TannisRoot on 4/11/2016 at 15:30
Demos: demos are gone, but we have substitutes. Refunds on PC are a thing. For consoles, risk can be minimized to $0-5 due to rentals, the pre-owned market, or borrowing from friends or the library. Not too bad.
That said, I can relate to the frustration that developers are diverting resources to pre-order bonus content to the detriment of the game at large. But then again, the market will punish this activity in the long run because the games won't be very good or have much staying power.
Vivian on 4/11/2016 at 17:08
What do you mean by valid?
Renault on 4/11/2016 at 17:10
I'm going to backtrack just a tiny bit on my stance after reading that Kotaku article. There are certain games that I'm still going to buy, no questions asked, reviews be damned.
But...
I can see the argument of waiting until release day and not pre-ordering. The main issue being all the pre-order bonuses and exclusive content BS. That shit really has to go, it's just awful for the industry and even more so for players/fans.
The last thing I want is publishers pulling existing content from a game and instead making it only available if you pre-order the game from Gamestop or Walmart or wherever the fuck. That just seems so very wrong.
Renault on 4/11/2016 at 17:22
Interesting, relevant article:
(
https://gamerant.com/watch-dogs-2-pre-order-519/)
So boo hoo, Ubi is crying because not enough people are buying the game sight unseen. Personally that seems kind of ridiculous - it's not like the name "Watch Dogs" carries some huge amount of clout that Deus Ex or Elder Scrolls or even Far Cry would.
Also - talk about adventures in ridiculousness - Watch Dogs 2 can be ordered in one of six different editions. SIX. Sorry, is there anyone out there crazy enough about Watch Dogs to buy the $165 Collector's edition? I'm thinking not.
Yakoob on 5/11/2016 at 01:20
The $165 collector's edition also made my eyebrows raise. As you said, it's not like it's an established franchise with a big "collector" fandom. Arguably, the first game wasn't even that great, so why would people want to collect it? Oh, Ubisoft...
As for the topic, I never pre-order but I think the creator-reputation argument for pre-ordering makes rational sense. I've checked out a book from the library because I liked the author's previous work, without knowing ANYTHING about it (didn't even read the back, don't like spoilers). More of a first-day purchase without a demo, but if you are going to do that anyway, then pre-ordering is the same rationale.
The problem with pre-orders is they really serve no purpose. They often happen too late in development to provide the company with adequate funding; if you want to support Devs then support the Kickstarter. The only games that come out with pre-orders months before release are the ones that don't need the extra funding, like Watch Dogs 2. And with no shortage of digital copies, there is no benefit to "reserving" a copy.
Pyrian on 5/11/2016 at 02:35
Quote Posted by Yakoob
The problem with pre-orders is they really serve no purpose. ... And with no shortage of digital copies, there is no benefit to "reserving" a copy.
Well, there
is pre-loading. That's a little something. Although pre-loading, review copies, and those "one day early" benefits all kind of make me feel like the opposite is happening: You're not getting it early. Everyone else is getting it late.
Starker on 5/11/2016 at 10:42
Quote Posted by Thirith
What are people's thoughts with respect to crowdfunding as preorders? From what I've read in comment threads on gaming sites, it seems that lots of people see crowdfunding pledges are preorders, but I never see it like that. For me, crowdfunding is much closer to patronage; someone credibly sells me on an idea, so I support them financially. Obviously I hope they'll succeed, but even if they don't, it's worth the idea being given a chance. (For the record, most of the things I've contributed to on Kickstarter have succeeded, and I've enjoyed some of the results a lot, from
Wasteland 2 to
Anomalisa; those things that didn't work out, such as
Tangiers, I still think it was worth giving them the chance.)
I think crowdfunding is quite different from preordering, although you could certainly treat it that way.
* A preordered game is certain to come out while most crowdfunded projects would not happen otherwise.
* Crowdfunding is making a bet that a game will be made, preordering is buying a game that is already (mostly) finished.
* With crowdfunding, most of your money goes to the devs instead of the publishers.
* With crowdfunding, you have a direct channel to the developers without a PR wall.
henke on 5/11/2016 at 13:15
Quote Posted by Thirith
So you'd feel actively cheated if a one-man team whose project you'd pledged $10 to goes belly up because shit happens in their lives that they have little influence on?
If it truly is beyond their control, then fine.
In such a siuation, where the game absolutely cannot be finished, I'd still want the dev to release what they've made so far though.
Neb on 5/11/2016 at 14:04
It's going to be protected by Denuvo DRM, so I'm guessing that, on top of not getting professional reviews until after release, the Steam reviews section is going to be a wasteland of 'do not recommend' on sheer, bloody-minded principle.
Nameless Voice on 5/11/2016 at 15:01
Urgh, third-party DRM on top of Steam?
Well, not pre-ordering it now. Win one for the anti-preorder team. With pre-orders, you won't know what DRM they slap onto their games at the last minute, or whether they even work well enough to let you play the game you've bought.
I was hoping companies were finally learning that DRM is counter-productive?
Without knowing the exact details of what this thing does, it's completely put me off buying the game (not like I was planning to actually play it on release day anyway.)
