• 21Sep 08

  The rise of pre-order marketing gifts

  
  == What do you think of the gifts you get for pre-ordering a game? ==
  
  I refer to the pre-order marketing gifts as those small trinkets you get at your local game store for pre-ordering a game in advance of its release.
  
  I, for one, like to pre-order the games I am anticipating. I even enjoy getting a trinket to take home after pre-ordering. Its a very small way to "wet my appetite" before the game is released.
  
  For example, I just pre-ordered Fallout 3 and was handed a familiar plastic DVD case wrapped in a replica of the actual game case art for Fallout 3. In it was a "poster" folded down to the size of an overgrown business card and a CD of 5 soundtracks from the game in a well-designed sleeve.
  
  
  
  == Am I a nat? ==
  
  Why do I want a folded piece of paper called a "poster" that I am not going to put on my wall?
  
  Gamers are "on-line" creatures. I'm not sure what the market research consultants told the major publishers marketing departments about me as a gamer, but I can tell you that it was wrong. I don't respond to a folded poster in a DVD case that looks similar to the real game. What I will respond to is noticing that my antipicated game developer is doing something unique with that same marketing budget that allows me to interact with the game before it is released.
  
  Printing 500,000 of those "posters" probably cost the marketing department $10,000; not counting the cost of distribution. Why not use that same $10,000 to fund a small student project that has a game development/design program to make a small Xbox Arcade / Playstation Network game. For example, I love what Lionhead studios did with the Fable II Xbox Arcade game it released.
  
  Besides, with the country going "green", is printing 500,000 copies of poster that no on will do anything with really the best thing to do?
  
  
  
  == The effect of poor implementation of a good idea ==
  
  Instead of me writing a SoapBox article here on GameSpot hating on the pre-oder marketing trinket I get, wouldn't the marketing departments rather I write a "positive" Soapbox?
  
  Yes, of course, but here I am responding to a pre-order marketing gift that I consider an insult. I found myself telling my wife, "I just spent $70 on a game that contributes to a gigantic development and marketing budget for a game and I'm given a folded piece of paper and a CD."
  
  Look, I'm not hating on the idea of pre-order marketing gifts. I am hating on the implementation of that idea.
  
  
  
  == Commendation to the marketing departments ==
  
  To the marketing departments at the major game publishers, you are to be commended for pointing out the size of our industry to those who are unaware of how unique our industry is. You are to be commended for making an argument for an ever-growing marketing budget and making events like PAX, E3, comic Con, etc. the spectacles that they are. The "buzz" you create on- and off-line has become quite something to watch that, I believe, make most gamers proud.
  
  
  
  == Challenge to the marketing detpartments ==
  
  I commend the marketing departments for utilizing that sizable marketing budget that most games are getting now and are using the budget to create an interesting dynamic in the industry. Gamers will now expect something in return for pre-ordering a game.
  
  So be careful what you wish for...
  
  The interesting dynamic the marketing departments are creating is the expectation gamers will have from now on that they get something in return for pre-ordering a game. Well done.
  
  The challenge, therefore, is to meet that expectation. Meet it head on. You have a good idea, gamers now expect to get something in return, now ask yourselves, "do we really want to hand out posters?"
  
  
  
  == Problems without Solutions ==
  
  I have never been one for pointing out a problem and not providing solutions. Therefore, I'll restate the problem, then provide some solution.
  
  Problem: the idea of pre-order marketing gifts is a good one, but it is not well implemented.
  
  Possible Solutions:
  
  1. See the note above about funding a schools game development program to make an on-line, pre-release Xbox Arcade or Playstation Network game similar to what Fable II did.
  
  2. Re-invent the game website. It has become incredibly mundane. A few screenshots, all the logos of the participating companies and one, maybe two, trailers and wallpapers. Come on! Gamers are on-line creatures (as stated above). Use your marketing budget to hire the local creative agency down the street that can take an idea like Killzone 2 and do some amazing stuff on a website.
  
  3. Partner with the action figure manufacturers like NECA that create the Gears of War line of action figures and make them available as the pre-order marketing gift. Let me ask you, "have you seen the inside of a development studio? Have you seen the mountain of action figures that adorn the computer monitors of the world's best designers and developers?" Capitalize on that and make the action figures more readily available.
  
  
  
  == Now its your turn ==
  
  What do you think of pre-order marketing gifts?
  
  What solutions would you present to the marketing departments?
  • Posted Sep 21, 2008 11:37 am PT
  • Category: Editorial
  • 0 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 12Sep 08

  Observing the changes of a gamers' tastes

  == A brief history ==
  
  My tastes began, as most gamers my age did, enjoying the 2D nature of the Mario and Donkey Kong series.
  
  Then, I used to enjoy the "scare" of Doom. I remember playing in my high school computer lab on the edge of my seat waiting to be scared by what was waiting around the corner.
  
  Then, I used to enjoy the "gore" of Mortal Kombat. The "Finish Him" was always a welcome sound to my ears because it meant that what was to come would surey make both feet leave the ground.
  
  Then, I enjoyed the "team slayer" nature of Halo and how it brought friends together for Halo night. That night is still regularly occuring.
  
  Then, I enjoyed the "open world" of Crackdown and GTAIV. It finally scratched the itch to want to go inside that random building, or drive the car where I wanted to go, or just to play a game when I didn't have a script to follow.
  
  Then, I was attracted to (and never actually satisfied) with the "casual gamer" appeal of the Nintendo Wii. I liked the idea of getting off the couch to swing a golf club or drive a kart. The desire to want to act out the game was teased, but never gratified.
  
