If you want to invest in video games there are, essentially, four ways to do it…

• Investing in video game publishers.
• Investing in video game retailers.
• Investing in companies that make video game consoles.
• Investing in companies that make video game accessories.

Game Publishers

These are the companies that make the games. And Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) and Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) are the best bets right now.

Electronic Arts is the publisher of the popular Madden franchise, which gives it a consistent intake every year. Adding to its arsenal with a game like Spore will no doubt boost its bottom line even further.

Activision Blizzard is another strong contender. Guitar Hero has proven extremely popular, as has World of Warcraft. And while the new Call of Duty probably won’t sell as well as its hugely successful predecessor, Call of Duty 4, it will no doubt turn a respectable profit.

Avoid THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI), which seems to have forgotten what games are and Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO), which is overly reliant on its controversial Grand Theft Auto series. Take-Two also had a good opportunity to be taken over by the much larger Elecrtonic Arts, but a deal never got done, which raises questions about the company’s management.

Accessories

As the unrivaled success of the Wii showed, innovation in video game accessories can pay off. For every console, as well as the PC, there are multiple games that can be enhanced by the use of a new input medium.

Games such as Guitar Hero, a game where you use a guitar shaped controller to play along with music, Flight Simulator X – the premiere flight simulator game is greatly enhanced by the use of a joystick, and the Dance Dance Revolution series, which features games that are best played with a dance pad, are always emerging on the market.

While, most of the accessories are made by the company of the game that requires them, there are external controllers that are always there competing for the market. Some companies that make these include MadCatz Interactive Inc. (AMEX:MCZ), a peripheral company specializing in mainly console accessories and Logitech International (NASDAQ:LOGI) a Swiss company that specializes in mostly in PC peripherals.

Retailers

While many electronics stores and retailers sell video games, there are some specifically designed to do so. The biggest of these in the world is GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME). GameStop stocks new, used and old games, as well as multiple accessories and consoles. The largest video game retailer in Europe is GAME Group PLC (London:GMG). They operate similarly to GameStop.

Consoles

More than $9 billion was spent on video game consoles last year. Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony all have new systems on the market, and they’ve all proved formidable.

[...] All of these companies are reasonably solid investments, but, in terms of gaming, Sony Corp. (NYSE:SNE) and Nintendo Co. (Pink Sheets:NTDOY) look like they are going to have some very good years.

Sony has got an amazing games division that is producing very high quality games for its console.  And Nintendo is always going to be in demand, though it needs to start making more games for the Wii and DS.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), on the other hand, needs to acquire more exclusives, plus this report has nothing to do with the upcoming Windows 7, which is the biggest part of Microsoft’s business.

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co.

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (OTC: FXCNF) is a technology company based in Taiwan. It manufactures the Mac mini, the iPhone and the iPod for Apple Inc. (AAPL), cell phones for Nokia Corp. (NOK), and motherboards for Intel Corp. (INTC).

Of course, it also manufactures PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii – the four most popular gaming consoles – making it a tremendous play on the video game industry.

Emerging Markets: The Future of the Gaming Industry

The Middle East, China, India, Africa, and South America all have extreme pirating problems where video games are concerned. Thus, most companies have trouble expanding into these markets.

The Chinese market is a rapidly growing area for video games. However, the video games that the Chinese are enjoying are not what the West is enjoying. Chinese consumers love MMORPGs. While an average Western MMORPG, like Everquest for example, will reach 500,000 users. An AVERAGE Chinese MMORPG will attract well over 1,000,000 users very quickly.

Of World of Warcraft’s 10 million subscribers, 1.5 million live in China. Analysts estimate that the WoW Chinese market, alone, could eventually have 10 million users.

Most Chinese play MMORPGs in internet cafés (since most of them have limited Internet access). A large percentage of Chinese, however, do play free MMORPG’s. Free MMORPGs usually are completely free to play, but players can pay money to expand the gaming experience (bigger map to play on, more areas etc.) or improve their character (items, weapons character stats, etc.). While this doesn’t seem to like it would make a lot of money, it actually does, thanks to the addictive nature of most MMORPGs.

Some of the bigger names in the Chinese MMORPG market are Giant Interactive Group Inc. (NYSE:GA), Perfect World Co. Ltd. (Nasdaq:PWRD), Shanda Interactive Entertainment Ltd. (Nasdaq:SNDA), and The9 Ltd. (Nasdaq:NCTY).

Unfortunately, China is China. As such, the government always thinks of something ‘imaginative’ to do with the gaming market. The ‘Fatigue System’ is a means by which the government gets to control how long its citizens spend online playing games.

