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[OG_Original Gamer]

There's so many games coming out this fall, EA may be the company to get burned. There sports section will thrive as usually but I think there other games are gonna get lost in the shuffle. The number of pricedrops are gonna come so fast its gonna make your head spend.

Halo2,GTA:S, Doom3, MGS3, PM2, GT4, MP2:E, maybe RE4 are going consume so much of gamers time. If the rumors are true about a Aug24 demo or full release of Halo2, then all bets are off.

The publishers will have no one to blame but themselves.

How many of you are going take time out from playing these games to play anything else?

 

[levious]

whatever happened to the days when we weren't obsessed with game sales?

 

[WarPig]

For me it was back before I had a job. I really miss those days.

DFS.

 

[GDGF]

Be glad that those anticipated games don't look to be shitty. If so, it would be a similar situation to the christmas of 83 (or was it 84...)


Too many games. Most of them crap. So many games not selling jack that the stores are forced to greatly reduce their price. Cheap discounted games being bought over newer full priced entries (and most gamers feeling burnt by their purchases)

If those games were bad, it would be bad for the industry.

 

[DSN2K]

Somthing big is going to bomb, im not sure what but one of big games is going to get burnt bad.

too many high profile games.

 

[OG_Original Gamer]

Somthing big is going to bomb, im not sure what but one of big games is going to get burnt bad.

too many high profile games.

I agree, there's games I want but I know I want have time for all of them. The problem publishers are gonna face, they haven't realized yet.

 

[OG_Original Gamer]

whatever happened to the days when we weren't obsessed with game sales?

This is not based entirely around game sales but more about the decisions publishers are making and the affect on gaming. Its the must have or the maybe.

 

[Diomedeskun]

Job, Friends, Life, Girlfriend, Other Entertainment : these won't leave me a whole lot of time to play games and there are about sixteen games in November that I would normally pick up without hesitation. I may pick up about 5 or 6 of those then, but the rest would be enough for the whole following year. I will probably only have time for about 2-3 of those.

I really hope some of the games this fall get pushed back. I don't know how I am going to juggle Metroid 2, Metal Gear 3, Suikoden 4, Paper Mario 2, and Fire Emblem, let alone the other games I want almost as much. I only had time for Front Mission 4 and Tales of Symphonia because I was on sick leave from work when they came out.

 

[Ranger X]

There was already articles and alarm calls in the medias last year because of this growing phenomenon of "too much games at holiday time" crisis.
WATCH 2004... if 2003 was alarming, 2004 is going to create a fucking wave of fear of a crash or something in the industry.
We will also loose many games that are good (i mean, they will never have sequels because of bad sales.)


But let me make a prediction here: Devellopers and publisher will blame their products and marketing strategies for their lack of sales and will completely miss the point to save the situation wich is: CREATING NEW SALES POINT DURING THE YEAR.

A video game can sell just like a movie. This maniacal obsession of "my game have to come out in the holiday" must cease for the sake of the market growth.

 

[radios shipping overview]

The holiday season will fill up store shelves nicely in preparation for the usual relative drought of Q1-Q2. The speed with which discounts are applied these days will make picking up these games later that much easier. I have no desire to try to fit playtime for all the Q4 releases I'm interested in into Q4.

 

[Deg]

Yes there are alot of games coming out at the end of the year. Alot of them.

 

[Jill Sandwich]

There won't be much time for game playing at Christmas as the acronymtastic ROTK:EE DVD shall keep me going till February with its 9009234 hour runtime

 

[COCKLES]

"Fifa and Madden fans are Legion. For we are many".

 

[Solid]

MGS3, GTA:SA & GT4 - one of these titles won't do as good as some people think. Unfortunately I think it will be MGS3

 

[Alcibiades]

MGS3, GTA:SA & GT4 - one of these titles won't do as good as some people think. Unfortunately I think it will be MGS3

last time I brought this up, I was accused of trolling...

just look at Twin Snakes sales numbers, and the fact that there is Splinter Cell now (not that it's a bigger franchise, but it's competition in some ways), and the fact that you're launching right against (within days of) NFS: Underground 2, GT4, Goldeneye RA, Echoes and Halo 2. last time the only main competition was Devil May Cry and GTA 3.


fans will eat it up, but I wonder if casual gamers may opt for something else...

