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Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2017 6:39 am
by DevAnj
Mortecha wrote:
This seems like a pointless argument/crusade. Don't you have more important things to do DevAnj?
Indeed it is. I apologize, I had only intended initially to challenge CyberP's claim that Deus Ex didn't sell as well as Half Life/Doom because of "shit" marketing, however the discussion got sidetracked to other things like NMS marketing, cigarettes, GMDX's popularity and more. As I said, the debate has run its course.

Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2017 1:33 pm
by Jaedar
Marketing does not matter, but hype does :)

Well that's not true, people can't buy your game if they don't know it exists. However, these days, with all social media and reddit and such, I would guess word of mouth is more powerful than ever. Probably helps a lot if the game looks good in screenshots though.

Marketing is a very good way to generate hype though, and hype seems able to turn even the most mediocre of turds (no mans sky) into massive financial successes.
On a side note, for a very recent example of how marketing doesn't always overshadow game quality, the RPG The Dwarves and the Commandos-with-ninjas RTS Shadow Tactics released very nearly simultaneously last week. The Dwarves had a ton of PR and marketing, and Shadow Tactics had basically none. The Dwarves' Metacritic rating is 68, and Shadow Tactics is 83, and the former has sold very poorly so far while the latter has sold really well.
I wonder if this isn't because the subgenre that shadow tactics is (commandos clone) has been pretty much unfilled for a very long time, whereas the dwarves is "just" a real time fantasy rpg.

I think your target audience also matters. Hardcore/hobby gamers seem more inclined to actively search for good games, whereas normal people don't want to spend that time and effort.

I may be talking completely out of my ass though, I've come to be divorced from the general gaming community since I get pretty much all my information from the codex and RPS headlines these days....

Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2017 2:03 pm
by Cybernetic pig
Hype is mostly a byproduct of good marketing. A good marketing campaign seeks to stimulate hype, or fabricate it to begin with. Even if this is not one of its goals, there can't be hype without no marketing, unless again you get really lucky.

Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2017 1:31 pm
by Jonas
And before you say "but if a big YouTuber takes a liking to your game...". Yes, but you'd be shocked how many YouTubers demand payment to feature a game. Or maybe you wouldn't, Jaedar, since you're part of RPG Codex and you guys are all cynical assholes - but in this case, you happen to be correct ;)
Jaedar wrote:I wonder if this isn't because the subgenre that shadow tactics is (commandos clone) has been pretty much unfilled for a very long time, whereas the dwarves is "just" a real time fantasy rpg.

I think your target audience also matters. Hardcore/hobby gamers seem more inclined to actively search for good games, whereas normal people don't want to spend that time and effort.
Sounds about right.

It's relatively easy to be an indie RPG developer compared to, say, making action-stealth games (*cough*) without a huge publisher backing you, or even just making an indie platformer that is bound to disappear in the vast sea of indie platformers released every year.

Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2017 6:25 pm
by Jaedar
Jonas wrote: Yes, but you'd be shocked how many YouTubers demand payment to feature a game. Or maybe you wouldn't, Jaedar, since you're part of RPG Codex and you guys are all cynical assholes - but in this case, you happen to be correct ;)
Well now that you say it, it seems completely obvious.

Only youtuber I care about is superbunnyhop. He doesn't seem like the type to demand payment, and I hope you can't tell me I'm wrong ;)
Jonas wrote: It's relatively easy to be an indie RPG developer compared to, say, making action-stealth games (*cough*) without a huge publisher backing you, or even just making an indie platformer that is bound to disappear in the vast sea of indie platformers released every year.
I think there are technical issues that also crop up here. There is a bigger requirement on good graphics/physics/etc in some genres than others. Action games (and shooters in particular) don't seem to work very well outside of AAA due to this. And then you have platformers, where AAA don't tread.

RPGs are actually in a very good place right now. There's room for AAA and indie, and there's quite a few good games being made (on both sides of the spectrum), even if the promised kickstarters didn't turn out to be excellent.
Cybernetic pig wrote:Hype is mostly a byproduct of good marketing. A good marketing campaign seeks to stimulate hype, or fabricate it to begin with. Even if this is not one of its goals, there can't be hype without no marketing, unless again you get really lucky.
Hype is the primary product of good marketing. No point being informative if you can sell a dream, unconstrained by reality.

Re: Is marketing truly everything?

Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2017 8:12 pm
by Jonas
Jaedar wrote:Only youtuber I care about is superbunnyhop. He doesn't seem like the type to demand payment, and I hope you can't tell me I'm wrong ;)
I enjoy Superbunnyhop's videos as well. I am not aware whether or not he demands or accepts payment, but I agree he doesn't seem like the type.
RPGs are actually in a very good place right now. There's room for AAA and indie, and there's quite a few good games being made (on both sides of the spectrum), even if the promised kickstarters didn't turn out to be excellent.
Agreed.