what's the point?

Hype

This article takes an interesting look at the topic of overhype and video games (a topic itself becoming overhyped). What I find interesting is the omission of the fact that despite the overhype of certain games (Fable is of course the prime example), they still sell extremely well. OK actually it's more likely because of the overhype, which is the root of the problem. The developers and/or publisher marketing stooges whip the gaming community into a frenzy with overblown promises. The masses get excited and pre-order in record numbers. The game comes out missing key features that the deveopers described, but who cares, the game has already sold millions, now we can begin developing a sequel that includes some of the features we initially promised for the original.

Until the day the consumer base makes more educated decisions regarding what games to buy, we will continue to see vastly overhyped games that almost always wind up disappointing. Of course, waiting for consumers at large to make informed decisions is a losing proposition. So, unless there truly is a backlash against Lionhead for Fable (which I don't see happening, sure the hardcore gamer who reads gaming news sites on a daily basis might be wary of claims coming from Molyneux for awhile, most gamers probably don't even know their was an issue to begin with) we can continue to see more of the same, overblown promises and stripped down deliverables.