in the region has allowed FIFA to edge out popular western genres such as shooters. Games also appear to have a longer shelf life in Europe. For example, Grand Theft Auto V has featured in VG chartz’s top 10 for new game sales every year since its release, as opposed to the US where it sat at 16th by its third year. This means that despite many European developers’ reluctance to adopt the games as service distribution models, it could prove very successful in the region.

Brazil

Brazil is the current leading figure in the Latin American game industry and the 13th biggest video game market overall. There are, however, multiple hurdles the industry must jump through. Brazil has a long-standing history of video game piracy. Nowadays, many consumers are starting to come around to the notion of purchasing games legitimately, with retailers spreading across the country — such as UZ Games which grew from 11 branches in 2008 to 70 in 2013. Due to the country’s high import taxes, many purchase their games online through foreign digital stores such as the US or Portuguese Google Play, PSN or Xbox Live stores. This is often done using physical vouchers, which are cheaper to import than boxed games.

A current trend among Brazilian independent developers is the creation of games targeted at the Chinese market. Being another rapidly growing market, many Brazilian developers intend to fill the niche early, and possibly attract investment from Chinese companies to create a mutually beneficial arrangement that could help the growth of each country’s respective industries.

Ireland

Ireland is an interesting case study; it is a small nation with a small independent industry. While video games have been bought and sold in Ireland since the advent of the industry, Irish people have only just started making games in the age of digital distribution. The country is exemplary of many other small developed European nations, sporting a small but vibrant independent scene. Indeed, because of the independent nature of the Irish gaming landscape, it is difficult to identify any pervasive trends. The narrative focused point and click puzzle game The Little Acre shares little in common with the addictive arcade skill game Super Hexagon. Even aesthetically there is a huge contrast between the black and white notebook style of Guild of Dungeoneering and the psychedelic 8-bit style of Curtain.

While the game scene in Ireland is small, it is steadily growing a catalogue of critically acclaimed games. In fact the size of the scene is working to the advantage of the developers in it. One of the founders of ID Software (the creators of Doom), John Romero, has now set up a studio called Romero Games in Galway. He had this to say in an interview with Noclip: “It’s just like everyone’s helping everyone to try to become successful here.”

I have barely scratched the surface of the diversity present across the global gaming landscape today. From the thriving MMO and E-Sports scene in South Korea to the burgeoning market in China and the Hardcore Realism movement in eastern Europe, I could ramble on all day. It is clear that the best days for the art of video games are ahead of us yet, and as more and more countries develop their gaming cultures, the number of genres we enjoy and the unique stories players and developers are telling will only grow.