Jimquisition: Why Boycotts Fail Where Whining Tantrums Win

[getoffmycloud]

I do think that a boycott of a publisher doesn't work but boycott certain games does. To use the Activision example people don't like COD cause it is the same game every year and it has overpriced DLC and subscription services that only offer stuff that Bungie did with Halo free for years, ok so boycott COD but when they do something like Prototype or War for Cybertron then do buy the game because that sends the message of what we want and what we don't.

As soon as you say I am going to boycott a certain publisher because they have done something you don't like regardless of whether a particular game does that or not then you stop being a customer and therefore the publisher couldn't care less what you think.

 

[revjay]

LONG LIVE THE FIGHTERS!

Also, thank gourd for Jim. I don't thank enough gourds for Jim so I'm just taking this moment to do so.

PS. I'm not much of a whiner so I just hope those that are take notice of this and do the right thing.

 

[TheSteeleStrap]

Huh. Well alright then. Quite often Jim's videos make me nod my head and say "hmm yes, very good point." Then there are videos, like this one, that make me say "Holy shit I never thought of that before. That's TRUTH!"

 

[Undeadpool]

I think often the "boycotts" are just whining. Like Jim said in his episode on boycotting, it's usually a completely empty threat made by whiny little bitches. They say they're going to do it but they never do. If people actually stuck to boycotts then maybe they would hold more power, but they don't. Although I agree that even if boycotts did do what they were supposed to publishers would probably react how Jim says.

I'm not really convinced that publishers care about whining either. It can easily be ignored. A few have said that they have listened, but have they really? And does listening really equate to change? I think publishers are smart enough to realise that even though many people may ***** about something that keeps happening over and over again, people keep buying their stuff over and over again. Capcom saying that they're rethinking their DLC plans is an exception to the rule. Every other trend that gets people pissed is still continuing, even growing. And even if Capcom do decide to make a change, how do we know it'll be for the better? They might just replace their current system with something just as offensive. Take a look at how they have "honoured" Mega Man's 25th anniversary when people have been complaining how the franchise hasn't been given the attention it deserves.

Basically, you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't. In the words of Serj Tankian, the bottom line is money and nobody gives a fuck.

I'm with you on this. I really think the ME3 debacle did, at most, force them to move the ending DLC up in terms of when it would've been rolled out, but most likely it just made the whole thing much more public. If you really think Bioware went back and recorded all those extra lines (which Jennifer Hale said she hadn't in an interview), had all those extra parts, AND had three full-on, choice-driven ending extensions (sure, they were just still images, but with the sheer number of ways it can play out, that's plenty), you're out of your mind OR you think Bioware has one of the greatest work outputs of any company ever to exist.

I'm not saying people shouldn't complain when they feel slighted, it's just when it reaches this frothing, unearned, borderline-psychosis of "SCREW THEM! SCREW EVERYONE WHO LOOKS LIKE THEM! SCREW EVERYTHING THEY'LL EVER DO EVER AGAIN BECAUSE CORPORATE EMO TWILIGHT!!!!!!!11"

 

[Elyxard]

EA's the only publisher that's driven me to boycott, but that's mostly because every time I've bought anything from them, I've felt ripped off. It's a personal boycott, but I feel a lot better with myself from doing so. It saved me from ME3; best (lack of) purchasing decision I ever made, as sad as I am about what it became.

I've certainly done my share of complaining though. A well thought out and polite email directly to the publisher might get lost into the mix, but not when they're bombarded with thousands of them at once. Operation Rainfall wasn't a boycott, but a complain fest, and it mostly worked as we can clearly see.

I've been badgering Konami a little bit as well, requesting a proper re-release of Suikoden 2. With enough complaints, they'll know they have to give in, and they might realize they can actually profit off of it. That's a good thing.

Anyone who brings up the "entitled" gamer remark deserves to be swindled. Our capitalist system only works when we hold our corporations to actually deliver what we want.

 

[jebara]

Jim, I was one of those guys who was hating your show when it first appeared on the escapist, but over time it became one of my favorite shows on the internet, I just want to say I take everything back and keep on the good work on being right as always.

 

[Jumplion]

Definitely an interesting point about boycotts and made me think about my own boycott of Activision, mostly because of their business practices, but also because I'm never really interested in the games they publish anyway.

As for the bitching/moaning/complaining, I think it is definitely effective. However, I feel that is has to have some sort of direction, otherwise the complaining will just become a directionless wave of hate where people are misinformed over what exactly they're complaining about. We saw this with the Mass Effect stuff where people complained that the ending was shallow and didn't make sense, and then we got people counter-complaining that those that were complaining were doing so because they didn't get a happy ending, which is a misinterpretation of what they actually were complaining about.

 

[MortisLegio]

So basically if gamers want change we must be like this

Spoiler: pause for dramatic effect

and not like this

Spoiler: to save room

ok

OT: Liked the episode and it explains WHY most boycotts aren't a good idea.

 

[purifico]

Nice hat, Jim. Is there a story behind it?

