> pre ordering games

l m a o

You dumbasses. You were supposed to shit on my weeb games.

I didn't recognize any waifu button mashers on the list to you shall live.

After reading through the posts, I believe some of you guys have pre-order confused with putting money down on reserving a copy. Companies don't make any money on a game until it's finished and shipped to the consumer.

Madden and FIFA

How often does a game come out where it's canned like Dragon Age II? Most games come out and generally receive positive scores with most fans being satisfied with their purchase, what difference does it make whether they pay now or later? And my original question was remained unanswered on the people who preorder knowing full well they're going to enjoy it, such as me with the FFXII HD remaster.

I simply don't see enough games failing for preorders to be the underlying cause of the problem. Halo 5 was right in the middle of the preorder season last year yet it had the shittiest numbers in the series when it came to actual copies being sold. For every point there's a counter-point on preordering.

You are agreeing to pay money for a product before you could see whatever flaws it has. A great example of this is Dragon Ago II. Prior to launch, multiple sites had given it scores between 8 and 10; if you want reference on where it sits now, it has an average user score of 4.5.

Besides that, you're arguing as if a significant number of people cancel preorders. If people who place them don't cancel, they're paying money under the same condition: whether it's day -365 or day 0, you're agreeing to pay a product of undetermined quality.

Vote with your wallet. It doesn't only mean to boycott bad releases, but also to purchase when you're actually informed.

How often does a game come out where it's canned like Dragon Age II? Most games come out and generally receive positive scores with most fans being satisfied with their purchase, what difference does it make whether they pay now or later? And my original question was remained unanswered on the people who preorder knowing full well they're going to enjoy it, such as me with the FFXII HD remaster.

Gears of War Judgement
Duke Nukem Forever
Ridge Racer (Vita)
Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor
Aliens: Colonial Marines
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5
Sonic 2006

Theme: games from popular series that were critical failures and earned all of their money before people realized they were shit. Lesson: you can assume that you'll like it, bit you cannot be certain in knowing as you say you can.

If it's not shit? Great. Doesn't mean you need to reserve a copy before release unless it's a limited run or a collector's edition. In the case of FF12HD, preordering is entirely unnecessary. It received a regular printing run and even the "limited" edition is far from scarce.

I simply don't see enough games failing for preorders to be the underlying cause of the problem. Halo 5 was right in the middle of the preorder season last year yet it had the shittiest numbers in the series when it came to actual copies being sold. For every point there's a counter-point on preordering.

So quick question: if it's poor sales are an indicator of quality (hypothetical), then would you say that those who bought it day 0-- knowing that they'd love it-- made an uninformed decision based on sales pitches (eg: preorder bonuses) and assumptions that it would be of a higher quality?

That strengthens my point: the culture of preordering lends to uninformed purchasing. It's no different than someone who votes for a political party just because they always have, regardless of the candidate's pros or cons. If a game can make back large portions of its costs on opening day, it incentivizes publishers to prioritize marketing the property over providing a solid day 1 experience.

And we can see this effect in game series such as Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed. Sales numbers are generally trending downwards for both series (although CoD  has admittedly recovered from its spiral as of late). These complaints vary from stagnating gameplay to game-breaking Day 1 bugs.

I'm not hitting a hard "no" on preordering. Under certain circumstances it is, in fact, acceptable. This exception is using preordering for its original purpose: making sure that you can actually get the product when it releases. You see this more clearly in performance venues such as concerts than games, as spacing is infinitely more limited than how many copies of a game can possibly be printed. If you understand that a game will have a limited run, then it's alright to preorder. But if you're preordering the standard edition of Call of Duty 42: Space Boogaloo, then that's an irresponsible use of your money. Just wait a day at least to see user feedback before you blow nearly $70 on a game that might actually suck.

I guess people preorder in mass silently?

*en masse

None. I stopped preordering with Starbound.

Nothing is wrong with preordering. I like to put my money into the game ASAP so I (or my wife) doesn't spend it on something else. Gotta be responsible with your money brothers.