The "Sony Games" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
When my brother first had his Super Nintendo Entertainment System back in 1996, there was really only one place you would think of for buying new games. The internet was relatively new and certainly wasn’t the standard household communications tool it is now. Amazon and Play were still in diapers, and most game-specific stores were by catalogue and advertised through gaming magazines, like the Special Reserve Gaming Network. GAME, better known as Electronics Boutique, had the biggest collection of games for all systems on the high street, and offered great deals as well as the chance to swap some played games for discount against new. But alas, as the credit crunch is moving on into yet another year, headlines are appearing suggesting that Game can’t afford to stock new releases due to their creditors not being able to lend. So is this the end to the troubles for GAME? Is the biggest high street gaming chain seeing the start of things to come?
I’ve always been fond of GAME. Building themselves up by using the Electronics Boutique name until they became big enough to stop paying for the American firm’s name and start running on their own steam. Back in the day if there was ever a game you wanted for PC, Playstation, N64 or the Game Boy Color, Game would always be your first choice. Their well laid out stores had the best selection beating competitors like WH Smith, Currys, Dixons, Comet, Woolworths and everyone else in choice, and pricing. They even had an enjoyment guarantee that would allow you to bring the games back for a full refund or swap for another title if you didn’t like the game, on the condition that the game was returned in a new-sellable condition. If the title you wanted wasn’t in stock they would be able to tell you when it would be coming into store, and even reserve it for you if you wanted to be sure you would get it on returning to them.
However, since around half way through the Xbox/PS2 gaming era, GAME have been showing little signs that uncertainties have been effecting the business. GAME have dropped their price-matching, and their enjoyment guarantee meaning the only way you can return a game (unless clearly faulty) is to trade it in for discount on other games. They started charging for their loyalty reward card, which, when they started doing so, meant you would have to spend £100 on games just to get your money back. Their Debenhams concession stores (of which I used to be a member) have closed. Prices have shot up on games, whether new or pre-owned. And to ensure (though seemingly not guarantee) that you will get a new release on release day, you now have to pay a deposit with your preorder. After the acquisition of their biggest competitor, Gamestation, they have also closed a number of stores and, despite claiming they would treat Gamestation as a seperate business for the customers that liked Gamestation’s way of operating, matched the prices to their GAME stores and introduced a similar loyalty reward scheme.
In my experience as a customer, and a part time staff member in the early noughties, GAME have been weakening through their way of conveyor-belt operating and their price-hikes. Obviously it is GAME’s intention to make money out of their customers. Unless they make a profit they wouldn’t be able to operate. However, they make their staff almost reek of desperation in a bid to secure sales. If you step into a GAME store, you’ll be targetted by atleast one employee almost imediately, or will hear a manager tell a staff member to approach you with what is seemingly a polite, “Are you looking for anything in particular?” As a customer, I immediately feel harassed and often made to feel stupid as either it is a case of ”Yes, I am looking for a particular game, but mainly to see if it is of similar price to gaming websites before I make a decision as to whether I want to buy it. And funnily enough, I know the 3DS section is where all the 3DS games are located…” or “No, I am just browsing”. Rarely when I walk into a GAME store am I going in with the sole intention of buying a product regardless of the price.
Would you like fries with that?
Every purchase is followed by, “Is there anything you want to pre-order?”. To be fair, if there is I would have probably done it via the GAME website, or another competitor’s, for convienience. Quite often if you explain you’re just after what you’ve gone into the store for, or money’s a bit tight, they’ll use what seems to me to be a desperate attempt to get more money into the till: “Well if money is tight, we’re accepting preorder deposits of £10 towards the PS Vita which will only cost you a further £220 at launch in less that a month’s time…” I said money is tight, not that I will suddenly have 5 numbers on the lottery this weekend and will suddenly be able to afford it…
“and if you change your mind you can reclaim your deposit!” Or I could keep my £10, use it to fuel my car, buy some food, pay towards some bills, etc, and then if, when I’m ready, there is a good deal on the PS Vita, I may consider purchasing one from you.
The trouble is, GAME staff are made to feel that they’re not providing a good customer service unless they read the laminated script that they must memorise and read back word for word to each customer. I would consider it more of a customer service is a common sense approach was given by staff to customers. If you see someone browsing the console offers, speak to them like humans. Ask them what their thoughts are and advise them if you can accomodate their needs through an offer. If they’re looking at the chart games, then ask them what they’re after and offer to check if in stock. If you speak to them like humans at the tillpoint, they will often have a chat back which will let you know if they’re after any new releases which you can then advise about preorders and the benefits. The management to staff approach on sales is like ringing through to a foreign call centre. The staff seemingly have to go through a detailed script in a specific order regardless of the responses by the customer before they move on, which proves more frustrating as a customer than helpful.