As for the topic - i do both. I moan and ***** and whine to make my voice be heard, and boycott games/publishers/developers to make myself feel good.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Works for me. Boycotting is just childish. Especially as companies like EA produce or release a huge amount of popular titles. But i get the anger, ive played games or watched a dvd that was shit. But, the people that say "im gonna boycott that company" never do.

Moaning can work and you can still play the games you like. An if you didnt buy the game...then you wouldnt moan and then things wouldnt change. SO BUY.

I think, instead of boycotting. Just rent. Rent from Blockbuster or Lovefilm. You get to play games for cheaper and you save so much money.

 

[4173]

Sounds to me like boycotting plus whining would be the real way to go, but I know that's a level of commitment many people (including myself) would have a hard time sustaining.


How effective is lying? I could buy a game and complain about it on the internet as 4173 and send a message as [name redacted] that I boycotted shitty business practice X.

Twice the whining, none of the self-deprivation.

 

[Kordie]

Anyone else feel like this is just stage 1 in Jim creating hiw own army? Step one, tell everyone that complaining is ok. Step 2, escalate and organise. Step C, take over the internets by force.

If so, I'm in because this all makes sense. kneel before thank god for Jim.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I can see your point about boycotts, but the whining thing makes no goddamn sense. Why should Publisher's feel any obligation to listen to whiners who are just going to buy their products anyway? I mean I could see some sense if the whiners threatened to STOP buying their products (as much as that would be an empty threat), but instead it's like "We hated this and that, but we're going to keep mindlessly consuming your shit anyway."

 

[Mark B]

Don't "vote with your wallet" instead "buy yourself a vote\voice" ?

 

[sailor_960]

The truth of this videos' thesis makes me incredibly sad. Have really come to a point where acting like a petulant child is the solution to a problem? What the hell video game industry and video game fans? What. The. Hell?!

 

[Jordi]

I completely agree that boycotting won't send the message you want 99% of the time and complaining about your purchase is much more effective.

However, I don't really understand the BioWare/ME3 example. Jim just said that one reason boycotts are bad is that they hit the developer rather than the publisher. But in the case of the ME3 ending[footnote]I'm not making any judgments myself as I haven't played the game yet.[/footnote], isn't that the goal? I mean, the rage here is about the story and not the DRM or anything related to the publishing, right? And that is the developer/BioWare's responsibility, right?

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Also I find it incredibly depressing that behaving like a 4 year olds actually gets results and that now this behavior is actually being encouraged. *facepalm*

 

[Mike the Bard]

Interesting episode. There is truth in that complaining can be a good method to get your voice out.

But i usually start having a problem with it when it stops being constructive, and turns into a hate filled Godzilla trashing downtown Tokyo. Sure Godzilla's anger my be justifiable, but that point is lost under all the death and destruction he caused. sure your cause gets attention, but your tactics only undermine yourself as negative tactics invoke a negative response. Eventually people will only see the hate and bile, and not the point your trying to make. They'll just roll their eyes and continue what they were doing.

there still is effective methods of complaining. the group that sent 400 cupcakes to Bioware is prime example of this. the notes they had on the boxes where incredibly passive aggressive, only acting as seemingly calm reminders as to why they are doing this. The brunt of the message, the part that caught Bioware's eyes was how much effort was put into this calm reminder. It showed how far people are willing to go to get your attention and how much they cared about what they're talking about. Your cause gets the attention you wanted, but without the backlash of more negative tactics. No one can besmirch your cause by how you got your attention, because all you did was send some cupcakes to a company you know can do better, and you would like to passively remind them of this to the tune of 400 cupcakes.

 

[gigastar]

So any ideas on telling Capcom that I want AAI2 and MML3?

Should I make death threats, demand donations back and attack people who don't know what were talking about?

Given the explosion on the Capcom-Unity blog when Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 was announced, i think its safe to say that its just not going to happen.

 

[GonzoGamer]

I can see your point about boycotts, but the whining thing makes no goddamn sense. Why should Publisher's feel any obligation to listen to whiners who are just going to buy their products anyway? I mean I could see some sense if the whiners threatened to STOP buying their products (as much as that would be an empty threat), but instead it's like "We hated this and that, but we're going to keep mindlessly consuming your shit anyway."

Yea, that's kind of the hole in Jim's logic here. The board members at the top who sign off on the decisions aren't going to give a crap about people complaining (unless they're high profile people with a soapbox people look at; like a celebrity or someone else that gets publicity) as long as the money is coming in. I think he's overestimating how much these people want to be liked. A lot of those board members are sociopaths who look at gaming as just another capitalist venture with legions of fans begging to be looted.
But I guess that's the "thing" isn't it? Enough gamers are going to help them meet that bottom line so what difference does boycotting make anyway. Really, while gaming is steeped in the "fanboy" culture and there are enough consumers willing to defend some of these looting practices (day 1 dlc, online pass, and crap like that) neither boycotting nor complaining isn't going to do shit.