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Let's face facts: the PS2 launch was so far off the proverbial mark that not even NASA could locate it. Yet despite this, the console sold out well before launch and will go ontos sell over 100 million units.
Why? Because of underhand marketting by Sony. Fake "demos" run off supercomputers (I have yet to see a 70 man Tekken brawl), and promises of online gaming that have only just materialised are key examples. The way Sony managed to steal the front page of magazines just as Sega made an announcement about the Dreamcast...
Sega, with the Dreamcast produced a pretty neat piece of kit. Original, innovative games, more than enough exclusives and revolutions like standardised console gaming should have paved the way to success... it failed.
So here we are in the ashes of the Dreamcast, and it seems that Nintendo have learned from Sega's mistakes: play the media. It isn't enough to make a good console- this isn't even necissary. What you need to break the market is media control.
Nintendo have gone about this pretty well. Purposely allowing details of the console's launch to be "leaked" only hours before they were to be announced grabbed media attention- every site and newspaper reported the story thinking they were getting details a head of time. Nintendo's E3 line up has been "leaked" too- just a few days before it was to be formally announced. Guess what? Every gaming site carried the news as a top story.
Meanwhile Nintendo haven't been too kind to serious gamers. They've just stopped retro importers from selling imported American SNES games that never came out in this country anyway. They've even gone to the lengths to make Luigi's Mansion available for puchase only- you won't be able to rnt it anywhere.
But Nintendo have realised that none of this matters. As long as they continue to get good news out into papers and prime time advertising they should do just fine. Most gamers won't know about the Luigi's Mansion news, and won't associate the lack of a copy in Blobkbusters with Nintendo.
That's what it's all about- disassociation. Sony managed to blame the lack of PS2 consoles at launch on the massive demand- ignoring the blatent scandels that arrose after the company's chip manufacturing plant failed to reach quality control standards.
The nice guys, like Sega, admitted fully that the console delay was their fault- they hdn't the capacity for online gaming on day one, so they delayed.
Just goes to show, nice guys finnish last...
Sonic
Why? Because of underhand marketting by Sony. Fake "demos" run off supercomputers (I have yet to see a 70 man Tekken brawl), and promises of online gaming that have only just materialised are key examples. The way Sony managed to steal the front page of magazines just as Sega made an announcement about the Dreamcast...
Sega, with the Dreamcast produced a pretty neat piece of kit. Original, innovative games, more than enough exclusives and revolutions like standardised console gaming should have paved the way to success... it failed.
So here we are in the ashes of the Dreamcast, and it seems that Nintendo have learned from Sega's mistakes: play the media. It isn't enough to make a good console- this isn't even necissary. What you need to break the market is media control.
Nintendo have gone about this pretty well. Purposely allowing details of the console's launch to be "leaked" only hours before they were to be announced grabbed media attention- every site and newspaper reported the story thinking they were getting details a head of time. Nintendo's E3 line up has been "leaked" too- just a few days before it was to be formally announced. Guess what? Every gaming site carried the news as a top story.
Meanwhile Nintendo haven't been too kind to serious gamers. They've just stopped retro importers from selling imported American SNES games that never came out in this country anyway. They've even gone to the lengths to make Luigi's Mansion available for puchase only- you won't be able to rnt it anywhere.
But Nintendo have realised that none of this matters. As long as they continue to get good news out into papers and prime time advertising they should do just fine. Most gamers won't know about the Luigi's Mansion news, and won't associate the lack of a copy in Blobkbusters with Nintendo.
That's what it's all about- disassociation. Sony managed to blame the lack of PS2 consoles at launch on the massive demand- ignoring the blatent scandels that arrose after the company's chip manufacturing plant failed to reach quality control standards.
The nice guys, like Sega, admitted fully that the console delay was their fault- they hdn't the capacity for online gaming on day one, so they delayed.
Just goes to show, nice guys finnish last...
Sonic
Page:
It seems so...
Sony have been experts in underhand marketing. As well as the methods you said, they have also, believe it or not, benefitted from piracy in my opinion. Rather than try to alleviate and stop piracy (like Nintendo have, first with cartridges, now with the 8mm discs) they have seemingly allowed copied PSone and PS2 games to circulate, becausee they know it is ultimately benefitting them. Whilst putting on a publicly disappointed face though...
Nintendo have seemingly learnt lessons. I am actually seeing advertising, both of billboards and tv, of Gamecube and its products. The hardware is there, the software has always been there, and the core user base has always been there. At last now they are starting to use the marketing techniques (to the extent that the Gamecube adverts are strangely reminiscient of Sony's Third Place surrealism) that took Sony from industry newcomers to market leaders.
