The Entertainment Software Association has lost another member this week. This time it’s Crave Entertainment.

Now, this isn’t exactly what you’d call a deathblow to the ESA. They can probably make do without the publisher of such luminary titles as Napoleon Dynamite: The Game and Crayola Treasure Adventures while Nintendo, EA, Take-Two, et. al. are still on board.

But even so, the weakening of a united industry association is troubling. When a government attempts to pass unconstitutional laws banning video games, the ESA are the ones who step up to the plate. Having a strong ESA or equivalent organization benefits game publishers’ pocketbooks, us as gamers and First Amendment rights in general.

As of late, the industry has become more fractured. Activision, Vivendi, LucasArts and id Software all pulled out of the industry association, as we mentioned previously when we were calling them a bunch of dicks. The reasons are unclear, but many speculate that the increase in fees may have something to do with it. When the ESA toned down the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, they lost their main source of revenue which had to be made up in membership dues. In addition, they took a $5 million hit for moving the show from the LA convention center for a year. With the once-vital E3 gone and the ESA keeping a low key when the shit hits the fan, companies may just be looking at the association and thinking “Are we getting our money’s worth here?”

It’s hard to say from the outside just what’s going on. It’s tempting to assemble a narrative out of the scraps and rumors, but saying the ESA is doomed is probably overblown. But for everyone’s sake, I hope the ESA can stop doing whatever it is they’re doing that’s making companies leave and focus on agitating for the medium.

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