Elerond
-
Posts
2620 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
5
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Posts posted by Elerond
-
-
Sure, no probs:
[..][..] Developers pay for that announcement in GOG, but I think it is included in their regular fee. There is probably options to get more coverage in the store with additional fees. [..]
In there I am saying that I think that regular percentage that developers pay for GOG covers GOG's promotion on their site and I speculate that GOG may offer additional coverage for those who pay more. So in other words developers that sell their games in GOG pay for GOG to promote, as part of their platform fee, but I don't know for sure if that is the case, which is why I put doubt in my sentence by adding I think.
-
I can't say for sure when it comes to Steam, Origin, GOG etc. because I have never sold anything in them. But in Amazon you can pay to get you product promoted and lot of other similar web stores do same. And those promotions usually work quite well as your products are displayed/emailed/shown in other web pages (amazon ads) to everybody that have looked similar products in amazon or other places that amazon owns. So I would be somewhat surprised if game stores don't do same.
Amazon has far more in common with bricks and mortar stores than any gaming etailer has.
Really though, you were pretty definite about a fee being charged, and explicit about GOG charging a fee so you'll have to come up with better evidence than that if you want to prove it. I can't even remember marketing fees and the like being implied for GOG/ steam let alone outright stated as happening. And let's be honest, I'm not steam's #1 fan so I would love them to be doing such things since I could then use terms like and 'Embrace, Extend, Extort' about them; but I very much doubt they or GOG are doing any such thing. PR nightmare and, as above, 99% of estore game marketing is pre order/ release/ sales rather than day to day marketing.
I am pretty sure that I didn't specify any stores and I even tried not to imply any store. I specifically tried to keep my post so that I only speak in generally about things. Please be nice and point where I have said that specifically GOG is charging a fee, so that I can fix my post.
EDIT: I asked about paying promotion on Steam and there isn't currently direct option to pay for Valve to get promotion in Steam storefront. Which is currently controlled by Valve's curator algorithm that based on certain things (like reviews, user reviews, Steam curators, game library, etc. factors ) decides which games are shown in front page.
-
The GOG wishlist is counter productive, hardly anyone uses it.
And the problems with PoE on non steam are all constructed problems. Why no upgrade paths? Paradox thinks there's no demand; of course Paradox thinks there's no demand for a drm free version so of course there's no demand for upgrades to those not in demand versions. Why late patches? Because they're rolled out to steam preferentially. Etc. Etc. They're not inherent problems or advantages, they're problems because Paradox favours steam and closing everything off into the steam ecosystem- which is, of course, the whole point of the steam ecosystem. Like Workshop, you'd think that mods didn't exist before that when all it really is is Embrace, Extend,
ExtinguishExtractStores are paid percentage for every copy they sell, but if you want them to promote your game you can be quite sure that you need to pay them extra to do so.
Do you have any evidence that digital stores do that? I know that high street physical stores of the E(lectronics)B(outique) or Walmart ilk did but then the model there is distinctly different and involves physical stock with handling costs and physical locations and staff with significant day to day costs, with everything taking up limited space. 99% of marketing at estores like GOG/ Steam consists of pre order/ launch day/ sales; and there is no physical space to take up, physical billboards that need fabricating or someone to put them up etc etc. The only thing that even approaches a store fee I'm aware of is steam's charge for Greenlight, and that was mainly to stop joke games being entered.
I did look myself, briefly, but if there's anything about it it's buried in a million 'dota 2 marketplace market fees' type stuff.
I can't say for sure when it comes to Steam, Origin, GOG etc. because I have never sold anything in them. But in Amazon you can pay to get you product promoted and lot of other similar web stores do same. And those promotions usually work quite well as your products are displayed/emailed/shown in other web pages (amazon ads) to everybody that have looked similar products in amazon or other places that amazon owns. So I would be somewhat surprised if game stores don't do same.
-
-
I'm actually mostly with shmerl on this one especially if the argument against a GOG release is marketing
I don't expect there would be a separate marketing campaign for GOG and the overall strategy wouldn't change much ( maybe things like promotion on GOG, web adverts may add the line "and GOG" under Steam, etc) if at all. Sure it's still extra cost, everything is in one way or another, but that's where Paradox would have to look at if it's worth it
Since they've tied themselves heavily to Steam at this point I would guess that in their minds it's not
Paradox (Obsidian) did test quite lot of different stores with PoE. On this forums we have seen some results of that (like people complaining that GOG version didn't have achievements and cloud saves and how patches were late and how there was no beta patches for GOG version etc. Problems with Mac App store version, how patches are very late for DRM free dvd version and how there is no expansion for it, problems in upgrading to higher tier editions in gog versions, how there are virtual no origin version owners in these forums [this of course maybe because of fact that KS backers got their copies in Steam or GOG] etc.). Paradox probably will use data and experience they have gathered with PoE to decide if they release or not Tyranny to GOG and other stores.
