Congratulations Activision, you have become EA.
You know, EA that cared about money only, and not making the great games, from 2003 – 2007.
That EA.
Modern Warfare 2 has scared everyone off into Q1 2010 mostly (bar a couple, Halo 3: ODST, Forza 3 and Uncharted 2 notably) and a UK price hike for the game seems to have everyone follow suit. So, here is an open letter to Activision, stating why we, the gamer, say enough is enough.
First off, Modern Warfare 2 and the so-called “mass exodus” to Q1 2010.
Before June, Q4 2009 was set to be the biggest season in gaming in the run-up to Christmas. Here is a list of what was due in Q4 2009 just after E3, and a list as of today.
Before:
- Modern Warfare 2
- Bayonetta
- Splinter Cell: Conviction
- Dark Void
- Heavy Rain
- Halo 3: ODST
- Assassins Creed II
- Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony/Episodes from Liberty City
- Red Steel 2
- BioShock 2
- Singularity
- Mafia II
- Red Dead Redemption
- Forza Motorsport 3
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
- MAG
- Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time
- The Saboteur
After:
- Modern Warfare 2
- Assassins Creed II
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
- MAG
- Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time
- Forza Motorsport 3
- Halo 3: ODST
- The Saboteur
And with each delay, Q1 2010 is more jam-packed then Q4 2009. In fact, nothing big was due around then except for the odd game or two, like Alan Wake or God of War III, when they were due to arrive in the Spring (GOWIII in March to be specific). Now though, if you take a look at the list, its gonna be more jam-packed then before.
Q1 2010 List (as of August 1st 2009):
- Alan Wake
- Heavy Rain
- God of War III
- Gran Turismo 5
- Bayonetta
- Splinter Cell: Conviction
- Lost Planet 2
- Dead Rising 2
- Dante’s Inferno
- Mass Effect 2
- BioShock 2
- Red Steel 2
- Singularity
- Dark Void
- Alien vs Predator
- Final Fantasy XIII
- White Knight Chronicles
And here’s the worst part. The time before Christmas, your full to the brim with cash and ready to spend on games for yourself, as well as games for family, friends and other gifts if they aren’t particularly interested in games. But now, thanks to the mass exodus, there will only be a few games to pick from/get under the tree come Friday December 25th.
And it’s all thanks to *drumroll* Modern Warfare 2.
But why? Don’t get us wrong, Modern Warfare 2 will be one hell of a game, and I highly look forward to it as well as most people will be. But here’s the problem, it’s possible that Modern Warfare 2 has done this exodus single handed.
Two years ago, back in the golden age that was Q4 2007, when Halo 3 was about to launch, we still had a line-up of games for Christmas which was brilliant. After the release of Halo 3, what happened?
Nothing. Nothing happened on this scale anyways, everything stayed as it was. But what other game was due at that point? Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. It was a pretty great game it has to be said, over 12 million units sold worldwide and counting by now since the reveal of the game, back at GDC in March this year.
Now, fast forward two years and here we are at the biggest mass delay ever. Modern Warfare 2 has been promised the biggest ad campaign ever, everyone must have been like “yeah’ we’re moving our game into Q1″ after hearing that. Modern Warfare 2 has become a big juggernaut since 2007, and is now anticipated on a scale only done by a main cannon Grand Theft Auto title or main cannon Halo game.
Hence, why, the mass exodus. But thanks to this mass delay, Activision has seen fit to hike the price of the game, at least in the UK, to £54.99. That’s up £15 from the standard RRP of a game in the UK, which is £44.99 (although that does tend to get slashed to £39.99).
Not a lot of people were happy on the decision. In fact, the move from Acti is being looked at by several other publishers, including THQ. You could argue in fact that Activision are a bunch of hypocrites for hiking up the price to their biggest game this year, yet it wasn’t so long ago that they public ally stated that they would pull support for the PLAYSTATION 3 and PlayStation Portable unless the PS3 got a price cut.
Of course now, all signs are pointing to a price cut in Cologne at GAMESCom in just a couple of weeks time. However, the fact that Activision did that, only to hike the price up for Modern Warfare 2 in the UK, would be seen as sheer hypocrisy.
But wait, if you think Modern Warfare 2 is the bread winner for the company, think again. This year, we’ve already seen 2 Guitar Hero games, Metallica and Greatest Hits, with a 3rd on the way in Guitar Hero 5. As well as that, Acti’s set up a Hero cash-cow in Band Hero and DJ Hero, the latter of which is the freshest idea of the bunch.
And how many Rock Band title’s have been released this year yet (to my knowledge)? None. And how many are on the way from Harmonix and EA? One: Beatles: Rock Band. It shows just how much Activision have gone from a respectable developer, releasing yearly titles at worst, to becoming EA from a couple of years ago.
Activision needs to change, and fast, before it’s too late.
http://jonathancullen.goonlinegames.net/2009/08/01/congratulations-activision-youve-scared-everyone-off/
