NBA JAM - no online for wii version confirmed

[LordTheNightKnight]

bmmb1 said:

LordTheNightKnight said:

bmmb1 said:

oniyide said:

@flagstaad  After the great sales of NSMBW despite not having online, I think EA expects it to do alright

Some of you are missing the point, the main problem here is not at all that there is no online, it's that there is no online while the "free" HD version does have it. Imagine what would have happened had NSMBWii come out on the Wii without online (as it did) but at the same time another version of NSMB would have come out on the HD consoles as a free download when buying something like LBP2. Do you think it would have had the sales it did? Nowhere near, and not because an HD version (which really shouldn't matter for that game) existed.

That is a big presumption, as you are imagining the Wii audience cares about online more than playing with friends. Plus the "free" notion smakes of marketing doublespeak, since you still have to pay for NBA Elite.

You are also making an assumption, and that assumption is that only "the Wii audience" has bought NSMB (or are the potential market ofr NBA Jam)(1). But many Wii owners also own one or the other HD console, and so yes, my assumption is that many of those would have gone for an NSMB with online (not that it needed it). And they don't need to care more about online, all they need is to have the choice between a version with online and one without (since both would have the offline multiplayer).(2)

As to "free", of course it is marketing doublespeak, but that doesn't prevent people from falling for it at the psychological level (do you know how many times my wife remembers that something costs around 30 when the price is 39.99?).(3)

1. No, I didn't assume that. Plus I think you meant "Wii only owners" as "the Wii audience" is not some mutant audience compared to other systems, especially when you're going off of some liking the HD systems as well.

2. Wait. How could having the choice be enough if you don't want the other more? Are you going off an assumption that people just want more features, even if they don't want it more than the features they already have?

That might apply if video games were a status symbol, and having the most features is important, but if most people don't see games that way, then they aren't going to care about optional extra features.

3. But the mentality of having a game as a free download with another game is about the same as a free prize in a cereal. You still have to pay money for NBA Elite, even if that's a game you don't want. Zone of the Enders didn't tear up the charts, even if the gaming press went crazy over the MGS2 demo.

And Crackdown was not merely sold due to the Halo 3 beta, since Microsoft reported the online play in that game topped the online play of the beta (not the full game of course). People wanted Crackdown for Crackdown.