YOu can see their point of view, though. It costs puplishers millions to market a single game, and most of them don't turn a profit. It's comfortable to go with proven success formulas and big name franchises. As the costs of production increase (fasten your seatbelts as the new X-box and Play Station are released), so does the risk.

However, for the same reason, it would seem fair that a really good speal might get you a look in. Since publishers are expecting a good percentage of games to fail anyway, an outstanding original idea should get a chance, though that doesn't seem to be the case too often.