flagship on 22 October 2008
GOTY editions are a way to boost sales long after interest has died down by appealing to the more generic crowd, people who might not play a lot of FPS, WRPGs, Sports etc. but are willing to pay to try out the "best of the best" of an unfamiliar genre. It's how a number of people I know came across Morrowind (Elder Scrolls series before Oblivion) they were at a game store saw a game they've never heard of with GOTY of the cover and picked it up.