-
They provide new releases for a long time already (of those who are interested in releasing DRM-free of course). Since around 2012 in fact. So they don't have an image of being focused on old games only anymore. But surely they still dedicate time to reviving old games as before, so that didn't change.
Long time/short time don't really matter (for publishers), what matters is how many copies that coverage averagely sells. Many indie developers say that day on Steam front page moves more copies than they usually can sell in week/month (depending on size and popularity of said developer). GOG started to shift their focus to new and newer games during release of Witcher 2. But for example last year when I asked my friend why he didn't buy PoE from GOG, he answered "oh I though that GOG sells only old games". One example I admit, but I have seen similar comments in all around internet, so they have not yet been fully successful in getting public know shift on their focus. GOG dedication for old games has diminished in past several years quite lot, of course there is only limited amount of old games to release, but there are quite lot of old games that I would like to see in GOG (or in some other place that is willing to make them work on new computers without needing to see lot of effort) but interest to bring those old classics seems to be quite low these days.
One thing that probably increases GOG's allure today is Steam's over saturation by all short of questionable quality indie games, that have made at least some indie developers seek other avenues to sell their games.
-
Well, paying for advertising is something that you decide of course, but it's not a requirement to be accepted in the store. I suppose with Steam it's a bigger issue because it's massive, and getting lost in the noise there is much easier. GOG releases are much more focused and developers get instant exposure just by the fact of the release. Every release on GOG has announcement and summary by the GOG team on the front page. I don't think developers need to pay for it.
Marketing is something that you need to do if you want to sell copies, if you don't get lottery jack pot and get your product become viral sensation for some reason other than marketing.
Developers pay for that announcement in GOG, but I think it is included in their regular fee. There is probably options to get more coverage in the store with additional fees. GOG offers that promotion because they want developers and publisher to release their products also there, and it has worked to some extend to lure indie developers in, but larger studios and publishers have yet mostly used GOG as place where they re-release their games to get bit more out of them. Although that is somewhat result from GOG originally focusing on old games, which let them to build their customer base by offering products that really nobody else was offering, but it has created them imago that they now try to shake off as they try to get more new releases in their service.
-
What are "marketing fees"? Signing legal agreements has lawyers' fees if anything which is a one time thing.
Visibility in stores that sell hundreds/thousands of products don't usually come free.
Stores are paid by splitting sales percentages, i.e. sharing profits. It's not free sure, but that's expected. You don't need to pay anything upfront to them though. So I'm not sure what you mean by "marketing fees". It's the first time I hear about it.
Stores are paid percentage for every copy they sell, but if you want them to promote your game you can be quite sure that you need to pay them extra to do so. Of course there are cases where stores offer to promote your product if your sell it through them but in those cases you usually have product that store things that will bring them new customers, which is why they are paying to you to get your customers to use their store. And of course sometimes stores just do independent marketing for products that they think their existing customer base will be interested in.
As for example in scenario where you want to your product be shown in store's adds in web pages outside of said store for example YouTube ads by said store then that store will most likely make you pay for such promotion, by direct fee or by higher percentage of sales or some other way. Because said store has lots of products which makers/publishers/developers/etc. want their products be the ones that are show in those ads, because those ads are thing that usually increase sales of shown products significantly. Also number of products that can be shown on those ads are very limited, which increases value of getting your product in those ads. And usually product makers/developers/publishers/etc. want to promote/market their products because it isn't enough that it is in store if nobody knows that it is there.
-
Bought a new game on GOG once, never again, their patches are always late and their installer/gog galaxy sucks compared to Steam. Still great for those old games you can't get anywhere else though.
For curiosity's sake though, what would a company gain by not selling on every avaliable distribution platform? Even if only 100 people buy on gog that wouldn't on steam that's still 100 more sold games isn't it?
Yeah, because there are no such things like marketing fees, etc when signing a distribution agreement
What are "marketing fees"? Signing legal agreements has lawyers' fees if anything which is a one time thing.
Visibility in stores that sell hundreds/thousands of products don't usually come free.
-
Thoroughly enjoying this game! Just finished Raedric's keep on Hard - what a rush!
I'm sad that I was totally out of the loop on the Kickstarter - but glad many others were in it. How can I be sure to be on the Kickstarter next time? How did people find out about it last time?
There was quite lot articles in gaming magazines how Obsidian had made new web page that told that they will soon announced something and that announcement was their Kickstarter campaign for Project Eternity (later renamed to Pillars of Eternity)
-
You find some answers to your questions from here
http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/66254-update-79-graphics-and-rendering/
-
1
-
-
I wonder who owns the Tyranny IP?
Does it belong to Paradox or did Obsidian manage to retain ownership?
Tyranny™ is a trademark of Paradox Interactive. All rights reserved.