“Oh, by the way, did you know you can trade games in for discount?”
Whilst trading in games helps you to ‘save’ some money against newer titles, what you’ve got to realise is that for the average console game, you’ll have spent £40 on it if you bought it on release. If, like me, you value your purchases, you’ll have kept them until you’re absolutely sure you’re not going to play them again. By then, the original selling price of the game has gone down so you may get, if you’re lucky, about £8 for the game. So so far you’re down £32. You get your £8 discount off of a new £40 game which means you have to hand over £32 cash to GAME. Therefore your new game has cost you £64. Meanwhile, Game sell your game for atleast 40% more to someone who doesn’t realise, or even care, that the game was sold to GAME for less, and GAME make a nice profit – on both the tradein and the new game.
Whilst the morals of pre-owned gaming are another story, they’re a large part of GAME’s success, especially for the average gamer who plays through a game, gets bored and wants a new experience. Unfortunately, replayability, or lack of, whilst being another subject for discussion, is a reason for gamers to trade in their used games for titles they haven’t yet played, it just goes to show that gaming has evolved from the arcade style addiction gaming to the once-played never again style of gaming the we see in all but a few select titles these days. But it is the pre-owned business that seems to be keeping GAME alive at the moment.
This has been seen by other retailers who have also had to cope with the recent struggles. HMV have been trying to expand on their gaming business through trade-ins as have massive supermarket chain Tesco. However, it is GAME’s biggest competitors that seem to have recently changed their strategies to target GAME’s customers. Online retail is quickly becomming the best choice for customers who can merely google the item they want and be told where they can get it cheapest out of a wide selection of online retailers. Amazon, Play, and even GAME’s online store offer products at a much more reasonable price in comparison to the high street. With fewer staff to pay, the profits, to some degree, can be passed on to the customer. Due to loopholes in tax laws, most online retailers operate from places like Jersey which allow them to make even larger profits. And with online shopping becomming more and more accessible in the broadband age, you would be daft not to consider purchasing or preordering that latest game online. Some online retailers even offer trade-in incentives that make it even more beneficial to shop online.
The Legend of Stock Shortages…
What you should bare in mind is that back in the old days of gaming, stock shortages on new titles were not unusual. Nintendo 64′s The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was hard to get hold of when it first came out. As were the original Pokémon titles. The importance of pre-ordering big releases seemed more prominent back then. And if you were lucky enough to get a preorder from an online retailer or a catalogue firm like Special Reserve, chances are you would get the game delivered to your door on release, or if you were even luckier, could brag to your mates that you had your copy a day or two before they did. However, these days preorders are normally to allow stores the chance to ensure they have enough stock to order from the suppliers which also ensured over-stocking a potential flop didn’t become an issue for the retailier.
Times have inevitably changed and at the moment I don’t feel that GAME are keeping up with them. They need to start thinking more of the customer, make the high street shop more of a pleasant, rather than an offputting experience. Reduce prices to be a little more competative and even consider re-introducing price-matching (against local retailers) – a policy that forms part of John Lewis’s ever growing success in their field of retail. Offer more value for trade-in, and try selling some stock they already have rather than just focussing on stock they haven’t even got yet.
Are GAME old fashioned? As a high street retailer yes. by reducing their retail incentives and almost forcing their regular customers online, they’re potentially hurting their own trade.
A glimpse through the time vortex…
The future of GAME is inevitably their online business. They already offer better deals through the GAME, Gamestation and Gameplay websites and tghis is obviously through then cost savings of not having to pay for premises, haulage, staff and the obvious bills surrounding them. They’re already making decisions regarding their european expansion and I wouldn’t be suprised if we see more store closures in the UK in the near future. I can’t see them going bust, but unless they consider defeat on the high street, they may be calling in the administrators to attempt to save them in the short term.
I know the subject has caused much controversy on here lately but felt this an appropriate formate to voice my own opinion in an objective manner
This may appear on a google search, but it is 100% my own work and will have originated from my own personal blog-site
*Edit: Title updated 21/3/2012 following recent events
I’ve always been fond of GAME. Building themselves up by using the Electronics Boutique name until they became big enough to stop paying for the American firm’s name and start running on their own steam. Back in the day if there was ever a game you wanted for PC, Playstation, N64 or the Game Boy Color, Game would always be your first choice. Their well laid out stores had the best selection beating competitors like WH Smith, Currys, Dixons, Comet, Woolworths and everyone else in choice, and pricing. They even had an enjoyment guarantee that would allow you to bring the games back for a full refund or swap for another title if you didn’t like the game, on the condition that the game was returned in a new-sellable condition. If the title you wanted wasn’t in stock they would be able to tell you when it would be coming into store, and even reserve it for you if you wanted to be sure you would get it on returning to them.
