Gamers needs to get more information about launches

Oct 4, 2014 16:35 GMT  ·  By

In early September, the fall launch season for video games started in earnest with the delivery of Destiny, the first-person shooter from developer Bungie and publisher Activision that was one of the most hyped experiences of the year.

The game is offered on the PlayStation 4 from Sony, the Xbox One from Microsoft and last-gen consoles, but a significant portion of the public declared that it would probably play the title on the Sony platforms.

Destiny is a good example of the power that advertising has to influence the moves of gamers, even if they are not aware of it, and the type of bigger than necessary power that publishers and platform holders can sometimes have.

The Destiny fragrance that wasn’t

A deal between Sony and Activision allowed the creator of the PlayStation line of devices to include a number of exclusive in-game experiences for those who bought the game for the two home consoles, which are supposed to be unavailable for all other players for one year.

This is routine in the industry, although not normal in any way, but the more insidious element of the deal stipulated that Microsoft would be unable to deliver any advertising for its own Xbox One that mentioned that Destiny was playable on it.

This is borderline offensive because it basically denies information to the gamer who lacks the time to dig into extensive info about a coming release or to read too many previews.

Microsoft tried to get around the limitation by delivering a site which advertised a Destiny perfume, then redirecting the player towards offers for its hardware.

The long arm of the commercial deal

The initiative was smart and somewhat funny, something that Microsoft rarely manages to deliver, but it was quickly taken down because Activision considered that it breached its long-term deal with Sony.

Destiny will probably be much more popular on the PlayStation 4 and the PS3 than on the Xbox One and the 360, but this will be only in part because of game content or quality.

Companies would better serve themselves and their customers by making the core experience available on as many platforms as possible and by giving players as much information as possible about what they have to offer.

Restrictions might create sales advantages but the industry suffers because players will come to place less trust on the info coming from companies in the long term.