The release of the cinematic trailer last week for the new game Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare by the publisher Activision revealed that Kevin Spacey, and perhaps more importantly his likeness, will feature as a major character. This raises the question: is the videogame industry beginning to eclipse the silver screen?

Blockbuster videogames have long since entered the realm of in-depth, film-like narrative. Hits such as the psychologically thrilling Bioshock trilogy, the sci-fi epic Mass Effect trilogy and even the puzzle based Portal games focus on creating a rich, immersive, interactive storyline in order to increase their reputation. They each have multiple ‘Game of the Year’ awards to show for it. A new, very successful genre of games has also emerged in the past ten years that focuses solely on narrative and choice-story interaction; shying away from traditional gameplay style. Dubbed ‘point-and-click’ or ‘interactive drama’, this genre includes arguably some of the best games ever made, such as The Walking Dead (the predecessor and inspiration for the TV show) and Heavy Rain.

Complementary to this new emphasis on narrative, many of these major titles boast the names of A-list actors in their casts. Roles have been played by Martin Sheen (Mass Effect), Samuel L. Jackson (GTA: San Andreas), Stephen Merchant (Portal), Carrie Anne-Moss (Mass Effect), Gary Oldman (Call of Duty: World at War/Black Ops) and Ellen Page (Beyond Two Souls) to name a few. This evident fusion of acting talent, writing prowess and the ability to interact with the story that gaming has pioneered makes for some serious entertainment, but how has it been made possible?

The simple answer: money. Last year Gand Theft Auto V broke the world record for the highest revenue generated in 24 hours (£511.8 million) by an entertainment product, dwarfing the film-only equivalent record holder, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (£54.1 million). This is no anomaly either, as the previous holder of this record was another video game – Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 grossed over £300 million in its first 24 hours. In addition, rumours have been circulating that celebrity voice actors such as Spacey are earning at least $500,000 per session, making their payment for a whole game comparable to the money they would make acting in a blockbuster film. The bigger money in gaming appears to be drawing the attention of the audience and work force alike, with big name film score composers such as Hans Zimmer now also composing for games.

The competition posed by the video-gaming world has to be a worry for the film industry, and innovation is required in order to prevent gaming from dominating the entertainment business. Perhaps further development of 3D filming will provide some respite. But for now, we, as consumers, can enjoy the obvious influx of talent and ingenuity into videogames and look forward to the exciting new releases that will surely follow.