Taken from this article by IGN which talked about this report by MCV.
What you need to know:
Ipsos MORI's GameTrack conducted a survey across Europe that included questions about pre-ordering history/future intentions etc. These questions were asked regarding pre-order activity over the past year. Within the survey, it was found that:
In the UK, which Ipsos MORI considers Europe's #1 pre-order market:
- 20% of those surveyed who had previously pre-ordered said they are either cutting back on or stopping all together. Reasons included spending money on other peripherals or waiting for prices to lower.
- The remainders included 5% who increased their pre-ordering, 49% who had never had pre-ordered, 10% who continued to do so at the same rate, and the rest of those surveyed who chose "don't know".
In the UK/France/Spain/Germany combined:
- 12% of gamers, which amounts to 10.3 million (according to MCV) have stopped or reduced the number of games they pre-order.
So what does this mean?
Over the past few years, I myself have definitely seen many gamers, including many YouTubers, and users on Reddit speak out against the pre-order practice. Editorials from gaming websites such as Kotaku and Cnet (as far back as 2012) have echoed that statement. Could the negative attention, burned pre-orderers, and crappy launches finally be having an effect on the market? I certainly hope so.
Now if all you wanted to read is the news, disregard the following write-up.
OPINION TIME!
I would love to see this turn into a global trend.
This Forbes contributor recently released an opinion piece entitled: "You'd Have To Be Crazy To Pre-Order 'Star Wars: Battlefront'", (very clickbaity title, I know) and I have something to add/ask, since this game is the perfect modern example. I know that a lot of people are going to pre-order this game based on its announcement and brand power alone. EA/Dice has not earned your money yet. EA/Dice should not receive the promise of thousands of purchases based on pretty trailers and lucrative bribes which they have waved in front of our faces like twinkies on a stick. If BF4's launch did not convince you to wait until reviews to commit your money, then think of pre-orders in this PG-13 way:
Mrs. Video Game has a Tinder profile. You see her picture, which is edited and in which she is wearing sunglasses (the announcement trailer). Next she tells you that she can touch her feet to her ears (the promises; the hype factor), and you start to sweat. One problem though; you're going in blind, other than what she has told you. Based on the great things you've heard, you consent. Turns out the graphics were downscaled, the gameplay was laggy as hell, and you start to feel a burning sensation within the week. Next time you'll learn to do it with the lights on, chap.
Anyhow, if you've made it this far, thanks for reading. If you have thoughts/comments/concerns/offended remarks to make, I will be happy to respond to them.
*edit* Added a poll
#1 Amb-ass-ador