 

[Musashi Wins!]

I think you're right. I'm a bit more than casual gamer and it's slid behind many other titles for me. Apparently I'm not alone in the marketplace in thinking that Twin Snakes was a boring re-make and maybe that hurt the franchise this year.

 

[SolidSnakex]

I think you're right. I'm a bit more than casual gamer and it's slid behind many other titles for me. Apparently I'm not alone in the marketplace in thinking that Twin Snakes was a boring re-make and maybe that hurt the franchise this year.

How's something that didn't sell going to hurt the franchise. There was a reason Kojima had no interest in making a GC MGS.

 

[Mr_Furious]

Why should this year be any different

 

[Spike]

I used to have the mindset that I needed to get every big game that I wanted on day one. Since my financial troubles, though, I find it very easy to wait on any game.

 

[Iceman]

All I can handle this year is Doom 3, Halo 2, Half-Life 2, Jade Empire, Fable and sports games.. maybe Star Ocean 3.

GTA: San Andreas, Metal Gear Solid 3 and lesser titles will all have to wair for next year.

But I don't think this will hurt other video game companies at all. If anything video games sales only hurt when people aren't coming in to the stores. All these games will give everyone a reason to get to the store and look around. It will be a boon to the industry as a whole I wager.

 

[dog$]

It's not our fault if publishers can't figure out a better time to release their games.

 

[isamu]

I used to have the mindset that I needed to get every big game that I wanted on day one. Since my financial troubles, though, I find it very easy to wait on any game.

same

 

[Prospero]

I have enough of a AAA-level backlog that I could easily last through the Christmas season, playing at least a couple of hours every single night (which I won't do). Partly because I bought so many price-dropped titles during the first quarter of '04. Q1 '05 will probably be the same.

 

[Date of Lies]

Do you guys usually wait to finish a game in order to buy a new one?

Like instead of buying 3 triple-A titles in a single week, you buy one of them and wait to finish/get tired of it before buying another?

Cause I'm thinking of actually doing that this time.

 

[Mr_Furious]

I used to have the mindset that I needed to get every big game that I wanted on day one. Since my financial troubles, though, I find it very easy to wait on any game.

Same here except replace financial troubles with family expenses (some would argue they're the same). I usually wait until trusty Fry's puts the game(s) on sale or simply wait until a price drop.

 

[Littleberu]

Do you guys usually wait to finish a game in order to buy a new one?

Like instead of buying 3 triple-A titles in a single week, you buy one of them and wait to finish/get tired of it before buying another?

Cause I'm thinking of actually doing that this time.

I'm the kind of guy who usually finish a game, then begins a new one. I'm more like starting a new game, and in the middle of the game, buying a new game, then in the middle of this game finishing another old game, etc.

 

[NotMSRP]

You guys heard of Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, Gamefly, etc. to calm your day one needs? If those fail to have them on time, there's another way...

 

[Ranger X]

Do you guys usually wait to finish a game in order to buy a new one?

Like instead of buying 3 triple-A titles in a single week, you buy one of them and wait to finish/get tired of it before buying another?

Cause I'm thinking of actually doing that this time.

Maybe you should.... it gives you some distance from what you could buy impulsively. And maybe you wouldn't have a big back log and also save money...
I work this way since a couple of years and it works wonders. (well, actually no because i put much more money in used stuff so i have more game to play and a bigger and bigger backlog lolololol)

 

[Mr_Furious]

Do you guys usually wait to finish a game in order to buy a new one?

Like instead of buying 3 triple-A titles in a single week, you buy one of them and wait to finish/get tired of it before buying another?

Cause I'm thinking of actually doing that this time.

I lack the will power for such a thing

 

[lordmrw]

I feel kind of guilty, but I'm looking forward to the games that will drop in price after christmas. There are so many games that I would buy at full price, but they're all sandwiched so close that I can't get all of them. Alot of devs are going to be hurting really bad come january.

 

[NotMSRP]

Don't buy games at full price. Look for ways to get it closer to the wholesale price. It's okay to cut out the middleman's (retailer's) profits. You also have a month to buy so that it is still tracked in the NPD in the same period and still benefits the companies.