Monday 10 November 2008

Can a good game sell without marketing?

I think no. Of course a good game without marketing will sell more than a bad game without marketing, but the quality of the game is not the major sell factor. In the past maybe it was but now there are other considerations more important than the game quality.

An example of this is Gears of Wars, one of the most mediocre games I have ever played and one of the greatest sell hits on Xbox360. The sequel is already out, only one year after the first one, and is selling even more. For sure there will be more and more sequels, innovation doesn't sell. I think the game reviewers should be harsher with these kind of super productions.

Who is the responsible of this situation? The publisher? The developers? The distributors? The game reviewers? I think that the first culprit are us, the people who buy these games.

Which is the future? Digital distribution is already here to save us from the sequels invasion. The developer is free to create and sell the game directly to the gamer, the publisher is not needed anymore. The result is that in the future We'll have macro productions in physical distribution with the last technology and graphic advances, and based on very knows IPs ; and then We'll have small fresh games based on new ideas and gameplay distributed in digital format. What are you going to buy? I bet for digital distribution.