2016 Paradox Interactive
-
-
Locking game in Steam don't necessary cut sales, because even though people may prefer to use different distributors if such option exist that preference don't necessary mean that they will not buy the game from Steam if it is only store that sells the game. So loss comes only from those people that will not buy game if Steam is its only distributor.
Major selling point of GOG is DRM-free distribution, so significant amount of GOG users don't use Steam. Anyway, simply having the game in multiple stores increases discoverability and potential reach.
Sadly it isn't that significant in reality, especially after all Steam isn't DRM tosh that goes around internet forums (even GOG's own). In theory multiple store add discoverability, but even with that sad reality is that Steam has such dominance that if you get coverage there then other store's effect on your games discoverability is quite insignificant. Other stores are good if your game don't get coverage in Steam. And Paradox has good relationship with Steam and all their games get significant coverage there. And for potential additional reach to people that don't buy game from Steam significance is still questionable.
I have been big supporter of GOG from beginning and bought couple hundred games from there in past 8 years, but during that time it is also become quite clear that GOG can't compete really with Steam when it comes to new games. But hopefully their new branding, galaxy and other things that they have done will let them attract enough customers to start give even little challenge for Steam and its suffocating dominance in PC market. Maybe couple big hits more from CD Project will give them enough status.
-
Demolition Man predicts that there is 100% change that Arnold Schwarzenegger will win presidency. That is the one prediction that I am betting on.
-
2
-
-
While their blog post is 2&1/2 years old (and based near entirely on Steam's 'how to sell your move to steam exclusive' PR crib sheet as well) there's no evidence at all that anything substantive has changed from that time, as such their reasons and whether they differ from those stated don't really matter.
What about growth of Steam's competitors? That's surely happening every year. Do Obsidian have numbers for sales percentages per distributor? Would that be enough to bust the exclusivity logic? My expectation is that it's already at the point when not using more distributors means significant amount of lost sales.
Locking game in Steam don't necessary cut sales, because even though people may prefer to use different distributors if such option exist that preference don't necessary mean that they will not buy the game from Steam if it is only store that sells the game. So loss comes only from those people that will not buy game if Steam is its only distributor.
Although Tyranny to non-Steam distributors is simpler thing than with many other Paradox titles as number Steam features that it use is nearly non-existent in comparison, lack of use of features like steam match making, or steam workshop make releasing games in non-steam stores much easier and simpler process and as single player game there isn't even threat of dividing player base.
-
I think you bit underestimate how big studio Obsidian Entertainment actually is or how many people worked on PoE in your estimates how many projects they can develop in same time.
Also Tyranny seems to use tech (custom shaders, light mapping and etc. things) that Obsidian made over Unity to allow them to do the things they wanted to do, as Unity3D is created 3d environments in mind and its features didn't support everything that Obsidian needed for game like PoE that uses prerendered backgrounds and nearly everything happens on single 2d plane.
-
1
-
-
Microsoft will let game developers run their own e-sports tournaments in Xbox Live
MS seems to want move to offer services instead of platforms
-
-
Im lousy at playing evil. Even in Grim Dawn I forgive everyone and port them back to home base.
Obsidian should just for you put in option to solve any situation with pepper gas drone(s)
-
1
-
-
died in accident? Killed for me imply that there was some other person involved. Like someone drive car into wall - he died in accident. If someone else drive car into yours you were killed in accident. At least thats how I feel it. But again, I am not native speaker.
"Killed" is perfectly acceptable, in fact it's the proper term, when anyone dies unexpectedly, whether it's accidental or premeditated. Another person doesn't have to be involved. Whether a tree fell on them, someone shot them, or they were in a car and a drunk driver ran into them, killed is appropriate in all those circumstances.
So if i die because of heart attack i was killed? seems strange to me, but oh well
It can be said that you were killed by heart failure. But most often you see killed by used when there is person or object that does the killing.
-
Interesting information how unbound delegates work
-
Tyranny isn't WoD related according to Paradox and PoE is Obsidian's property not Paradox also leads from PoE have been working only for short time different project, which they moved after PoE was finished. Where Tyranny has been in oven for sometime already gathering from fact that they plan to release Tyranny during this year which usually means that they have developed it already for quite long time. Also Paradox has not had really time to get anyone to make anything WoD related in such shape that it could be announced. Only WoD products (meaning computer and console games) that we can really except hear this year are ones that they started before Paradox's acquisition or where they seek public funding (as it isn't usually that good idea to announce thing if you can't show anything to public for long time after announcement).
-
1
-
-
Original IP?
I wonder who is the lead developer on this title? From how they introduced Brian in live stream I gathered that he is the lead.
-
1
-
I wonder who is the lead developer on this title?
"Making Of" Documentary availability?
in Pillars of Eternity: General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)
Posted
if you buy champion or royal edition of PoE or upgrade your current version to one of them you get whole documentary.