Battling Bad Press: How to Survive When Your Game Falls Victim to Media Massacre

Contents

The Power of the Media Fighting Hype The Middle of the Road

As the games industry becomes a more mainstream form of entertainment, it is becoming increasingly common to see harsh reviews or bad press that devastate a game's popularity and sales performance. It is important to understand possible causes of bad press and become educated in methods of preventing or repairing a press assault to avoid what happened to Daikatana.

The Power of the Media

Media criticism and praise wields a heavy sword. Game titles are expensive and the discretionary funds of consumers are limited, so the chances that gamers will simply march into the store and purchase a game based on good shelf placement or nice packaging are slim to none. A great review can be very profitable and a poor review can be quite costly for game developers and publishers. Years of designing and careful coding can be devastated by a few choice words, as an otherwise decent game goes from a vivid end cap display to a dusty bottom shelf.

As we work longer hours and have access to more compelling, innovative, and expansive entertainment options, we increasingly rely upon the media to describe and evaluate those options. Media outlets foster opinion leaders in the entertainment community who share judgments and impressions with their peers - disseminating information throughout various communication networks.

As the game industry rapidly approaches the breadth and revenue of its mainstream film, television, and music counterparts, it receives more and more press attention. With increased attention comes heightened competition for credibility with the gaming community, unique site visitors, and advertising dollars. Establishing trust and credibility within the gaming community determines the relative success of a media outlet, so insightful, interesting content is imperative to survival in a sea of competitors. As the need for content increases, so do the lengths a provider must go to in order to attract and maintain audience attention.

More resources are devoted to game previews, reviews, and features as websites and magazines devoted to gaming spring up daily. The competition for readership often leads to more extreme content - reviews that are singing the tune of market revolution or bashing the very fact that the development team and publisher are living and breathing. Other industries have experienced the harsh competition that drives extreme content and overly critical evaluation of even the most creative efforts.

Media Mergers and Downsizing

The slimming down trend has already begun as web sites and editors are dropping like flies, increasing the need for content to maintain loyal readers. Publications and outlets that lack unique content go out of business or get absorbed by media giants. To enhance their offerings, media outlets owned by giant corporations must reuse and recycle content to maximize their resources and solidify their presence in the gaming community. Game sites link to one another and distribute each other's news and reviews in order to provide as much information as possible. Content sharing means that one horrible review might be reused throughout a media network and become popular opinion within a matter of days. It also means that an extremely hyped title is on the tip of everyone's tongue within hours as their forefingers and thumbs burn with the anticipation of playing a new game.

The Internet has provided consumers with all of the tools and resources they need to make purchasing decisions very rapidly, a great review can launch amazing, sales-driving hype overnight and a bad one can spawn a chain of harsh insults and belittling message boards in no time. And once the bad word is out, no one wants to be the pioneer that says the game is good and stands alone against the bash of critics. An editors' credibility and way of life is on the line, going against fellow editors to say the game has unique features or is enjoyable can cost you a trusted reputation that may result in packing up the PC and heading off into the sunset. If everyone is preaching the game's innumerable faults, shortcomings and horrendous attempts at tolerable gameplay, why bother wasting valuable time reviewing it anyway? It is merely a facet of our thought process and an obstacle for developers and publishers to overcome when designing, scheduling, promoting, and packaging a game.

Consumer Expectations

As consumers' expectations for content and service increase, media outlets must struggle to meet and exceed their entertainment and information needs. Mass media is becoming a very personal business, trying to fine tune their focus and influence the purchasing decisions of all consumers by group and behavior. Outlets without the time, revenue, or staff to provide focused, quality content simply cannot survive. As editors preview and review games, they have not only to think about the title as a consumer and rate the product, they have to consider whether or not their words will be compelling and valuable enough to keep the lights on. Furthermore, they must consider their reputations with fellow media and the gaming community as they judge a game, attributing reputation to a game, a development team and a publisher.

Previews and reviews of a title can greatly enhance or diminish popularity and affect sales, but it can also create or destroy the reputation of the developers who designed it, the publisher who chose to publish it, and any license or property the title is based on or tied to. Reputation can strongly influence future projects and your credibility with a scorned gaming community, tipping the balance as to whether they will give you a chance when your next title is released. Reputation also influences the hype your subsequent titles receive, how much press coverage your news gets, how many outlets want to review your product, and whether it shines in the spotlight or cowers in the shadows.

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Fighting Hype