Basically, the more console hardware power there is to take advantage of, the more Development for the game costs. For big IP games like Grand Theft Auto, developing a title every few years spreads the development cost out a bit, allows for more innovation, optimal quality and maximum profitability. For sports games, development time is squashed, costs are higher, and profitability is nowhere on the level of the other titles.

So if you are wondering why most companies don't make sports games, even when given the opportunity in sports like Basketball -- the reasoning is the cost is just too high this generation.

Now add another console generation on top of this one. More power, more complexity required, more costs to develop the game each year. Then add the likelihood that we will be down to just 2-3 Publishers maximum with the resources capable of making a yearly sports title.

Now I hope you see where this is going.

The next console generation, by most estimates, will start in 2013 or 2014 -- the timing of which is insignificant at this point. What that means is that EA has effectively made a deal which ends any hope of another NFL Game this generation. To get into the NFL Development game, another company will have to basically start from 10 year old technology and bring it up to speed with whatever EA has in another four years -- and then that same company will have to go beyond what EA has in order to attract an entrenched fan base to their title.

Conservatively, even if the license was no longer exclusive in 2014 (which I have serious doubts it'll be open for a long time to come) -- any company, including 2K Sports, will basically be playing from a couple of years behind in a best case scenario where Madden treads water in quality the next three years.

To develop a game which could rival Madden in quality would take two years minimum on the next generation of consoles under the best case conditions -- to gain some semblance of profitability would be a three to four year process under those same conditions. People rave about NFL 2K in a lot of places, but the simple fact is the game didn't sell exceedingly well compared to Madden -- it took a $20 price tag for the game to even begin to enter the realm of competitive in terms of sales. In three more years, that environment NFL 2K was trying to compete in will be even more harsh towards competitors trying to gain a slice of Madden's market dominance.

Any gaming publisher looking at this task from a pure business perspective will see a path full of landmines and booby-traps for sure. Profitability in the future of gaming lies within the internet and mobile gaming -- each major gaming company has shown its strongest profit gains in those areas. With such announcements as a quad-core mobile processor coming out, mobile gaming will become a relatively low cost, high margin platform to enter into with quality on par with consoles of the past decade.

A company could take a risk on 20 new mobile projects a year, each with profitability prospects much better than an NFL title or they could dump money into a project that will at best be a losing proposition for a couple of years before it might start making a slight profit. Any gaming CEO will almost certainly choose the sure-thing in the coming decade where economic prospects are going to be unsure to put it lightly.

What EA and the NFL agreed to today was more than just one more year, it has effectively bought the next decade and probably beyond. So long as video games are in their current format (which is not guaranteed through the end of the decade), it appears Madden NFL Football will be the only choice for gamers looking for an NFL fix on their TV screens.

Of course, this isn't just the NFL you'll see this trend continue in. Indeed, this is a trend which is carrying over into every other sport, and it is likely each sport will only have one game carrying its banner by the start of the next console generation. That's harsh news to deliver, but it's the most realistic scenario given the current business environment -- there isn't enough room in the marketplace for two games to be profitable enough to sustain high quality yearly releases anymore. Costs are higher, profits are more unsure, and many franchises are going to have to go away.

Let's just hope that the options that are left are worthy of our time and attention.