However, since around half way through the Xbox/PS2 gaming era, GAME have been showing little signs that uncertainties have been effecting the business. GAME have dropped their price-matching, and their enjoyment guarantee meaning the only way you can return a game (unless clearly faulty) is to trade it in for discount on other games. They started charging for their loyalty reward card, which, when they started doing so, meant you would have to spend £100 on games just to get your money back. Their Debenhams concession stores (of which I used to be a member) have closed. Prices have shot up on games, whether new or pre-owned. And to ensure (though seemingly not guarantee) that you will get a new release on release day, you now have to pay a deposit with your preorder. After the acquisition of their biggest competitor, Gamestation, they have also closed a number of stores and, despite claiming they would treat Gamestation as a seperate business for the customers that liked Gamestation’s way of operating, matched the prices to their GAME stores and introduced a similar loyalty reward scheme.
In my experience as a customer, and a part time staff member in the early noughties, GAME have been weakening through their way of conveyor-belt operating and their price-hikes. Obviously it is GAME’s intention to make money out of their customers. Unless they make a profit they wouldn’t be able to operate. However, they make their staff almost reek of desperation in a bid to secure sales. If you step into a GAME store, you’ll be targetted by atleast one employee almost imediately, or will hear a manager tell a staff member to approach you with what is seemingly a polite, “Are you looking for anything in particular?” As a customer, I immediately feel harassed and often made to feel stupid as either it is a case of ”Yes, I am looking for a particular game, but mainly to see if it is of similar price to gaming websites before I make a decision as to whether I want to buy it. And funnily enough, I know the 3DS section is where all the 3DS games are located…” or “No, I am just browsing”. Rarely when I walk into a GAME store am I going in with the sole intention of buying a product regardless of the price.
Would you like fries with that?
Every purchase is followed by, “Is there anything you want to pre-order?”. To be fair, if there is I would have probably done it via the GAME website, or another competitor’s, for convienience. Quite often if you explain you’re just after what you’ve gone into the store for, or money’s a bit tight, they’ll use what seems to me to be a desperate attempt to get more money into the till: “Well if money is tight, we’re accepting preorder deposits of £10 towards the PS Vita which will only cost you a further £220 at launch in less that a month’s time…” I said money is tight, not that I will suddenly have 5 numbers on the lottery this weekend and will suddenly be able to afford it…
“and if you change your mind you can reclaim your deposit!” Or I could keep my £10, use it to fuel my car, buy some food, pay towards some bills, etc, and then if, when I’m ready, there is a good deal on the PS Vita, I may consider purchasing one from you.
The trouble is, GAME staff are made to feel that they’re not providing a good customer service unless they read the laminated script that they must memorise and read back word for word to each customer. I would consider it more of a customer service is a common sense approach was given by staff to customers. If you see someone browsing the console offers, speak to them like humans. Ask them what their thoughts are and advise them if you can accomodate their needs through an offer. If they’re looking at the chart games, then ask them what they’re after and offer to check if in stock. If you speak to them like humans at the tillpoint, they will often have a chat back which will let you know if they’re after any new releases which you can then advise about preorders and the benefits. The management to staff approach on sales is like ringing through to a foreign call centre. The staff seemingly have to go through a detailed script in a specific order regardless of the responses by the customer before they move on, which proves more frustrating as a customer than helpful.
“Oh, by the way, did you know you can trade games in for discount?”
Whilst trading in games helps you to ‘save’ some money against newer titles, what you’ve got to realise is that for the average console game, you’ll have spent £40 on it if you bought it on release. If, like me, you value your purchases, you’ll have kept them until you’re absolutely sure you’re not going to play them again. By then, the original selling price of the game has gone down so you may get, if you’re lucky, about £8 for the game. So so far you’re down £32. You get your £8 discount off of a new £40 game which means you have to hand over £32 cash to GAME. Therefore your new game has cost you £64. Meanwhile, Game sell your game for atleast 40% more to someone who doesn’t realise, or even care, that the game was sold to GAME for less, and GAME make a nice profit – on both the tradein and the new game.
Whilst the morals of pre-owned gaming are another story, they’re a large part of GAME’s success, especially for the average gamer who plays through a game, gets bored and wants a new experience. Unfortunately, replayability, or lack of, whilst being another subject for discussion, is a reason for gamers to trade in their used games for titles they haven’t yet played, it just goes to show that gaming has evolved from the arcade style addiction gaming to the once-played never again style of gaming the we see in all but a few select titles these days. But it is the pre-owned business that seems to be keeping GAME alive at the moment.
