Topic: E3 2018

@JohnnyShoulder Don't hurt my feelings.

@JohnnyShoulder Sounds reasonable. I’d actually be fine with all that. Except the disc drive thing. I’d be bummed if PS5 launches without a disc drive. Oh yeah, and hopefully Push Square survives the internet inferno. I’d be bummed about that too. The rest of the internet can turn to ash though, as far as I’m concerned.

I know some are running scared of Red Dead Redemption 2 but I still think that realistically, unless the game is in the same genre, then it shouldn't be 'that' scared to launch. I know that publishers/developers though want to be able to say they had a number 1 selling game and it could be much tougher to get the number 1 spot if a 'big' game comes out and continues to sell incredibly well each week. This is more likely to be the reason that companies are trying to get their games out before RDR2.

Its quite big news - at least for those in the gaming industry - which games are at the top of the best selling charts. If Battlefield 5, for example, releases after RDR2 and only debuts at 2 but never reaches number 1, there will be people that use that as 'proof' that BF5 isn't as popular as BF1 was - even if BF5 goes on to sell 5m more. It can affect the marketing too as EA can't say its a 'number 1' game. This is more likely to be the issue than losing sales to RDR2. If you want both games, you will end up getting both - even if you can't buy both on Day 1 - so from a sales perspective, the game will still sell the same number of copies.

Timing can make the difference of being number 1 for several weeks or more and even not getting in the top 3. You can be number 1 for weeks without selling anywhere near the numbers that some games sell in a day. In can take months to sell 3m copies yet some games sell more than that within the first 24 hours.

Personally, I would be happier never to be a number 1 selling game but sell more copies over the same time than be number 1 for weeks but not sell as many. However, I think that publishers want to be number 1 and think they will still sell the same numbers so timing is key. Of course the exception to that rule is where 'similar' games are releasing - like we saw with CoD, BF and TF2 all releasing within weeks. I think EA expected that BF would take the sales from CoD for those looking for a more traditional FPS and TF2 would take the sales from CoD for those looking for the more Advanced Movement FPS. However, TF2 got lost inbetween and wasn't helped by the 'exclusivity' of the first game - the fact that PS4 owners may of gone for what they knew.

If we were getting open world Action games in a similar vein to RDR2 or even another 'western' game - even if it was more linear, I think those may well suffer from launching around the same time. The inevitable comparison would arise - which is the better open world experience, which is the better western game. You wouldn't want to bring out a new 'Gun' or 'Call of Juarez' but I do think games like Battlefield, CoD, Halo etc, games like Forza/GT/Dirt, Fifa/PES, Madden etc - in fact I think you could get away with releasing sci-fi, horror, fantasy etc games that may even be open world action games too because the setting and tone is different. Granted these may not make the number 1 which they may do if released a few months later (Q1 for example) but the actual overall sales of the games would probably be the same. You may as well never release a game in September because of Fifa or November because of CoD as these are the two biggest selling games every year and have massive opening week sales.

All dodging RDR2 is gonna do is get the games in question to cannibalise each other independent of RDR.

@JohnnyShoulder Lol well even if your half right this years E3 will be memorable.

@adf86 Well I did predict Shenmue 3 and The Last Guardian would be announced when they did so you never know... lol

@YummyHappyPills There are always casualties in Q4 due to the clusterf of games released. With RDR2 the last AAA titled released that has been announced on Oct 26th, that only leaves about 6 - 7 weeks to get a game out before the chrimbo period. However with only Battlefield 5 and Rage 2 that we know about so far, it doesn't look too packed. Of course this will probably all change after E3. What's the odds that Bethesda release Rage 2 in between CoD and RDR2?

I hope Bethesda has learned something with wolfenstein 2 and the evil within 2 launches so they move rage 2 to the beginning of the next year.

It remains to be seen where will ubisoft put their games.

@NecuVise The fact is that there is plenty of fertile ground in June, July, and August. The release calendar for that quarter of the year is quite abysmal. After Vampyr and Onrush on June 5th, it’s a wasteland until Kiwami 2 on August 28th. Then suddenly within a 3 week period in early September, we get 3-4 heavy hitting huge games (DQ, SofTR, SM, Spyro, and even VC4). E3 will be too late to announce a June release date but here’s hoping someone grabs July or August. Code Vein looks interesting for July, but otherwise, nothing. Maybe Soul Calibur VI will squeeze into that time period.
The next big open period is probably late November/early December. Not too much there yet. Maybe that’s where Dreams and Kingdom Hearts will drop in.
Come on E3! Hoping for some good updated release dates!

@Th3solution June July and August are perfectly open on Xbox One and PS4.

On Switch on the other hand....jesus christ. Talk about packed.

@YummyHappyPills I guess that works out perfect for gamers who play both consoles. I wonder what percentage of PS4 owners have a Switch. I’m sure the publishers know those stats because you’re right — we can not just assume that a PS4 game is competing for gamer’s dollars (or pounds, as it were) with other PS4 games. Rather it they have to consider that they are competing against Switch games also in those that own both consoles. Maybe that’s why no one is clamoring to release in the summer months. I didn’t realize Nintendo had a bunch of good ones coming then.

Well August has divinity original sin 2 and I need nothing else for a month when that game launches

But summer is very tricky as people go on vocation, like to spend time outside etc.

@Th3solution Yeah Switch from now onwards insane. Donkey Kong, Hyrule Warriors, Mega Man, Runner 3, Little Nightmares, Ikaruga, Street Fighter, loads of indies in May.

June leads with Sushi Striker on the 8th, BlazBlue and Mario Tennis on the 22nd, Wolfenstein, Ys VIII and Crash Bandicoot at the end of the month (On the same day in Europe!) plus the return of the NES Classic

Then July is even MORE packed with Shining Resonance on the 10th, Captain Toad and Octopath Traveler both on the 13th, then end the month with Banner Saga 3, Mega Man X and some smaller games, not including any surprises at E3.

August currently is looking quieter but its got Okami at the start and Monster Hunter at the end, who knows what can fit in the middle.

Be thankful for the quieter months because if Nintendo has a fall season like last year I'll be poor.

@Kidfried Thanks mate, I've added Square Enix stuff now since I forgot about them plus I've added Rocksteady's new game to the Sony lineup since that's a good shout.

You are probably right, I've not seen the release date as not really paid much attention to it.

@Th3solution You are talking like publishers use common sense when it comes to release dates! I'm not sure how closely they look at other platforms as you only have to look when Mario, Wolfenstein 2 and Assassin's Creed Origins all released on the same day last year. And then before that Zelda and HZD were released very close to each other.

If the game is good most of the time it will sell well, it shouldn't matter what time of the year it is released. What is is more important is that the publishers don't send the game out to die like Titanfall 2 and Wolfenstein 2.

@JohnnyShoulder I fear Wolfenstein 2 has been sent out to die again. It would have been probably okay alongside Ys VIII here in the EU (and elsewhere Ys is a few days earlier) but day and date with Crash globally?

Not happening. One of those two games is dying. Same with Captain Toad. Why thats releasing the same day as a major exclusive is beyond me. Poor Shining Resonance will likely suffer on Switch.

And as for PS4 what the hell is September? I love how SquareEnix said that date and those versions were to grow the brand in the West and Sony just said lol, Spiderman at the same time. Spyro not long after and obviously FIFA.

@KratosMD We arent getting 3DS news in the "Presentation" but you can expect it in the 3 days of live coverage that follows.

The main event is strictly Switch and strictly 2018. I know people say it wont be 2018 locked but come on. Everytime they said "Its only covering x and y wont be mentioned" they meant it.

Hence I label their E3 prematurely as Safe but solid. Fire Emblem for the first time since mentioning it exists, show Yoshi for the first time since E3 2017, show Pokemon maybe, some third party things and Smash. Boom.

Solid but nothing new or mindblowing beyond gameplay reveals

All I want in my life is Animal Crossing, but unfortunately that's probably gonna be revealed in a later Direct as an early 2019 title. There's a chance that it could be a 2018 game though, even if it is slim, so here's hoping.

As for a Sunshine remake/remaster, put it on the Switch please. That would completely make my life, and it'd look great on the Switch.

If we are talking stuff people want on Virtual Console, I'd like remakes of N64 games and remasters of Gamecube and Wii, because that just feels better than as is releases of that era.

A purely selfish announcement next to the rumoured but likely fake Prime Trilogy HD, is Kirby's Dream Collection HD.

Just so...you know...it can be released in Europe.

@JohnnyShoulder @Kidfried Yeah, unfortunately I do think publishers appear to not consider the other market forces pulling at our wallets for the same dollar. For me, not owning a Switch, the bigger competition for my summer spending is the movies. I’ll drop $40-50 on Solo, Avengers, Jurassic World, Mission Impossible, Ant-Man, etc this summer. That’s money used and accounts for at least one or two games I’ll need to wait to buy. And for every missed sale for a game on Day 1, it runs the risk of losing that $60 to the second hand market later. Therefore it behooves the publisher to try to get as many sales in the games opening month. That’s why I personally believe release dates do make at least somewhat of a difference. If a gamer waits to play say, Dragon Quest IX for 3 or 4 months until there is a lull in new games, then he may opt to buy it used or get it on a sale, which either way the publisher misses out on potential profit vs. if he bought that day 1 at full price.

See... if these publishers would just listen to me then they could make more money and we wouldn’t be having so many studios shutting down! 😂😉
Lol, just kidding of course. I’m pretty sure I have no idea what I’m talking about but it’s fun to think about and discuss.

I remember how many felt last year on black Friday. Many games were heavily discounted, including for example GT sport at 50% which launched just a few weeks earlier.