This system requests that games stop rewarding players after three hours of play in one day. Additionally, the system also requests an ID for players so as to be able to control their play more easily. While the system was originally meant for all gamers, it has been limited to gamers under the age of 18, due to the initial outcry it garnered.

China is also notorious for having the largest game sweatshop industry in the world. A game sweatshop is where a person is paid to play a game intensively and to make an extremely good character in it. That character is then sold to whomever wants it.

Chinese censorship is surprisingly low as the government only censors games that are anti-Chinese or portray Tibet and Taiwan as independent nations.

India’s market has yet to fully realize the potential of video games (putting the pirating aside). India is regularly compared to China in 2001. The online video games market is picking up but the overall market is still small. The few Indians who do game, do so like the Chinese: in Internet cafés. Unfortunately, there aren’t any enormous MMORPG makers (or equivalents) in India, yet.

The Middle East is generally also a pirating heaven though there are some legitimate shops usually selling games that haven’t been translated. Countries like Saudi Arabia also tend to ban certain games that are conceived as anti-Muslim.

If you wanted to invest in one of the Chinese MMORPG makers, the one that looks the best thanks to its pricing model and quality of games is Giant Interactive.

PS. This is an excerpt from a three-part guide to investing in the video game industry. For the complete version, please go to Money Morning’s archive pages.

Source: The Investor’s Guide to The Video Game Industry – Page 2

Even helicopter Ben is worried. He’s told Congress that inflation risks have “intensified” and that there’s now a threat of “significant downside” to growth.

But contrarian investors should be lapping it up, says Marc Lichtenfeld in The Smart Profits Report. A bear market is where bargains are made.

Marc has put together a list of stocks that performed well in during the last bear… and four stocks that are currently battling the bear head on…

Rewind: The Best Bear Market Bets From 2000-2002

When you’re faced with a challenging market, one option is to look for the stocks that historically perform well during downturns. You’ll often find that the companies that not only weather the storm, but thrive during it, are the ones that lead the pack once the market stabilize and heads higher again.

Here are some examples of stocks that held up well during the last bear market, which growled from March 2000 to October 2002. During that time, the S&P 500 lost a whopping 50.4%.

Ventas (NYSE: VTR): Check out these results. While most other stocks were in freefall, Ventas gained a sensational 578% and then went on to post additional gains of 356% at the stock’s high.

THQ Inc (Nasdaq: THQI): Investors who held on to THQI during the last bear were rewarded with a return of 68%. But that pales in comparison to the 178% gains at the stock’s high afterward.

Manor Care: Shares jumped 36% during the last bear market. However, by the time the Carlyle Group bought the company in 2007, its shares had rocketed another 255% since the end of the bear market.

But I imagine you want the best stocks to invest in during a bear market today. Below are a few stocks to look into. They are all trading well during what has been a treacherous market. That should be some indication that their prospects are especially bright.

Fast Forward: The Best Bear Market Bets Today

From solar power, to biotech, to healthcare and hospice services, these four companies are currently battling the bear head-on… and winning.

Canadian Solar (Nasdaq: CSIQ): Shares of this Ontario-based manufacturer of solar modules have skyrocketed over the past year. Although currently 25% off its high, the stock is still well-placed to profit from high oil prices, and with the company having recently raised its revenue outlook, there’s no reason to think that solar stocks will quit any time soon.

Note: Solar power is still a young, up-and-coming industry in stock market terms. Our newly added technology expert Paul Moore is cautious on the sector and I’m sure he’ll have more to say about solar in coming months.

Moving to the healthcare area, several names have recently hit 52-week highs…

Allos Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ALTH): Shares of this biotech company have recovered nicely since the firm’s brain cancer drug failed Phase III trials last summer. At the moment, its leading candidate, PDX, is in Phase II trials for T-cell lymphoma. The company raised over $65 million this spring, so it should have enough cash to fund its research in the near-term at least. Allos is not expected to generate any revenue this year, though.

Amedisys (Nasdaq: AMED): This profitable provider of home health and hospice services is projected to earn $2.73 per share this year and $3.32 next year. However, not everyone is bullish on AMED. Over 26% of the float is sold short. So either the bears know something, or there could be a big short squeeze coming if the stock continues to rise. Note: The company’s earnings report is scheduled for July 29, which should provide more clues.

Sequenom (Nasdaq: SQNM): This genetic and molecular diagnostics company has seen its shares quadruple since April. But the stock really started cooking in June when the company announced very strong results in tests to determine Down Syndrome in fetuses using the mother’s blood. The Down Syndrome testing market is at least $1 billion and if Sequenom’s tests are proven superior, the company could be in the position to grab much of that revenue.

Source: The Best Stocks to Invest in During a Bear Market