Are video games respnsible for the downfall of action/adventure animated shows ?
 

Lauren faust, a animator once said that children prefer more action in the video games than in the cartoons, what you opinions guys ?

I do remember reading a while back that video games have to shown to be more popular than toys with kids. It's possible that it is like that in Japan which is why they went with a video game theme with Ex-Aid.

I think outside of Japan, action shows for kids are pretty much dead. They don't want to waste money on stuff that will waste space at a local retail store.

Would action-adventure be popular again ?

Voltron is doing pretty well, so I say it already is.

Why do people act like videogames were only invented 10 years ago?

Probably because video games became more mainstream since the 2000's. Games like GTA3 and Halo in the early 2000's did help appeal to a bigger audience.

Because during the era of Sega vs Nintendo and that whole thing, video games were seen as a "Nerdy" thing. Only losers played them.
I know that's not really the case, but that's how pop culture portrayed them.

Around the 2000s, that's when games hit their stride. You could play games while still being seen as "Cool" in the eyes of the media. The numerous controversies stirred up by them during this era made gaming be seen as more edgy and intense.

This has always been something that comes and goes in waves.

Trends, both film and video games as well as tv series vary in content per era.

It's nothing new, and it'll change again in a few years as trends begin to lean elsewhere in what gains attention and holds audiences.

Games have done the same as they've gone from puzzle eras to sandbox eras to FPS eras, and even sports dominated for a time. Every era changes and grows. And even with the comedy leanings of modern cartoons, there still is a strong pulse of action and adventure intertwined.

You may look at it outwardly and see 'abstract art' but that doesn't mean it's devoid of action or adventure. Though as more games lean to reality, more abstract alternatives become wanted on TV. Same as how when games were leaning more abstract, more reality based styles were sought after on TV.

The conveyance of the art though doesn't negate the active components of adventure or action oriented. It's a matter of where each aesthetic is getting satiated. An abstract form doesn't directly mean solidly comedy oriented. It could even be argued that such things like Adventure Time are more slice of life than they are fully comedy. Same to other wider forays of the abstract conveyance.

In time, styles will continue to evolve and types of stories will vary more. Though I really wouldn't compare this to japan either where the stories more vary in animation ranges due to a different cultural aspect of animation as a whole.

It could also be said that things like TMNT recent as well as voltron survived strongly because they played to both action adventure and comedy. Balancing the components for wider tension breaks. It's really not much different than toons of older in that regard that used comedy to tension break and hold audience attention from drama getting too overwrought. Avatar and Korra played to this too, where the seasons that became more overwrought with drama having the most concerned fan responses of the shows getting too dark.

Though I would say if you're comparing action toons of yesteryear to action toons of now, Steven Universe is leagues above the action of 80s cartoons. So the argument is more on the abstract or not component and how people deem that as "acceptable" or "kidified". Those can be as action adventure or convey gut wrenching stories as anything else. The aesthetic doesn't deem it non-adventure or action oriented show.

It's all part of trends though. Aesthetics change in waves, whether it's film story types, TV, or video games. It all changes in what's the dominant usage per era, roughly every 4-6 years. I really wouldn't read too much into it. It's the nature of the mediums.

That is on Netflix. It seems like Netflix is open for action cartoons for kids and serious adult animation. Not so much on normal TV.

Kulipari from splash entertainment is a great example.

Jason DeMarco (The main producer of Toonami) wrote a good reason on the downfall of action cartoons in America.

https://ask.fm/Clarknova

I doesn't follow American kids cartons, but from what I've seen is that comedy shows are also easier to produced too. You can make short and episodic without worrying about selling toys. With action shows for kids, you have some merchandise line to sell. Even if your show is not toy gimmick like Batman: TAS, you still have to promote toys for kids to buy.

That's because Netflix doesn't have to worry about selling toys.

As Guyver Spawn said, there are a lot of factors on why action/adventure animated shows are dead. I agree video game is one of them. But there are other factors, since mid-2000's, Saturday Morning cartoon have already been on the decline. It wasn't until 2014 that it's been acknowledged that Saturday morning cartoon are dead:

2014 article #1: Saturday Morning Cartoons Are Officially Dead

RIP Saturday morning cartoons, and the reasons why they’re dead

So yes, when Saturday Morning cartoon died, that could've also hurt action/adventure animated shows. Video game is another factor. Streaming sites like Netflix, Amazon Prime video, etc... could or maybe help future action/adventure animated shows (we have to wait and see). But I do see old school action cartoon like GI Joe and Transformers on streaming site like TubiTV, so if you want to show your children what old school cartoon look like, they're on there.

From what I've seen in newer cartoons since the start of the decade is that kids are more in comedic shows than action shows. With action, they have movies like MCU, DC Movie Universe, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Fast and the Furious, Transformers, etc and those have toys to sell for kids. Like Jason DeMarco said on ask.fm, why would someone watch a 22 minute cartoon when they have a movie of the same characters with more action to it.

I think by the late 90's, video games was consider to be a cool thing and not a nerdy thing anymore since you had games aim to adults like Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil which had good stories while having great gameplay. The nerdy stigma is still there with people over the 35, but not as bad as it was back before 1997 or 1998. Now video games have became more popular than movies since the last decade.

I can't imagine how the cartoons going to be in the 2020's.