klepidas
24-03-2008, 12:05
So, why are game companies so disingenuous with their fans?
I’m wondering why it is that videogames companies have such a hard time being candid with their hardcore fans?
http://cache.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2007/03/pshome.jpgExample: (please note, this is just an example of such activity, this is not an XMB-whinge post, I'm just using this as pertinent example)
Sony, demoed in-game XMB before launch, removed it… then refused to comment on it for quite some time. Then they said they had ‘heard’ us and it would come… Now however, the official blog is warning people (in a ‘gentle’ way) not to keep commenting on it all the time:
playstation.blog: "it’s becoming clear that we need to re-institute our policing of the comments area. A number of you have mentioned that they’re sick of wading through unrelated requests that have begun creeping back into nearly every blog post."
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2007/01/halo2_pc.jpgTo my mind, keeping people away from an issue such as that only fuels the fire. How many fake in-game XMB shots have there been now? Why can’t they just be candid and say “Hey guys, this is why in-game XMB was removed. These are the technical reasons why it’s taking time to implement now… and this is ballpark schedule”
Why is that so hard?
There's been other recent examples, too, though... all through Halo 2, Bungie maintained dev was going smoothly... and then during Halo 3 they were only too happy to tell us they had to throw 80% of Halo 2 away.
Do they think we have such short memories?
The question is this then - these are companies that know they have hardcore following. They know they have expectations to both meet and manage... and yet they actively seek to deceive their most loyal customers.
Of course, there is the argument that the hardcore fans have very different needs to the 'average Joe - I'd agree with this. However, any half decent PR or marketing person should be able to layer and segment their audience and communicate accordingly. In fact, the current approach of most game companies is the antithesis of marketing - they put their own needs ahead of the needs of the customer.
The person reading, say, Neogaf, is not the same person who makes their choices from a flyer in the local game store.... So that argument doesn't really hold weight.
So why is it so hard to be open?
Yes, schedules change. Yes, it's sometimes that feedback causes changes (e.g. Home).
However, if you have a policy of being open and honest to begin with, then your fans will accept that you are doing things with the best interest of the product - and it's customers - at heart.
Πηγή: http://frag-cast.blogspot.com/2008/02/so-why-are-game-companies-so.html
I’m wondering why it is that videogames companies have such a hard time being candid with their hardcore fans?
http://cache.gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2007/03/pshome.jpgExample: (please note, this is just an example of such activity, this is not an XMB-whinge post, I'm just using this as pertinent example)
Sony, demoed in-game XMB before launch, removed it… then refused to comment on it for quite some time. Then they said they had ‘heard’ us and it would come… Now however, the official blog is warning people (in a ‘gentle’ way) not to keep commenting on it all the time:
playstation.blog: "it’s becoming clear that we need to re-institute our policing of the comments area. A number of you have mentioned that they’re sick of wading through unrelated requests that have begun creeping back into nearly every blog post."
http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2007/01/halo2_pc.jpgTo my mind, keeping people away from an issue such as that only fuels the fire. How many fake in-game XMB shots have there been now? Why can’t they just be candid and say “Hey guys, this is why in-game XMB was removed. These are the technical reasons why it’s taking time to implement now… and this is ballpark schedule”
Why is that so hard?
There's been other recent examples, too, though... all through Halo 2, Bungie maintained dev was going smoothly... and then during Halo 3 they were only too happy to tell us they had to throw 80% of Halo 2 away.
Do they think we have such short memories?
The question is this then - these are companies that know they have hardcore following. They know they have expectations to both meet and manage... and yet they actively seek to deceive their most loyal customers.
Of course, there is the argument that the hardcore fans have very different needs to the 'average Joe - I'd agree with this. However, any half decent PR or marketing person should be able to layer and segment their audience and communicate accordingly. In fact, the current approach of most game companies is the antithesis of marketing - they put their own needs ahead of the needs of the customer.
The person reading, say, Neogaf, is not the same person who makes their choices from a flyer in the local game store.... So that argument doesn't really hold weight.
So why is it so hard to be open?
Yes, schedules change. Yes, it's sometimes that feedback causes changes (e.g. Home).
However, if you have a policy of being open and honest to begin with, then your fans will accept that you are doing things with the best interest of the product - and it's customers - at heart.
Πηγή: http://frag-cast.blogspot.com/2008/02/so-why-are-game-companies-so.html