The following appeared in an editorial in a business magazine.
“Although the sales of Whirlwind video games have declined over the past two years, a recent survey of video-game players suggests that this sales trend is about to be reversed. The survey asked video-game players what features they thought were most important in a video game. According to the survey, players prefer games that provide lifelike graphics, which require the most up-to-date computers. Whirlwind has just introduced several such games with an extensive advertising campaign directed at people ten to twenty-five years old, the age-group most likely to play video games. It follows, then, that the sales of Whirlwind video games are likely to increase dramatically in the next few months.”
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
The author points out the sales figures for Whirlwind video games and concludes that their sales in the U.
S. are likely to increase. He goes on to argue that Whirlwind should target gamers in this age group, as they are likely to play the most realistic games. He bases this assumption on the notion that this age group is most likely to play video games, and that Whirlwind’s recent introduction of games designed for this age group is likely to increase sales. The author does not present any evidence to support his argument, nor do he provide specific examples of the companies that he believes will reap the largest rewards from this strategy.
The author makes the assumption that people in this age group are the most likely to play realistic video games. He provides no evidence that this age group is more interested in realistic graphics than other groups, or that he is even assuming that the people in this age group even play video games. It could just as easily be the case that the ‘survey’ that the author is referring to is a study conducted by Whirlwind, rather than an independent survey. Furthermore, the author fails to point out that the U.
S. population has matured over the past couple of decades. Video games are widespread in developed nations, and the average age at which a person begins to play them is 13 or 14. This age group does not account for the vast majority of video-game sales. The most likely age group to sell video games are the 18- to 24-year olds, who comprise 26 percent of those playing games, according to the Entertainment Software Association. It is also true that the average age at which a person begins to play a video game is 12 years old.
However, the author is correct in his assertion that a large proportion of video-game players start in this age group. This indicates that Whirlwind should consider this age group when designing its games for this market. They should not assume that their target audience consists of 12-year-olds, though. Since their products are targeted towards adults, they should keep their games more sophisticated than those of their competitors. Furthermore, Whirlwind should market their older games to adults, rather than attempting to market them to children. The games that would be most likely to sell are ones in which players take on the role of a gangster, detective, or secret agent. These types of games require advanced gaming skills as well as in-depth knowledge of current world events. The graphics in these games are highly detailed and look realistic. Such games also feature realistic sound effects, which enhance the gaming experience.
These games, however, do not require personal computers that are extremely advanced. In fact, many older computers can run these games without problems. As such, Whirlwind should market its older games to adults, who are more likely to have older computers that are powerful enough to run these games. In addition, older games may appeal to adults because they appeal to nostalgia, reminding them of their earlier years when they played role-playing games with friends.
The author asserts that the sales of Whirlwind games are likely to increase dramatically, but he provides no evidence to support this claim. He simply points out that Whirlwind has recently begun producing a new line of games, and that Whirlwind is advertising these to people in the 25- to 35-year old age group. It is possible that people in this age group would rather play simple games, or limit their video game playing to simple games such as Angry Birds, rather than playing realistic games such as Mafia Wars or The Sims. Furthermore, Whirlwind’s stock has dropped considerably in the past year, indicating that the video game industry as a whole is not doing well. Even if Whirlwind’s sales do increase in the coming months, it is unlikely that sales will increase dramatically. Therefore, the sentence in the editorial is inaccurate, and should be revised to read ‘The sales of Whirlwind video games are likely to increase, though this increase is likely to be minimal.’