Has credit crunch hit games?

Or are we?

The thing no one knows yet, of course, is whether reports of job cuts at EA and THQ’s studios are indicative of wider market challenges or just natural realignment for a couple of companies. Realignment happens, EA has done it many times very successfully.

But when EA’s share price falls 20 per cent and suppliers complain that it’s hard to get commitment from retail on anything that ain’t True Triple A (that’s TTA to you, I’ve just invented it), then we all have to be a little circumspect.

This Christmas, people may not be able to pay their mortgages or fill their petrol tanks, but they’ll still buy three Xbox shooters, two new controllers and a PSP in a pear tree, right?

Let’s hope so.

ACTIVISION’S GLORY
In one guise or another, Activision has been around for all 26 of the previous Golden Joysticks, but I doubt it has had many more satisfying afternoons than last Friday at the Park Lane Hilton.

Of course, it is the games that brought no fewer than six prizes. But, given the mess that previous management was making, huge congratulations must go to the current Activision organisation.

The UK team has done a brilliant job making the most of those brilliant games. As 856,000 Future readers would no doubt say… Respect.