The word Skyrim means 10 million copies shipped, how am I putting too much faith in the word?
Those are very impressive numbers indeed. I guess that bribing “professional” game reviewers might be the best idea from Skyrim to be copied by publishers in the future.
You don't think your average gamer is going to consider purchasing Dragon Age 3 because they heard "it was gonna be like Skyrim"? You're fooling yourself if so. Gamers aren't that fickle and they will purchase a game just based on a simple marketing trick like that. At the very least, it will be something that weighs in their conscious while they determine if they want to purchase the game or not.
BioWare already has a strong fan base and most RPG players already know what type of games they make so I don’t think the average RPG player is “fooled” in any way.
Perhaps non-RPG players with different gaming interests might be “tricked” but I would expect them to purchase an RPG based on feedback, in which case it will be known if it is like Skyrim or not.
But to be honest, among gamers, I am probably the last person to have an accurate understanding of the psyche of the average gamer. If you are right, than it is a clear case of me overestimating the average gamer.
Why do you think this guy of high importance has come out and said this when he did? Bioware/EA is not stupid. I'm sure when DA3 gets closer to release we'll hear more about how they took ideas from Skyrim.
Well, some journalists tend to emphasize little things to spice up the article. As far as I am concerned, the reference to Skyrim is just a small comment within a larger interview. Therefore, at the moment, I don’t think I have reason to believe that this comment is of any special relevance to the development of DA3 or its future marketing.
When you're marketing a game, every little thing you can use to your advantage helps and can make a difference. This is one of those little things. Latching on to a game that shipped 10 million copies is not the worst idea ever.
I understand your viewpoint, one with which I do not disagree, but do you really think that BioWare needs to feed on Bethesda’s success? I had the impression that many fanboys and girls irrationally considered BioWare to be the greatest RPG developer ever and they still have Mass Effect to use to their full advantage.
Using Skyrim as a major marketing tactic would be a recognition of Bethesda’s superior commercial success in terms of sales and somehow I believe that their pride would not allow such public statements.
And maybe they're being completely honest. Maybe DA3 will have aspects taken from Skyrim, whatever they may be. We can only wait and see.
Perhaps, after extensive studies with the aid of expensive consultancy firms, the brilliant minds at EA will conclude that the sonoric presence of Arnold, our beloved Austrian friend and saviour of worlds, is the key to Skyrim’s success and will thus take immediate action to hire him as well to do ALL the voice acting, including the female NPCs.
But look, this simple press article already has us talking about it on this website. That's exactly what they wanted.
That is solely due to this site being an RPG forum and people here like to discuss such matters. But here, as we are RPG players and knowledgeable on the topic, no one is fooled so the article hasn’t “achieved” anything yet.
DA3 will only grow in hype. And it's mantra is going to be: "We listened to the fans, we learned from our mistakes, oh yeah, and we're taking ideas from Skyrim!"
It is likely that DA3 will be hyped and they certainly need to repair the damage done by the DA2 debacle but we’ll see whether they will use Skyrim as a major marketing tool. Frankly, I doubt it but if so, I shall gladly follow the unavoidable mockery at the Codex.
EDIT:
It seems that RPGCodex has closed its gates and all inhabitants have been expelled turning them into poor homeless souls. The first wave of refugees has arrived and they are starting to get accustomed to the safety and warmth of the Watch. To all Bethesda and BioWare fanboys, prepare yourselves…..for dark times are coming!
As for my "Skyrim fetish", if you're talking about me thinking the game is a masterpiece, then yes, I agree. I don't see what that has to do with anything in this topic though.
My point is that you seem to praise this game a lot and might perhaps think that most gamers feel the same way hence assuming that most would automatically salivate as well with the mere thought of another Skyrim thus making them particularly susceptible to ingeniously devised Pavlovian tactics by BioWare.
Naturally, it could go both ways. Don’t get me wrong, I think Skyrim is a good game but it is no secret that I don’t think it excels in the areas that I consider important in RPG’s so possibly my own negativity might cloud my own judgment when estimating the effects that the term Skyrim may have on others.
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