  Then, I enjoyed the "tactical" nature of Rainbow Six: Vegas, Call of Duty 4. This one, I'll admit, is still a lasting taste of mine. I will say that some games get it right for me, some do not.
  
  To my surprise, I seem to find myself leaning more towards the "fantasty" nature of Fable II, the "open world" of Assassin's Crred, and the "cartoon" feel of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. Furthermore, I find myself avoiding the same "scare" and "gore" mentioned above in the upcoming Silent Hill, Dead Space or Resident Evil 5.
  
  My how things change!
  
  == A few observations of my own tastes changing ==
  
  1. I'm not afraid to admit I have been very, very fortunate to have had almost every major console since the NES: NES, SNES, GameBoy, N64, Genesis, Xbox, Playstation 2, Nintendo DS, PSP, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3. It is that fortune that has enabled me to experience so many different games. This is not to boast, it is to point out that (1.) our industry has come a long way in a short amount of time, (2.) what a wide array of "tastes" have been served, and (3.) our industry has some very high barriers to entry for those who are less fortunate (note: someone should write a soapbox about that fact).
  
  2. There is, of course, the always dependable experience of Rock Band and Guitar Hero, which I will just simply put in a ****all to itself that is always enjoyed.
  
  3. I never felt the calling to get into Madden. Not to say I haven't tried. Heck, I've even been to one of the regional tournaments at a local mall just to watch the hype and excitement that exists in the Madden universe. I applaud it, I'm just not part of it.
  
  4. Some tastes have lasted, some have not.
  
  5. I have left out PC all together. While observation #1 above is true, I've not been fortunate enough to get the truly high-end gaming PC. Its a barrier that has been too high for me.
  
  === Now it's your turn ==
  
  What major ways have you seen your own gaming tastes change?
  • Posted Sep 12, 2008 7:26 am PT
  • Category: Editorial
  • 0 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 24Apr 08

  Was postponing GTA IV the right thing to do?

  Below is a reproduction of a blog entry of mine from August 4, 2007 right around the time the annoucemenat was made that GTA IV was being postponed to Q2 2008.

  I post it here for your perspective / judgement on whether I was entirely right, partially right or just all-together wrong.

  ========

  August 4, 2007 -
  
  Grand Theft Auto IV delayed to 2008 - PlayStation 3 News at GameSpot
  
  My favorite game site (and every other gaming site on the net) has been discussing the recent GTA IV delay basically framing the discussion around the question: "are the consumers reacting negatively?"
  
  In my case, I think the answer to that question is, simply, no. Here is why:
  
  1. Rockstar has made the GTA series a huge hit. When, in the marketplace, the supplier reaches a level of dominance that Rockstar has achieved, the consumer is much more forgiving. Why? Because the consumer has expectations that they know the supplier will deliver on (e.g. based on previous experience with Rockstar games and and the GTA series in particular, they know that whenever they get their hands on IV, that it will be a superior product).
  
  2. "It's done, when it's done." My much admired developer/publishers over at id software coined the phrase that the gaming industry lives and dies by. The consumer sits anxiously awaiting the next blockbuster hit from the top developers and publishers, while the marketers go to work building the demand and anticipation for launch date (see our recent history with Halo and Gears of War). The catch phrase generated by John Carmack is exactly what that consumer understands most about his/her gaming addiction: "I want the game now, but I do not want the game now if it is going to suck!" My response: take your time Rockstar and build a great game, you will be rewarded for such fortitude.
  
  3. Maybe, just maybe it has nothing to do with the game itself. What do I mean by that? I first have to discuss one of the things I hate most in the gaming industry: packing the holiday season with releases. The strategy of packing the holiday season with releases is a strategy of, I believe, easily capturing the low hanging fruit. Most of the money in the entire gaming industry is made during the holiday season because, obviously, that is when the "gaming core" are receiving presents. In other words, what does the gaming core ask for during the holiday season? Video games. When do most people have money that they are willing to spend? The holiday season. Well, look at this crowded holiday season for 2007.
  
  What I hate about that is that it leaves the consumer begging, pleading for new content in the first half of the new year. So...what if Rockstar is going against the usual marketplace norms and this delay has nothing to do with the game itself?
  
  Hear me out on this one - what if Take-Two was deliberately delaying its release into 2008 to avoid the high competition of the holiday season and the potential to be overshadowed by the likes of Halo 3, Guitar Hero III, Assassin's Creed, Army of Two, UTIII, etc.? If so, that is smart in my books for two reasons: 1. the part of the year that the gaming consumer hates most, Q1 and Q2, is exactly when Take-Two will be releasing one of its most highly-anticipated games ever. There are NO new blockbuster-level games in Q1 and Q2 of the new year! So, what if Take-Two was releasing IV to drop in the period of the year when there is little competition, and is betting on the fact that so many people will buy IV because of their previous experience with the entire GTA series (see: point #1 above)?
  
  Note: the press releases have all said that Take-Two is delaying the release until "the second quarter of its fiscal year 2008". That means the release could be somewhere in the months of April, May or June - sounds like the summer months are just around the corner, when there is no school.
  
  Food for thought...
  
  A gamble strategy by Rockstar/Take-Two? Possibly smart?
  
  Only the financial performance of the GTA IV release will tell us.
  
  ========

  In other words, is there another game you are thinking of buying right now? During the previous holiday season you had to choose between so many great games. Now, in April 2008, does GTA IV really have any other games diluting the market?

  • Posted Apr 24, 2008 5:19 pm PT
  • Category: Editorial
  • 0 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg

See Previous Blog Posts »