This has been seen by other retailers who have also had to cope with the recent struggles. HMV have been trying to expand on their gaming business through trade-ins as have massive supermarket chain Tesco. However, it is GAME’s biggest competitors that seem to have recently changed their strategies to target GAME’s customers. Online retail is quickly becomming the best choice for customers who can merely google the item they want and be told where they can get it cheapest out of a wide selection of online retailers. Amazon, Play, and even GAME’s online store offer products at a much more reasonable price in comparison to the high street. With fewer staff to pay, the profits, to some degree, can be passed on to the customer. Due to loopholes in tax laws, most online retailers operate from places like Jersey which allow them to make even larger profits. And with online shopping becomming more and more accessible in the broadband age, you would be daft not to consider purchasing or preordering that latest game online. Some online retailers even offer trade-in incentives that make it even more beneficial to shop online.
The Legend of Stock Shortages…
What you should bare in mind is that back in the old days of gaming, stock shortages on new titles were not unusual. Nintendo 64′s The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was hard to get hold of when it first came out. As were the original Pokémon titles. The importance of pre-ordering big releases seemed more prominent back then. And if you were lucky enough to get a preorder from an online retailer or a catalogue firm like Special Reserve, chances are you would get the game delivered to your door on release, or if you were even luckier, could brag to your mates that you had your copy a day or two before they did. However, these days preorders are normally to allow stores the chance to ensure they have enough stock to order from the suppliers which also ensured over-stocking a potential flop didn’t become an issue for the retailier.
Times have inevitably changed and at the moment I don’t feel that GAME are keeping up with them. They need to start thinking more of the customer, make the high street shop more of a pleasant, rather than an offputting experience. Reduce prices to be a little more competative and even consider re-introducing price-matching (against local retailers) – a policy that forms part of John Lewis’s ever growing success in their field of retail. Offer more value for trade-in, and try selling some stock they already have rather than just focussing on stock they haven’t even got yet.
Are GAME old fashioned? As a high street retailer yes. by reducing their retail incentives and almost forcing their regular customers online, they’re potentially hurting their own trade.
A glimpse through the time vortex…
The future of GAME is inevitably their online business. They already offer better deals through the GAME, Gamestation and Gameplay websites and tghis is obviously through then cost savings of not having to pay for premises, haulage, staff and the obvious bills surrounding them. They’re already making decisions regarding their european expansion and I wouldn’t be suprised if we see more store closures in the UK in the near future. I can’t see them going bust, but unless they consider defeat on the high street, they may be calling in the administrators to attempt to save them in the short term.
I know the subject has caused much controversy on here lately but felt this an appropriate formate to voice my own opinion in an objective manner
This may appear on a google search, but it is 100% my own work and will have originated from my own personal blog-site
*Edit: Title updated 21/3/2012 following recent events
Page:
Okay... one more post and I'm done. Three articles that help explain why I say what I say about big games companies and their attitude toward high street sales, and why I say they don't care...
EA on Online gaming
EA Online Pass (the important bit here is about second hand gamers "consuming bandwidth for free)
Interesting quote from indie retailer (just in case anyone is in any doubt as to the high street store's attitude and beliefs)
Why articles from 2009? because, as I've said, this is not a recent move. The big boys have been investing actively in this move for years...
How do they know it will work?
Remember all those games you've bought with a little slip of paper in them telling you to "register online and unlock a FREE green shotgun"?
How about the ones where you get EXCLUSIVE content from Play or Amazon or any other store...
They KNOW where you buy, and they know how many of those buyers have and use the internet for downloads...
NOTHING in gaming is free. It's either a marketing ploy, or you've already paid for it...
Just thought this might interest a few of you..:-)
EA on Online gaming
EA Online Pass (the important bit here is about second hand gamers "consuming bandwidth for free)
Interesting quote from indie retailer (just in case anyone is in any doubt as to the high street store's attitude and beliefs)
Why articles from 2009? because, as I've said, this is not a recent move. The big boys have been investing actively in this move for years...
How do they know it will work?
Remember all those games you've bought with a little slip of paper in them telling you to "register online and unlock a FREE green shotgun"?
How about the ones where you get EXCLUSIVE content from Play or Amazon or any other store...
They KNOW where you buy, and they know how many of those buyers have and use the internet for downloads...
NOTHING in gaming is free. It's either a marketing ploy, or you've already paid for it...
Just thought this might interest a few of you..:-)
@nin
I tell what I know, and what I know comes straight from reps/ PR's and conferences hosted by the games companies. i don't embellish, add to or quote out of context.
