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Gamasutra sat in on the recent Midway quarterly report, which brought attention to yet another distressing gaming industry trend during these troubled financial times: Retailers have become less willing to invest in huge videogame launches.

Worries of a more frugal consumer during the current economic crisis seem to be the source of retailer hesitance. "The retail climate has gotten more difficult in the past couple months," explained Midway CEO Matt Booty, continuing, "[We're seeing] a little more caution on the part of retailers. Whether or not that caution is warranted remains to be seen as we enter the holiday [season]."

In the face of tremendous losses for his own company, Booty remains considerate of retailers' reluctance "to step out and put in very large orders for day one sales," stating, "I think that's understandable given the economic climate."

With so much of Midway's future hinging on the reception of their upcoming Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, this is a company that desperately needs the confidence of retailers nationwide. When a former industry leader like Midway is having trouble getting their products into stores, imagine how rough things are getting for some of the smaller publishers out there. If this situation doesn't improve soon, then it might be time for financial analyst Michael Pachter to revise his previous statement: "I don't think that the market meltdown will impact game delivery for a couple of years, if ever."