Loading ...
Do Developers Affect Game Sales?
By George Walker | July 25, 2008
A twitter contact of mine recently stated, “does the customer care about the game, the publisher, or the developer? I think the MAJORITY care about the game and nothing else.”
While I think he may be MOSTLY right, there is enough evidence to at least have a lively discussion on the matter. Firstly, I’ll agree that the gibbering masses (those that don’t know or care what video game bloggers have to say… not that they should) probably don’t even KNOW what the major publishers or developers are. They seem to be in a constant mode of title parsing, searching for keywords such as “Halo”, “Call of Duty”, or “[whatever]craft”.
That being said, I’ve run into more than a few people who have bought a console JUST because it’s the latest machine from Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo. Blizzard has been a well known name in gaming, as well. Just look at the buzz surrounding Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3. Granted, these are sequels, but people have come to expect a certain level of polish from Blizzard titles. It should also be noted that EA had made a name for itself by locking up the NFL license.
On the more hardcore side of the market, there can really be no argument that people pay attention to the developer or publisher. Before Gears of War became an Xbox 360 staple, I was hyped mainly because of Epic’s past work on UT and UT2k4. I was also previously familiar with CliffyB as a level designer for the some of the best UT maps.
I am most interested, however, in what YOU the Aeropause reader think? Does the publisher or developer affect your game-buying decisions?
Tags: blizzard, cliffyb, developers, diablo, ea, epic, halo, publishers, starcraft, ut
Topics: Industry |
Enjoy this article? You may also like:3 Comments »
RSS feed for comments on this post.
Comment by Fruitiger — July 25, 2008 @ 9:02 pm
Yeah I would have to say most people haven’t got a clue about who the Developer is, a bit more of a clue of who the Publisher is, and of course - what the best games are in their opinion.
Comment by Matthew Kellar — July 25, 2008 @ 9:28 pm
Absolutely.
What company is developing a game is probably the 2nd or 3rd most important factor in me deciding what to buy. The number 1 factor being an indescribable feeling of “I want that” vs “That looks lame.” Next up is the general consensus on the game’s quality (reviews). However, sometimes I’ll buy a game I’m not sure I’m interested in if it comes from a company I trust (Animal Crossing!). I’ll also pick up games with lackluster reviews if it comes from a company I trust and it interests me (I’m planning on getting the Wii Fire Emblem even though I’ve heard bad things!)
It is obvious that the typical consumer doesn’t do this. Brand names rule the industry. Other than the higher entry pricepoint, I think this is the only reason Guitar Hero III outsold Rock Band. You can argue back and forth over which is the better game (it is Rock Band), but when it comes down to it, consumers didn’t know/care that Harmonix was the one providing them with gaming pleasure, they only knew the the Guitar Hero name, so it was an easy choice.
It is similar to films…people watch movies based on the actors and buzz…very rarely do they know who directed the film or wrote it. There are a few exceptions (Spielberg, Lucas, etc.). I think the gaming industry is starting to get some exceptions as well, but they are way behind in letting audiences know where these games come from and why they should care.
Comment by Joe Fourhman — July 25, 2008 @ 10:25 pm
Matthew: bing-’effin-o.