Take-Two CEO Says Evolve's DLC Controversy is "A Good Thing"

[JohnnyDelRay]

Heh, well everyone knows about it now. Say what you want, this could be the worst thing you want labelled on your company, but in the end he's probably right. I have a feeling this game is going to do very well. And people are very self-contradictory.

I look at the XONE launch and think, hell if they hadn't changed anything and just released the damn thing in its always-on state, it still would have done ok. Just look at Battlefield 3 and Diablo 3, people whinged about it but both still turned out to be the best selling games ever at their respective launches.

 

[Seracen]

Wow...they just won't stop digging, will they? I also love how they take umbrage under a bunch of meaningless awards that don't actually reflect how successful the game is from an artistic or monetary point of view. We always see this defense: "see, look at all our awards, we are worthy of a purchase, despite all the other crap we are forcing down your throat!"

All that these dubious "awards" signify is the power of their ad campaign, which has been effectively scuttled by bad PR. Hell, I still refuse to buy Shadows of Mordor simply over the embargo practices, though I'll likely pick it up used once it hits a bargain bin (how much you wanna bet it'll still be $30-$40 as a digital download when the physical copy goes below $20?).

 

[Kajin]

I maintain that Evolve is a fun, interesting experience that I'm looking forward to.
But it is the worst advertised game I've ever seen. Right as people were getting upset with pre-order DLC, piecemeal content, and dodgy launches, 2K decides to market the DLC before the game.
Controversy isn't a good thing - it divides a community before the game comes out, and leaves a lingering doubt in consumers.
The game's fun, the characters are interesting enough, and I want to play it. But marketing completely shit the bed, and didn't leave the devs much room beyond saying "Well, the DLC is going to get finished after the game comes out"

I agree with you on this. The people in marketing need to be beaten with an oar until they learn to stop being stupid.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: there's nothing wrong with DLC. There's nothing wrong with preparing your game for the eventuality of having DLC. It keeps people employed and gives them extra incentive to support the game after release beyond initial patches and bug fixing. DLC can be a good thing if it's done right. Only problem is that the people marketing Evolve aren't giving the game a chance to settle in and build a good customer base before trying to plug all the extra ways to spend money. They're not doing a good job of making sure Evolve is well presented and, quite frankly, need to be fired.

 

[Trishbot]

They've come a long way since Valve.

A long way the WRONG way.

 

[K12]

I want this game to bomb SOO hard now.

I'm also wondering what the next marketing tactic will be. First the press around the DLC shake-down was unfair and now its good.

My bet is that they'll go with the "get with the times man" "wave of the future" type stuff that the XBoners tried.

 

[RedDeadFred]

Considering that this was a game I was legitimately looking forward to and now have zero interest in, how is this a good thing?

My interest dropped when they announced the preorder bonus. I'm fine with them if they're simply cosmetic things, but when they're actually gameplay elements that they'll sell for 15 dollars, my interest dies.

 

[StreamerDarkly]

Any time you see the category "Season Pass" in a game's offerings, the correct policy if to extend your middle finger and walk away.

 

[RicoADF]

Any time you see the category "Season Pass" in a game's offerings, the correct policy if to extend your middle finger and walk away.

That's becoming my policy as well, with 600 games on steam alone and a backlog that would sink the Titanic I actually appreciate the publishers that are now making it easier to say no to buying their game.

It's not like I don't have more than enough options already 2K

 

[zumbledum]

well it releases tommorow and its currently number 9 on my steam top sellers list. if it doesnt leap to one ill be mildly surprised and pretty happy , on the plus side Darkest dungeon currently number 1 . wtg guys!

 

[weirdee]

Translation: enough people preordered that we're comfortable enough in our numbers that we can screw them over juuuuust enough to make a tidy profit. With any luck, we'll prove to the industry that yes, people are dumb enough to pay for a game several times over, ushering in a new age of games that have you, the customer's interests, in mind when we rub our hands together in a totally nonthreatening fashion.

 

[Evonisia]

Is it Take Two or 2K Games that are trying for the dumbest comment of the year award?

EDIT. Apparently, they're the same thing. Somehow that doesn't surprise me.

Maybe they are, but if Ubisoft opens its mouth at least once 2K will instantly lose, so it's a bit of a lost cause.