I think first you have to define what this "industry" is you're talking about. It seems like you're imagining a kind of regulatory agency whose job it is to encourage artistic elements and ferment innovation.

I think if you own a console, a handheld, and a PC, not even a super-powerful PC, you have absolutely no excuse if you're not finding innovative, awesome titles to play. Some of the new games I've played this year include Guild Wars 2, Splice, and Crusader King's II. GW2 is the closest thing to a AAA blockbuster, but its chock full of innovation. Splice is a puzzle game unlike anything you've played. And CKII is in a subgenre I didn't even know existed, and it's like nothing else out there.

I've also played blatant cash-ins like Diablo III and Counter-Strike: GO. But you know what? They're still well-made games that I boot up every now and then just because they're fun. I think it's silly for us to expect that every title available has a degree of impressive creativity and innovation. I think most games out there are fun and that's something we should be happy about.

Nintendo had to implement a quality assurance approval program on the NES just because of how bad games were by and large 20-30 years ago. Even then, you still had a good shot at spending money on unplayable garbage. That's not the case today and even the top blockbusters this season like Assassin's Creed III and Call of Duty: Black Ops II have a degree of innovation they're bringing.