Recently it seems that the gaming industry has finally realized that releasing all of its vidoegames during the fourth quarter holiday season isn't the best plan of attack. Too many games get lost in the shuffle. This knowledge has brought about the idea that maybe one shouldn't release all of one's big releases against every other company's big releases. Because of Captain Obvious finally getting through to the game industry a plethora of holiday games have been delayed. But why the spate of delays? Why wasn't this all planned out?
Analyst Michael Pachter has the answers. "I think the game industry isn't particularly well-coordinated," he told Joystiq, noting that movies are able to get out of one another's way more easily, because if two movies come out at the same time then you can just check out one one week and the other the next. "But the game business is different," he said, "because you're not going to go out and buy three games in one month. ... Well, maybe you will, but the average consumer won't."
So it's tougher for the gaming industry to get it together and thus we get all these delays. What does that mean for the upcoming first quarter of 2010? Pachter thinks that the quarter will start having the same issues the holiday season does. "I think the biggest problem you're going to see is that Q1 is now equally crowded, especially considering they're going to be relatively low-dollar months," Pachter said. "Think of something like Darksiders coming then, I think it's going to be hard for a Darksiders to stand out."
Matthew Razak is Destructoid's Associate editor and co-founder of film site
Flixist. He began as community member "cowzilla" and was since sequestered to write brainy features material. He lives in Los Angeles with his beautiful wife.
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Contest:
12:00 PM on 08.02.2009
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NICE PROTIP
"because you're not going to go out and buy (sic) three games in one month. ... Well, maybe you will, but the average consumer won't."
In these times, obviously.
early 2010 is going to be VERY crowded.
i love how everyone's afraid of modern warfare2 cannibalizing holiday sales; hello not all of us are obsessed w/FPS!! dumbest moves ever; atleast during holiday season; money is more out there and market is really bigger than after holiday time.
This article is a good read to see exactly what big titles have been pushed to 2010 and which titles are still scheduled to release this year.
What the Hell Happened to 2009
It's not the dumbest move ever. Just because a small minority isn't obsessed with FPS games doesn't mean the vast majority isn't. ODST and MW2 will absolutely dominate both the sales charts and online play for months after the delayed titles die.
I don't why the delays this year are such a big deal: they're are nothing new. Sure, it's an oddity that Modern Warfare 2 specifically pushed a bunch of games back a few months, but any old school gamers remember the huge Nintendo delays, especially Ocarina of Time? Month long delays>year long delays.
You're still getting a shit ton in 2009: blockbusters that will cater to any group.
RPG - Dragon Age, KH, Mario and Luigi, Spirit Tracks, Nostalgia
FPS - ODST, MW2, L4D2, Borderlands
Platformers - NEW SMB Wii, Boy and His Blob
Sports/Racing - Madden, Forza
Action - Assassin's Creed II, Uncharted 2, Brutal Legend, Scribblenauts
Rhythm - Rock Band Beatles (with the hype, it seems like everyone will buy it), Guitar Hero 5
Nearly all of these are "must haves" for the majority of consumers in those specific categories. Is your wallet that big?
its stupid if everyone else is doing so too. you're trying to prevent crowding of releases but it looks like Q1 will be more crowded than holiday season
ego centrism ftw?
Can I haz English on this English-language blog?
This isn't the first time and it's becoming extremely embarrassing not just for Matthew Razak but for the Destructoid editorial staff as well. Fix it or get rid of the problem.
Also... this guy is obviously a genius.
Well hooray for you
So what am I going to play over the Winter if all other games are delayed?
Fingers crossed for uncharted 2 staying on track for 2009.
Release your game when it is ready.
We will buy it when we are ready.
The rest is down to whether or not the consumer is aware of your game, whether or not it can be easily purchased and whether or not it holds consumer appeal and value.
If your game scores big plusses in these areas then it will sell well during the holidays no matter when you release it.