Game Visibility

[parmenio]

No, this post isn't about intel or LOS issues, it is, in fact, a bit of a general moan. Possibly it's better served being in General Discussion but since it relates directly to BFTB from my POV, I'm posting it here.

A bit of background... I've not bought a massive number of games over the last couple of years. The list is as follows:

TOAW III
Field of Glory
Horse & Musket Vol I
Histwar
Take Command

and most recently Battles from the Bulge.

They've tended to be impulse purchases based on interest in a period (TOAW, Histwar, BFTB, H&M) or reviews (Field of Glory, TC2M) and they nearly always end up being games that have been out a while. It's not that I dislike being an early adopter or anything - Histwar, I purchased before it could exactly be considered the "finished article" - it's more not being aware of the game at the time.

So what's the problem?

The problem is *not* being furnished with information relating to games I've already purchased (and registered) or games I might *like* to buy. Take TOAW as an example. There's a beta patch for 3.4 out which lots of people (including me) have been waiting a while for. The only reason I know about it is because Ralph sent me some updated Dlls for my Scenario Viewer and Editor back in the autumn. I don't always visit the Matrix site on a daily basis and when I do, it's specific forums that I have bookmarked, not the main site. Signing up for the newsletter (which I thought might help) is buried down several pages and looking at the dates on past ones, they appear infrequent at best. In contrast, I know there's a Peninsular War add-on for Histwar because I got emailed about it. I know about Slitherine's new/updated offerings because I get emailed about them.

How did I end up buying BFTB? Total chance. I was visiting the main Matrix site for two reasons. First to see if TOAW 3.4 was released (it wasn't) and to check on the price for Slitherine's Battlefield Academy as there is now a France add-on (Slitherine Newsletter). I decide to see if there are any other games I might be interested in. As I'm clicking through the available WWII offerings, I see WITE is finally out (no idea when) and I come across Command Ops: Battles from the Bulge. Undecided, I read the blurb and then look at the screenshots. Still undecided but leaning towards WITE - but with the latter almost certainly being Click-fest City and the additional potential joy of GG's UI design decisions, I download the Game Concepts video and five minutes into it, my credit card is out and I've bought it. Note: buying WITE has merely been delayed not cancelled.

So, there I was a registered owner of a WWII game (TOAW), someone should have been emailing me about anything else *similar* (and you can make that definition as broad as you like). Even more recently, I notice a forum post about permanent price reductions on Panther Games (which is actually the first time I realise I got a *sale* price). So here I am, a registered owner of BFTB (but no others in the series), someone should have been emailing me about the price reductions for HTTR and COTA. If I'd purchased BFTB when it first came out (May? June?) last year, it's unlikely I would be making daily visits to this forum as I am currently and would have remained blissfully unaware of any bargains to be had. Going forward, I can virtually guarantee I won't be "told" about the next patch or the HTTR expansion and the latter is a Day 1 buy for me. COTA is Day 2 - I love the game engine so it's a must-buy but the campaign is of secondary interest compared with Arnhem or the Bulge.

We know wargames are a *niche* market. We know small development teams can struggle financially and because games produced are often a labour of love (and so have to be "perfect" rather than just "good enough") and because they may have to fit it around other things that help pay the bills, there can a loooong time between releases. So anything that helps sales is by definition a *good thing*. The thing is, you don't have to *sell* me on the niche - I'm in it already and have been forever. Additionally, I'm not a price-sensitive comsumer - I spent more on lunch at Pizza Express at the weekend than BFTB would have cost me full price and I know which is going to provide me with more entertainment hours. You don't have to put much effort into selling me a game - just let me know it exists and we'll go from there.

<rant over>

[Arjuna]

parmenio,

Thanks for the feedback. I'll take it up with Matrix. I'm not sure but I believe they have a default policy of not emailing customers with sales pitches. I need to confirm that. In any event from what you are saying there probably is cause for having an "opt in" option that customers can set when they purchase product. It's a good idea. Thanks.

[parmenio]

ORIGINAL: Arjuna

I'm not sure but I believe they have a default policy of not emailing customers with sales pitches. I need to confirm that.

Dave,

If so that's shame. It's not like I'm gonna regard it as spam. Any feedback you glean on this will be appreciated.

[MorningDew]

I agree. Take GMT Games for example. I opted in and get a monthly update that includes game info etc.

I'd have no problem getting Matrix Games e-mails (my budget and wife might).