It seems that you may have understood my position on this, i.e. that I don't necessarily agree, but I do know what the attitude from the games devs is.
However, I still think this is actually a stroke of genius, regardless of whether anyone feels that the benefits will be short term. There may well be a short term explosion in profits, followed by a steadying out of new funds,but the fact that broadband access is still a growing market would also suggest that there will be a steady growth in gaming access.
I quote Steam as one example. I could just as easily quote all of the download notifications and ad material my son receives from xbox live.
Or the complete games he's bought and downloaded with live points...
Or the demos he downloads that settle his mind on an upcoming game...
Or the e-mails my wife gets with regard to sims expansions...
Or the mail shots, promo offers and constant notifications I get from play and Amazon...
Or the constant battering I get from Sega with regard to the next Total War game...
...and so the list goes on.
Casual gamers are just as susceptible to ad campaigns as anyone else, and phone apps and games are nonetheless a profitable outlet for games devs. The figures aren't skewed by them, they are an important factor not to be underestimated.
I've probably said all I need to on this matter, so I'll leave it to the rest of you (I'll only end up repeating myself!) Hopefully, I've raised a few points for discussion:-)
edit; people 18 to 40?!
I'm 44 this year... My dad is retired, and he buys online, downloadable products gladly and without issue.
parents buy stuff for kids under 16...
not sure 18 to 40 is entirely accurate...
I tell what I know, and what I know comes straight from reps/ PR's and conferences hosted by the games companies. i don't embellish, add to or quote out of context.
It seems that you may have understood my position on this, i.e. that I don't necessarily agree, but I do know what the attitude from the games devs is.
However, I still think this is actually a stroke of genius, regardless of whether anyone feels that the benefits will be short term. There may well be a short term explosion in profits, followed by a steadying out of new funds,but the fact that broadband access is still a growing market would also suggest that there will be a steady growth in gaming access.
I quote Steam as one example. I could just as easily quote all of the download notifications and ad material my son receives from xbox live.
Or the complete games he's bought and downloaded with live points...
Or the demos he downloads that settle his mind on an upcoming game...
Or the e-mails my wife gets with regard to sims expansions...
Or the mail shots, promo offers and constant notifications I get from play and Amazon...
Or the constant battering I get from Sega with regard to the next Total War game...
...and so the list goes on.
Casual gamers are just as susceptible to ad campaigns as anyone else, and phone apps and games are nonetheless a profitable outlet for games devs. The figures aren't skewed by them, they are an important factor not to be underestimated.
I've probably said all I need to on this matter, so I'll leave it to the rest of you (I'll only end up repeating myself!) Hopefully, I've raised a few points for discussion:-)
edit; people 18 to 40?!
I'm 44 this year... My dad is retired, and he buys online, downloadable products gladly and without issue.
parents buy stuff for kids under 16...
not sure 18 to 40 is entirely accurate...
People under 16
Casual gamers
Grandparents
People buying gifts
People against downloading
People who can't download because of a lack of internet
People who survive on 2nd hand and trade-ins
All people lose access to buying games. What's left is
People 18-40
I think the casual market is going to get hit hard and that will filter down to the next generation. My opinion is the by persuing this avenue or short-term profit the games companies are being short-sighted and cutting themselves off.
I also think the figures being mentioned here are somewhat off if they're including money made from App games. No-one is bothered about spending a few quid on a game for their phones, it's a different matter when it's £40 with nothing tangible to show for it. The PC gamers citing Steam are being naive, think about the type of person who uses that service and ask yourself which group from above they fit into.
The move towards download will be a, somewhat temporary, gaming apocalypse for the games companies because when it crashes and burns, the shops will return.
Just a last point. We live in a pretty well developed country but there are still broadband blackspots. Are those people screwed? What about less developed countries where those blackspots are even bigger? I'm looking at a US broadband coverage map & only one out of the 50 states has more than 75% coverage.
Casual gamers
Grandparents
People buying gifts
People against downloading
People who can't download because of a lack of internet
People who survive on 2nd hand and trade-ins
All people lose access to buying games. What's left is
People 18-40
I think the casual market is going to get hit hard and that will filter down to the next generation. My opinion is the by persuing this avenue or short-term profit the games companies are being short-sighted and cutting themselves off.
I also think the figures being mentioned here are somewhat off if they're including money made from App games. No-one is bothered about spending a few quid on a game for their phones, it's a different matter when it's £40 with nothing tangible to show for it. The PC gamers citing Steam are being naive, think about the type of person who uses that service and ask yourself which group from above they fit into.
The move towards download will be a, somewhat temporary, gaming apocalypse for the games companies because when it crashes and burns, the shops will return.
