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NEWS
[LEADER] IP FREELY Retailers refusing to stock riskier new releases in favour of oldreliable IPs and high-margin second-hand stock might seem like a fairly cut-and-dry issue. Whether in fashion, food or video games, the High Street isn’t just a route to market, it’s a way to gauge customer response. Shops offer a barometer on what consumers want. So when a retailer declines a new release, it’s just a polite way of saying ‘not right now’ or ‘no one’s going to be interested’. After all, book stores don’t stock every book in print, right? And music stores don’t stock every album available, do they? Well, of course they don’t – but games cost more per project, and offer their makers less chances to recoup that expense than other entertainment. They require significant cash from the first day of production right through to the last day of the marketing campaign. Retail is a key part of the elaborate mechanism that has been built up by this industry to help find a return on all that investment. By ducking out of the equation, stores reluctant to take a punt perhaps leave the impression that the entire model is just a massive racket; only support the mega-titles, cream off the top when those releases boomerang back as trade-ins, and leave no room for the little guy. That’s a gross, distorted simplification, yes – but it is how some of the smaller players are starting to see things. When this week’s All Formats chart boasts only three original IPs – only two of which (Brutal Legend and Scribblenauts) were released this year – it’s hard not to sympathise. Amongst the shadow of a recession it has become conventional wisdom that there is no room on the market for new properties. But who decided this? The industry – both cash hungry publishers and playing-it-safe retailers – needs to make sure this doesn’t turn into a self-fulfiling prophecy where only franchised games and sequels survive. All franchises need to start somewhere, after all. So take Martin DeFries comments not as stone throwing, but as a warning. If retailers want to start being picky about what games to have on their shelves, they can’t moan when publishers start being equally choosy, and cut them out in favour of digital downloads, or exclusive deals with supermarkets and mail order specialists.
CREED THE WORLD IF YOU want proof that taking a chance on a new IP pays off, look no further than Assassin’s Creed II, which returns to retail next month. Ubisoft put a lot into its first episode, and even more into the follow-up. But it has also made an up-front confession that if felt there was room for improvement on the original game (see our feature on page 20) – even when it sold over eight million copies. Which goes to show that even if a new IP isn’t perfect, with the right support it can do the numbers first time around – and even come back for seconds. Michael.French@intentmedia.co.uk
EA Sports: We think Publisher hails FIFA as ‘undisputed’ king of football games market – as by Tim Ingham EA HAS claimed that FIFA is the ‘undisputed’ No.1 football game on the market – after this year’s iteration surpassed a million UK sales in less than three weeks. FIFA 10 celebrated its third week at No.1 in the ELSPA/GfK-ChartTrack All Formats Chart on Monday – holding off major new releases including Sony’s Uncharted 2 and Sega’s Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Winter Games. The title hit the million mark in record time – three weeks before predecessor FIFA 09 managed the feat. Marketing manager for EA Sports Trevor Uzice told MCV: “We are delighted with the success of FIFA 10 to date and thrilled to reach sales of over a million units in just three weeks – a record launch for the FIFA franchise. “The studio has truly moved the FIFA experience forward and delivered the most complete football product ever released. The commitment to quality stands out: We are the undisputed No.1-rated football
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FIFA 10 is the most complete football product ever released, now with a million sales. We are the undisputed No.1. Trevor Uzice, EA Sports
title on console with Metacritic scores of 91 per cent on both PS3 and 360. In addition, we’ve seen a
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staggering 33 million online games played across Europe since launch, which is extremely encouraging.
Will tax stifle digital revolution? THE GOVERNMENT’S plans to fund the spread of high speed broadband through taxation is unfair – and could put games’ potential digital renaissance in jeopardy. That was the view from Shadow Culture Minister Ed Vaizey this week, speaking ahead of his keynote address at London Games Conference on Tuesday (October 27th). Treasury Minister Stephen Timms last month said he was keen to
implement a £6 annual broadband tax for households before the next election – which must take place by May 2010. The Government has pledged to install 2MB broadband in every UK home by 2012. Vaizey disputed the need for a tax to fund the expansion. He told MCV: “The UK is a world-beater when it comes to IP creation, and the games sector plays a key part in this. We are second only to the US.
“We ought to be in a prime position to exploit possibilities offered by global networks that allow these assets to be traded freely. “The cable revolution happened without a cable tax. The satellite revolution happened without a satellite tax. Simply introducing an extra tax is an old economy solution to a new economy problem. “The Conservatives will oversee wholesale deregulation of the broadband infrastructure. We should not rely solely on BT to build this new network.”