Video games are a unique industry. They appeal to their own niche of consumers and are surrounded by a massive culture. From gaming marketing conventions like E3 to fan-oriented conventions such as Penny Arcade Expo, the extensive following that video games have garnered owes a lot to the endless facets of marketing that the industry employs. One of these facets is betas.
What is a beta? During the development of a video game, the polish and playability of a game can fluctuate. To test games before they’re finished, companies sometimes temporarily release an early version of the game to the public in order to get valuable feedback (Atwood, 2008; Tassi, 2015b). The earliest playable version of a game is usually referred to as its alpha stage (Atwood, 2008). Following extra polish, it reaches beta stage (Atwood, 2008). The beta stage usually comes somewhat close to the final product, but relies on extra input from the gaming community and data from those directly testing the game (Atwood, 2008; Tassi, 2015b). By releasing betas to the public, gaming consumers may easily ascend through the stages of consumer decision-making (“Introduction,” 2016).
Multiplayer betas are some of the most common forms of betas in the gaming industry (Tassi, 2015b). These not only generate valuable server data for game developers to streamline the game, but they also generate hype for upcoming game launches, making them a valuable asset to the marketing process (Tassi, 2015b). In 2007, the upcoming Halo 3 was on many gamers’ minds, and folks would likely take any means necessary to play it as soon as possible (Klepek, 2007). Microsoft Game Studios took advantage of this and made Halo 3‘s multiplayer beta accessible through the disc of another game: Crackdown (Klepek, 2007). By using the relatively unknown Crackdown as a gatekeeper for Halo 3 beta participants, many folks ultimately played and loved Crackdown on its own merits (Klepek, 2007). This was a genius marketing tactic.
Recent multiplayer betas, however, bring about some suspicions on the practice. Contemporary examples of multiplayer betas include those for Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege and Tom Clancy’s The Division. Both of these games are published by the same company, but their individual betas have incurred decidedly different results. The closed beta trailer for Siege can be seen below.
The closed beta for Rainbow Six Siege brought about a flurry of reactions. Some broken features of the game were addressed, but many positive reactions were had throughout its development as well (Tassi, 2015a). In fact, during a cluttered season in which many blockbuster video games saw release such as Halo 5, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, and others, Rainbow Six Siege was brought back into the limelight through its second multiplayer beta (Tassi, 2015a). On the other hand, The Division was met with more disappointment upon its beta’s conclusion, leaving the success of its impending release to be questioned (Kain, 2016). Much of this was due to user-generated feedback over gaming communities, social media, and journalism that creates its own reflective marketing.
Forbes’ Paul Tassi (2015b) recently brought up a salient point that multiplayer betas can do just as much damage as they can give aid in the marketing process for games. The practice of releasing an unfinished product for public testing is indeed a risk. Should there be a survey of quality before games are released in public beta form? Are public betas one of the only ways that bad games can improve? Should some games never be released in beta form? As there are many game developers out there, it’s likely that quality assurance standards very greatly by company. Should marketing professionals be the gatekeepers for betas? I personally believe that marketing teams should work in conjunction with quality assurance personnel such that bad marketing responses may be minimized.
References
Atwood, J. (2008, July 30). Alpha, beta, and sometimes gamma [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://blog.codinghorror.com/alpha-beta-and-sometimes-gamma/
Introduction to Marketing Communication. (2016). Retrieved from https://mcm.usc.edu/mod/page/view.php?id=33827
Kain, E. (2016, January 31). The 5 biggest problems with ‘The Division’ beta. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2016/01/31/the-5-biggest-problems-with-the-division-beta/#6d10eb073666
Klepek, P. (2007, February 9). Crackdown Disc Required for Halo 3 Beta. 1up. Retrieved from http://www.1up.com/news/crackdown-disc-required-halo-3
Tassi, P. (2015a, November 24). Reminder: ‘Rainbow Six: Siege’ still exists, open beta starts tomorrow ahead of launch. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2015/11/24/reminder-rainbow-six-siege-still-exists-open-beta-starts-tomorrow-ahead-of-launch/#2a68d6a05ba8
Tassi, P. (2015b, November 30). From ‘Rainbow Six: Siege’ to ‘Battlefront,’ can betas be hurting games? Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2015/11/30/from-rainbow-six-siege-to-battlefront-can-betas-be-hurting-games/#57f43a5b6e16
Media:
http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Crackdown?file=Halo_3_Beta_marked_Crackdown_box_art.jpg
3 Responses to Try Before You Buy: Video Games