Just a last point. We live in a pretty well developed country but there are still broadband blackspots. Are those people screwed? What about less developed countries where those blackspots are even bigger? I'm looking at a US broadband coverage map & only one out of the 50 states has more than 75% coverage.
Hearing reports of some mega cheap pre-owned stock being sold off at Gamestation stores, some of it also available online. Not a massive surprise really, if they have piles of stock lying around they would probably be best to try and cut their losses by selling it to raise some cash. Doesn't really seem right to post it in the bargain section, but if anyone fancies the most fun game of last year for under £3 click here
pb wrote:
You have to separate promotion from in-store sales, though. Promoting a game in the high street is not directly comparable to then selling that game in the high street.
Game promotion in store is profitable to companies because it raises awareness of that game. This does not necessarily translate in to sales in the store, but also online and even downloads.
.
I would agree, if the profit margins were closer. Trouble is, they're not... Any promotion needs to pull it's weight, i.e. MAKE a profit. Given the situation with declining high street sales, the extortionate cost of the actual promotion itself etc. etc., it leaves companies looking at other forms of advertising much more favourably.
You have to separate promotion from in-store sales, though. Promoting a game in the high street is not directly comparable to then selling that game in the high street.
Game promotion in store is profitable to companies because it raises awareness of that game. This does not necessarily translate in to sales in the store, but also online and even downloads.
.
I would agree, if the profit margins were closer. Trouble is, they're not... Any promotion needs to pull it's weight, i.e. MAKE a profit. Given the situation with declining high street sales, the extortionate cost of the actual promotion itself etc. etc., it leaves companies looking at other forms of advertising much more favourably.
You have to separate promotion from in-store sales, though. Promoting a game in the high street is not directly comparable to then selling that game in the high street.
Game promotion in store is profitable to companies because it raises awareness of that game. This does not necessarily translate in to sales in the store, but also online and even downloads.
Therefore the store front ads, standees etc are important to ongoing advertising. I would expect that publishers like EA would continue to provide in-store advertising if the stores in question ONLY did advertising and didn't even sell the games themselves.
I'm sure GAME and Gamestation would like to believe there is a direct correlation between the large advertising stands and their own sales, but it's not that straight forward.
Of course, large publishers could do a deal with supermarkets instead, but this just perpetuates the system of the larger companies having all the muscle and may lead to smaller publishers shutting down.
I still don't think the infrastructure is quite there for download only from major publishers and won't be for at least a few years. We'll have to wait for both the next generation of consoles, which need to have in excess of 1TB hard drives or cloud gaming and the next generation of Broadband to be rolled out first.
Game promotion in store is profitable to companies because it raises awareness of that game. This does not necessarily translate in to sales in the store, but also online and even downloads.
Therefore the store front ads, standees etc are important to ongoing advertising. I would expect that publishers like EA would continue to provide in-store advertising if the stores in question ONLY did advertising and didn't even sell the games themselves.
I'm sure GAME and Gamestation would like to believe there is a direct correlation between the large advertising stands and their own sales, but it's not that straight forward.
Of course, large publishers could do a deal with supermarkets instead, but this just perpetuates the system of the larger companies having all the muscle and may lead to smaller publishers shutting down.
I still don't think the infrastructure is quite there for download only from major publishers and won't be for at least a few years. We'll have to wait for both the next generation of consoles, which need to have in excess of 1TB hard drives or cloud gaming and the next generation of Broadband to be rolled out first.
pb wrote:
chasfh wrote:
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...
Actually, they'll suffer somewhat due to a lack of point-of-sale and ability to demo their software in a game related environment (rather than just limited demos downloaded at home).
It might not seem like much, but this ability to physically 'connect' with customers is still very important.
First, a couple of facts that some of you may not be aware of.
The average expenditure for promotional material to sell a game in a high street store is £150 to £300 PER STORE. This might sound excessive, but for example, the vinyl sleeves that cover security barriers cost approximately £120 a piece. Then there's posters, hanging banners, dummy sleeves...
This does not include the cost of marketable wall space, bought from the likes of Game to put the product in prominent places in the store. Again, I refer to details I was privy to as a Gamestation manager.
A Ubisoft rep once told me that the difference in profit margin between selling a game in store, online store and as a downloadable product was as follows;
Instore, less than 15% margin
Online store, less than 25%
Downloadable, in excess of 75%
With regard to online business and the instore decline, here is an extract from an article from some of the industry leaders;
“On a global basis it looks like retail delivery of physical software peaked in 2008. We expect a slow, steady decline for physical game sales, with a steady increase for online delivery of games and new business models such as subscriptions and virtual item sales,” said David Cole, an analyst with DFC Intelligence. The report predicts that, starting in 2013, online delivery of games and online business models will surpass sales of physical retail software."