Sony have been experts in underhand marketing. As well as the methods you said, they have also, believe it or not, benefitted from piracy in my opinion. Rather than try to alleviate and stop piracy (like Nintendo have, first with cartridges, now with the 8mm discs) they have seemingly allowed copied PSone and PS2 games to circulate, becausee they know it is ultimately benefitting them. Whilst putting on a publicly disappointed face though...
Nintendo have seemingly learnt lessons. I am actually seeing advertising, both of billboards and tv, of Gamecube and its products. The hardware is there, the software has always been there, and the core user base has always been there. At last now they are starting to use the marketing techniques (to the extent that the Gamecube adverts are strangely reminiscient of Sony's Third Place surrealism) that took Sony from industry newcomers to market leaders.
Let's face facts: the PS2 launch was so far off the proverbial mark that not even NASA could locate it. Yet despite this, the console sold out well before launch and will go ontos sell over 100 million units.
Why? Because of underhand marketting by Sony. Fake "demos" run off supercomputers (I have yet to see a 70 man Tekken brawl), and promises of online gaming that have only just materialised are key examples. The way Sony managed to steal the front page of magazines just as Sega made an announcement about the Dreamcast...
Sega, with the Dreamcast produced a pretty neat piece of kit. Original, innovative games, more than enough exclusives and revolutions like standardised console gaming should have paved the way to success... it failed.
So here we are in the ashes of the Dreamcast, and it seems that Nintendo have learned from Sega's mistakes: play the media. It isn't enough to make a good console- this isn't even necissary. What you need to break the market is media control.
Nintendo have gone about this pretty well. Purposely allowing details of the console's launch to be "leaked" only hours before they were to be announced grabbed media attention- every site and newspaper reported the story thinking they were getting details a head of time. Nintendo's E3 line up has been "leaked" too- just a few days before it was to be formally announced. Guess what? Every gaming site carried the news as a top story.
Meanwhile Nintendo haven't been too kind to serious gamers. They've just stopped retro importers from selling imported American SNES games that never came out in this country anyway. They've even gone to the lengths to make Luigi's Mansion available for puchase only- you won't be able to rnt it anywhere.
But Nintendo have realised that none of this matters. As long as they continue to get good news out into papers and prime time advertising they should do just fine. Most gamers won't know about the Luigi's Mansion news, and won't associate the lack of a copy in Blobkbusters with Nintendo.
That's what it's all about- disassociation. Sony managed to blame the lack of PS2 consoles at launch on the massive demand- ignoring the blatent scandels that arrose after the company's chip manufacturing plant failed to reach quality control standards.
The nice guys, like Sega, admitted fully that the console delay was their fault- they hdn't the capacity for online gaming on day one, so they delayed.
Just goes to show, nice guys finnish last...
Sonic
Why? Because of underhand marketting by Sony. Fake "demos" run off supercomputers (I have yet to see a 70 man Tekken brawl), and promises of online gaming that have only just materialised are key examples. The way Sony managed to steal the front page of magazines just as Sega made an announcement about the Dreamcast...
Sega, with the Dreamcast produced a pretty neat piece of kit. Original, innovative games, more than enough exclusives and revolutions like standardised console gaming should have paved the way to success... it failed.
So here we are in the ashes of the Dreamcast, and it seems that Nintendo have learned from Sega's mistakes: play the media. It isn't enough to make a good console- this isn't even necissary. What you need to break the market is media control.
Nintendo have gone about this pretty well. Purposely allowing details of the console's launch to be "leaked" only hours before they were to be announced grabbed media attention- every site and newspaper reported the story thinking they were getting details a head of time. Nintendo's E3 line up has been "leaked" too- just a few days before it was to be formally announced. Guess what? Every gaming site carried the news as a top story.
Meanwhile Nintendo haven't been too kind to serious gamers. They've just stopped retro importers from selling imported American SNES games that never came out in this country anyway. They've even gone to the lengths to make Luigi's Mansion available for puchase only- you won't be able to rnt it anywhere.
But Nintendo have realised that none of this matters. As long as they continue to get good news out into papers and prime time advertising they should do just fine. Most gamers won't know about the Luigi's Mansion news, and won't associate the lack of a copy in Blobkbusters with Nintendo.
That's what it's all about- disassociation. Sony managed to blame the lack of PS2 consoles at launch on the massive demand- ignoring the blatent scandels that arrose after the company's chip manufacturing plant failed to reach quality control standards.
The nice guys, like Sega, admitted fully that the console delay was their fault- they hdn't the capacity for online gaming on day one, so they delayed.
Just goes to show, nice guys finnish last...
Sonic
Page: