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As a side note, I found this article really interesting in the context of the recently released Demon's Souls. Despite being a fringe title with essentially zer
by NickM 17y ago
As a side note, I found this article really interesting in the context of the recently released Demon's Souls. Despite being a fringe title with essentially zero marketing, it's expected to sell 250,000 copies by the end of the year. Why is it so successful? It breaks the conventions set by most console RPGs in that leveling up only helps you a little bit, and you really need to gain skill to advance.
So it's much, much more difficult than just about any modern console game I've played, and yet it's hugely successful. This really seems to suggest that there's a hole in the market for games catering to mastery-oriented gamers.
- aaronblohowiak 17y ago"Hugely Successful" -- compared to CoD MW2 at 13 million units, Demon's Souls is a drop in the bucket. I do agree that there is a niche for mastery-oriented gamers. MW2 allows a faux "leveling" that unlocks trivially different weapons, but the ranking in the individual play sessions is based on skill.
- wmf 17y agoIsn't the entire multiplayer FPS market based on player skill? Maybe there's a hole in the RPG market, but not the overall game market.
- aaronblohowiak 17y agoMultiplayer FPS is based on social interaction, and skill is a close second for that. Edit: Also, RTS is extremely skill-based