So, a little maths...
Taking into account the cost of physical production, delivery and distribution, marketing and promotion and the above facts, the ACTUAL difference in profit is considerable, but we'll keep it simple for the purpose of this. The figures are also further skewed by the impact of trade ins on the profit made by the games companies...
Let's assume that online sales make EA twice the amount of profit (the figure is actually much higher than that!). This means that instore, they need to sell twice as many copies to equal the profit made online through downloaded copies or places such as Play and Amazon.
Now, let's assume that Game disappears. PLEASE tell me nobody truly believes that over 50% of Game's regular customer base will never buy a game again!? I would be stunned if the figure was as high as 10%, but we'll be generous and say 30%. This would leave 70% of those who used to shop in game now buying online and making EA TWICE THE PROFIT on each game sold!
Less sales, more profit. Good business sense.
Now, just before I get battered by arguments that face- to- face sales on games are a good thing and will be missed, I agree with you. HOWEVER, my point is, and has been from the word go, that the effect of this kind of marketing is NOT GREAT ENOUGH to make a difference.
I could give a number of examples of how I'm bombarded with promotional material online, but to save getting too long- winded here's just one..
I buy a game, load it up on my PC. It registers with Steam. First off, before I've even played, it shows me available DLC. I play for a couple of hours, i quit and Steam opens up on a store page and proceeds to show me COMING SOON and SIMILAR GAMES. Listed amongst those is the next in the series I'm currently playing.
Question; where do I buy my next game from? Do I drive to town, pay for parking, queue up in a Game store for twenty minutes, OR do I click the download button and play it ten minutes later?
Losing the high street sales is not a mistake, it's actually marketing genius.
I know this is going to get attacked with arguments of how important and impactful the "personal touch" is, but the key word there is "personal". Different folks, different strokes and all that. And quite honestly, not enough people care. The games companies certainly don't.
chasfh wrote:
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...
Actually, they'll suffer somewhat due to a lack of point-of-sale and ability to demo their software in a game related environment (rather than just limited demos downloaded at home).
It might not seem like much, but this ability to physically 'connect' with customers is still very important.
First, a couple of facts that some of you may not be aware of.
The average expenditure for promotional material to sell a game in a high street store is £150 to £300 PER STORE. This might sound excessive, but for example, the vinyl sleeves that cover security barriers cost approximately £120 a piece. Then there's posters, hanging banners, dummy sleeves...
This does not include the cost of marketable wall space, bought from the likes of Game to put the product in prominent places in the store. Again, I refer to details I was privy to as a Gamestation manager.
A Ubisoft rep once told me that the difference in profit margin between selling a game in store, online store and as a downloadable product was as follows;
Instore, less than 15% margin
Online store, less than 25%
Downloadable, in excess of 75%
With regard to online business and the instore decline, here is an extract from an article from some of the industry leaders;
“On a global basis it looks like retail delivery of physical software peaked in 2008. We expect a slow, steady decline for physical game sales, with a steady increase for online delivery of games and new business models such as subscriptions and virtual item sales,” said David Cole, an analyst with DFC Intelligence. The report predicts that, starting in 2013, online delivery of games and online business models will surpass sales of physical retail software."
So, a little maths...
Taking into account the cost of physical production, delivery and distribution, marketing and promotion and the above facts, the ACTUAL difference in profit is considerable, but we'll keep it simple for the purpose of this. The figures are also further skewed by the impact of trade ins on the profit made by the games companies...
Let's assume that online sales make EA twice the amount of profit (the figure is actually much higher than that!). This means that instore, they need to sell twice as many copies to equal the profit made online through downloaded copies or places such as Play and Amazon.
Now, let's assume that Game disappears. PLEASE tell me nobody truly believes that over 50% of Game's regular customer base will never buy a game again!? I would be stunned if the figure was as high as 10%, but we'll be generous and say 30%. This would leave 70% of those who used to shop in game now buying online and making EA TWICE THE PROFIT on each game sold!
Less sales, more profit. Good business sense.
Now, just before I get battered by arguments that face- to- face sales on games are a good thing and will be missed, I agree with you. HOWEVER, my point is, and has been from the word go, that the effect of this kind of marketing is NOT GREAT ENOUGH to make a difference.
I could give a number of examples of how I'm bombarded with promotional material online, but to save getting too long- winded here's just one..
I buy a game, load it up on my PC. It registers with Steam. First off, before I've even played, it shows me available DLC. I play for a couple of hours, i quit and Steam opens up on a store page and proceeds to show me COMING SOON and SIMILAR GAMES. Listed amongst those is the next in the series I'm currently playing.
