Can't believe I've only just spotted this on Wonderland - a transcript of Warren Spector on blistering form at GDC, kicking the crap out of the games industry, especially the fact that retail chains more or less dictate content. His argument (backed up later by another angry industry veteran, Ron Gilbert) is that the industry needs an alternative distribution channel to cater for non-commercial, low budget projects. The internet aggregator system used by today's indie games developers just doesn't reach a large enough potential audience. And I'm pretty sure there is still an audience for games that aren't a) sequels, b) film tie-ins, c) stealth shooters, or d) GTA clones.
The again, I could be wrong.
UPDATE: Thanks to Richard Sandford for pointing out this response to the GDC discussion written by an independant developer. Some very interesting points from a rarely heard perspective. This is clearly a very complex subject, but there's always room for polemical attacks like Warren's.