Question; where do I buy my next game from? Do I drive to town, pay for parking, queue up in a Game store for twenty minutes, OR do I click the download button and play it ten minutes later?
Losing the high street sales is not a mistake, it's actually marketing genius.
I know this is going to get attacked with arguments of how important and impactful the "personal touch" is, but the key word there is "personal". Different folks, different strokes and all that. And quite honestly, not enough people care. The games companies certainly don't.
For me personally, I'm just hoping my copy of SSX from Freeola is sent out and turns up ;)
chasfh wrote:
Nin wrote:
[i]chasfh wrote:
[i]My son gave me a real insight yesterday. He sat and ordered Mass Effect 3 from Play on his mobile phone..[/s]
As did my sister when she found she couldn't buy the next Sims 3 game in the shops and doesn't have any acounts to order with.[/i]
As I said, I appreciate the fact that some will not or cannot do online purchases. However, also as I said, this will not damage game sales to any great extent and the majority WILL ultimately download/ order online.
To clarify, at NO POINT have I ever stated that this will not affect anyone at all. It affects EVERYONE, however, not to the extent and not in a way that games companies care about or will even notice, and certainly not in a way that will EVER alter the inevitable progress of the game sales industry.
I am not taking sides, I am merely pointing out the futility of expecting EA and other big companies to CARE. Whilst your sister may not be able to purchase the new Sims 3 expansion, MILLIONS of others will.
Easily.
Online.
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...[/i]
Actually, they'll suffer somewhat due to a lack of point-of-sale and ability to demo their software in a game related environment (rather than just limited demos downloaded at home).
It might not seem like much, but this ability to physically 'connect' with customers is still very important.
Nin wrote:
[i]chasfh wrote:
[i]My son gave me a real insight yesterday. He sat and ordered Mass Effect 3 from Play on his mobile phone..[/s]
As did my sister when she found she couldn't buy the next Sims 3 game in the shops and doesn't have any acounts to order with.[/i]
As I said, I appreciate the fact that some will not or cannot do online purchases. However, also as I said, this will not damage game sales to any great extent and the majority WILL ultimately download/ order online.
To clarify, at NO POINT have I ever stated that this will not affect anyone at all. It affects EVERYONE, however, not to the extent and not in a way that games companies care about or will even notice, and certainly not in a way that will EVER alter the inevitable progress of the game sales industry.
I am not taking sides, I am merely pointing out the futility of expecting EA and other big companies to CARE. Whilst your sister may not be able to purchase the new Sims 3 expansion, MILLIONS of others will.
Easily.
Online.
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...[/i]
Actually, they'll suffer somewhat due to a lack of point-of-sale and ability to demo their software in a game related environment (rather than just limited demos downloaded at home).
It might not seem like much, but this ability to physically 'connect' with customers is still very important.
Nin wrote:
chasfh wrote:
[i]My son gave me a real insight yesterday. He sat and ordered Mass Effect 3 from Play on his mobile phone..[/s]
As did my sister when she found she couldn't buy the next Sims 3 game in the shops and doesn't have any acounts to order with.[/i]
As I said, I appreciate the fact that some will not or cannot do online purchases. However, also as I said, this will not damage game sales to any great extent and the majority WILL ultimately download/ order online.
To clarify, at NO POINT have I ever stated that this will not affect anyone at all. It affects EVERYONE, however, not to the extent and not in a way that games companies care about or will even notice, and certainly not in a way that will EVER alter the inevitable progress of the game sales industry.
I am not taking sides, I am merely pointing out the futility of expecting EA and other big companies to CARE. Whilst your sister may not be able to purchase the new Sims 3 expansion, MILLIONS of others will.
Easily.
Online.
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...
chasfh wrote:
[i]My son gave me a real insight yesterday. He sat and ordered Mass Effect 3 from Play on his mobile phone..[/s]
As did my sister when she found she couldn't buy the next Sims 3 game in the shops and doesn't have any acounts to order with.[/i]
As I said, I appreciate the fact that some will not or cannot do online purchases. However, also as I said, this will not damage game sales to any great extent and the majority WILL ultimately download/ order online.
To clarify, at NO POINT have I ever stated that this will not affect anyone at all. It affects EVERYONE, however, not to the extent and not in a way that games companies care about or will even notice, and certainly not in a way that will EVER alter the inevitable progress of the game sales industry.
I am not taking sides, I am merely pointing out the futility of expecting EA and other big companies to CARE. Whilst your sister may not be able to purchase the new Sims 3 expansion, MILLIONS of others will.
Easily.
Online.
So who suffers? I can tell you it's not EA...
Page: