Why do people pre-order games?

[laggyteabag]

If a game is part of an established franchise that I already enjoy I will usually pre-order a game.

If a game has a good demo, I might consider it, but more often than not I will wait for reviews/ a sale.

If a game has just trailers, I will probably avoid pre-ordering it and I will wait for reviews/ a sale.

I will say however, that pre-order bonuses do affect my orders, mostly because I am somewhat of a completionist, and I have this weird desire to get everything in a game.

 

[hazabaza1]

Guaranteed game the day it comes out (sometimes the day before) sometimes the extra goodies.
Makes sense to me.

 

[Milanezi]

I've been asking that question myself lately...
A) Some games are sure to sell out as soon as they hit shelves, pre-ordering in those cases make sure you get the game on release date.
B)Sometimes you get "extras" for pre-ordering, such as exclusive items, discount at DLC, DLC for free, and other stuff. Also justifies pre-ordering, even digital preordering.
C) Makes no sense: pre-ordering digital games (or movies or songs) when you don't get any sort of incentive for it... I'm a fan of digital purchases, movies, songs, games etc. If I can buy it digital, that's how I'll probably roll. The other day I'm at the iTunes store, and I see Django for pre-order, that's when I asked myself, there're no extras or discount for me to buy it as a pre-order, nor is iTunes going to sell out all the movies because, well, it's DIGITAL...

What I think, many people, me included, sometimes go on auto mode and don't think while pre-ordering: I pre-ordered The Dark Knight Returns - Part 1 at iTunes, that didn't cause me any problem mind you, I paid a normal value, and got my product as good as any, but there was no valid reason I couldn't wait and just buy it later on. I believe we're so used to the pre-order thing of hard copies that CAN sell out, that sometimes we no longer think about the reasons for a pre order...

 

[octafish]

I've pre-ordered a few games, BF3, XCOM, Deus Ex Revo, Dishonoured, and Hitman Absolutelycrap. All five games had a substantial discount, at least 25% and for BF3 I got it half the price it was selling at retail. BF3 also came with a great map pack important in an online shooter. Of the five I have only been really disapointed in Dishonoured and Hitman. They certainly showed promise, but Dishonoured disapointed on a personal level and Hitman is why this console generation needs to end. It isn't the dumbing down of the game that killed it, you can turn that stuff off. It is the tiny levels and no back tracking. It just isn't Hitman anymore. Sorry got distracted.

It is a gamble, and I don't mind the odd punt.

 

[xshadowscreamx]

for me..

if its a multiplayer game and my firends are going to get it
and pre-order loot

GTA5 will get this treatment

but i don't pre-order often. anyway i have been thinking of these deals below

(360)bioshockI looks amazing and comes with, premium ed ($99)
art book
lithograph print
3 power ups (digital of course)
handyman figurine
murder of crows key chain

but its single play only, so your hoping that it has replay value


(360)pre-order TOMB RAIDER ($79) and get
well, combat-strike package dlc


(ps3)the last of us ellie edition ($114) and get
(physical)

mini art book
comic book
a new skin for your ps3 controller (ellie)
screen print effect poster of ellie

(digital)
soundtrack
2p sn avatars
new ps3 theme
Ellie skin sackboy
and a bunch of multiplayer benefits


so what do you guys think i should choose? if any

 

[Candidus]

Well, I've had a pretty good track record pre-ordering games. If I'd been burned more often than I'd been rewarded OP, I'd have stopped before now.

Regarding the object that seems to have provoked your thread, I didn't pre-order A:CM. The studio has an iffy track record in my book, I'm not a fan of anything they've ever made. Also, the last licensed Aliens game was crap. As long as you pay enough attention to say at least that much- a couple of lines, whether good or bad- about anything you plan to preorder, then you should be fine.

Why do I preorder? Sometimes I really want the goodies, but usually it's about getting a game on the release date. I live in the most rural sort of rural Cornwall, and I never go further than a minute or two from my front door for reasons. Retail is not an option.

 

[Chester Rabbit]

Only time I will ever pre-order these days is if there is an art book involved. I love looking at concept art. Seeing how an idea progressed and grew and reading artists elaborations on their work. What the idea was, why it changed ect. But I have even learned now not to even bother with those seeing how the amount of concept art is minimal and most of it you likely saw online already.
Otherwise...come on there isn?t really any game coming out these days that you won?t be able to buy normally off the shelf like all us mortals on day one or two or three or a month from release.

 

[Sunrider]

I don't, because I find it stupid to do so. I used to, but with digital distribution nowadays, I don't see a reason to anymore. I never buy hardcopies for my PC, and it's my main gaming platform. I more or less mirror Totalbiscuit's opinion on the subject.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

It depends on the game for me.

I pre ordered Torchlight 2 because I got Torchlight 1 for FREE having never owned it and only playing a friends copy, plus the other pre order incentive was that it was 20% off if pre ordered.

I pre ordered Borderlands 2 because I absolutely loved Borderlands and all but one of it's DLC packs, pretty much every aspect of it was what I wanted. Borderlands 2 I knew was going to be an excellent PC port and that is all I was worried about when it was announced.

Besides that I wouldn't bother with such a generic concept for a franchise that wasn't very well established in the last few years. Even if I loved Aliens this new game never seemed like it would have been good even watching the demo.

 

[Ranorak]

Simple, I live in a small town, with a rather small video game store.
I rather not risk of the game I want being sold out.

Also, I pre-order games I know I will like.
Most of the time those are either sequels or long running series.
I have been wrong, of course.
I pre-ordered Spore, because of the Creature Creator and I personally felt that game was a waste of zero's and one's.

 

[StriderShinryu]

For consoles, it's easy. If I'm probably going to be buying the game anyway, I'll usually pre-order. Guarantees me a copy (and, yes, it's very possible for a store to run out of copies of something on day one, especially if you're talking special editions). I don't pay any more than I would otherwise. I get any pre-order goodies that may be on offer. And, if I decide I don't want Game X at some point, I can just switch the credit to another pre-order or purchase.

For PC as far as downloads go.. I'm not sure. It's usually cheaper I guess, but I doubt I'd ever pre-order something downloadable. Sure I may save some money, but there's no way to go back if the thing you've pre-ordered starts looking like garbage before it releases but after you've paid.

 

[Strazdas]

People like freezing thier money and betting on products. they know that most of them do not have the willpower not to spend all their money away if they dont freeze them in a preorder.

 

[Henriot]

Because I paid for XCOM: Enemy Unknown, I got that AND Civ V!

(Only game I ever pre-ordered)

 

[Harlemura]

If I pre-order a game, it's usually because I want to play it.
Sure, it's smarter to wait a few months for the price to go down. Apart from maybe a couple of pre-order bonuses, the game's not going to be much different. But in those few months, there's a game out there I want that I'm not playing and other people are and they might be having a grand old time with it.
Especially with fighting games, which I've been playing a lot recently. Most of the gameplay comes from fighting other people, so everyone with the game is getting more practice and figuring the game out while those without are falling behind. Guess that goes for a lot of games though.

Also you're spending less time sheltering yourself from spoilers if you've already played the game. That's a plus.

 

[Tom_green_day]

So that they can get the product on launch day without having to even leave the house?

 

[Andy of Comix Inc]

Because Collector's Editions are first in first served and I would like to know my Batman/Wonder Woman statue belongs to me before I walk into the store.

Really, I only ever pre-order $10-$15 indie games that I know I'll buy anyway and I want to support them ahead of time (or have a 25% discount), or games with Collector's Editions that I want to know I'll actually get. I'm going to pre-purchase Injustice: Gods Among Us for the Collector's Edition; even knowing full well the game could be not all that good, I would to guarantee I have all those physical DC goodies because I'm such a DC Comics fan.

So yeah. That's why I pre-order games. Discounts, supporting smaller companies, and guaranteeing a copy of a limited supply run of products.

 

[Riff Moonraker]

It's a question that has been bugging me for a long while now but it seems all the more relevant right now with the whole controversy over Aliens:Colonial Marines.

The question is: Why do people pre-order games?

I never understood the logic behind it: You put down money paying the full price for a game based on some trailers or maybe a demo without the guidance of reviews from people who have played the whole thing. It may or may not resemble the trailer or (in the case of A:CM) even closely resemble the demo. You also loses the chance to wait for the price of the game to inevitably go down a few months down the line after it is released.

I can sort of understand how pre-ordering ensures that you get a copy of the game even if stocks are low, but this no longer applies on digital distributing platforms like Steam where pre-ordering still exits. I can also sort of understand why when there are pre-order bonuses involved(though they are rarely worth paying game at full-price)but there are people who pre-orders games when there aren't any bonuses for doing so. As far as I tell, there just aren't any reasons for pre-ordering a game rather than buying it the first day it comes out.

So, fellow escapists, why do you pre-ordering games? Are there any obvious reasons to do it that I'm not seeing?

Actually, these days you almost always DO get something additional when you preorder a game. Alot of times thats why I do it, especially when its a game I have no doubt I am going to buy anyway. If its a Mass Effect, Halo, Gears of War, or a Dead Space game, I am going to buy it, and I might as well preorder it to secure any additional content. I also usually get the special editions of these particular games, and I want to make sure I get a copy, just in case it sells out. I got talked into preordering Aliens, though, and I still havent gone by the store. I only plopped down $5 but I am going to flat out refuse the game, and ask them to let me put it on Gears:Judgement, instead.

 

[WickedSkin]

I'm pretty sure most pre-order... -ers are the kind of people who are slowly and completely destroying gaming and games.

"HEY! We will pay you anything for any piece of crap without any question! Why would we need to ask you for anything in return? We don't need any quality-control or content what so ever!"

This is the message those kind of people like to send. Content and great stuff like devkits is actually being frowned upon. Every game released needs at least 5 patches before they even get somewhat playable.

Spoiler: Or short version

 

[Aris Khandr]

For me, it is largely habit. It used to be that getting a copy of a game on release day was far from guaranteed. Especially true if you have commitments that make it impossible to be at the store in the morning. By the time you're off of work and driving home, the store had been sold out for hours. That's just how gaming used to be. So we pre-ordered. I know it isn't the same now, but there is still that voice in the back of my head that tells me that if I really want something, pre-ordering is the only way to be sure I get it. That said, I've never been burned on one.

 

[Inconspicuous Trenchcoat]

I've usually only pre-ordered because:

1) I let my emotions get the better of me.
2) Green Man Gaming had a good deal on something I was interested in.
3) That one time I wanted to "vote with my wallet," and support DRM-free AAA games by pre-ordering Witcher 2 from GoG.
4) I have prime interest in playing the game right when it comes out.
5) It's a game I enjoyed on console, but want the superior PC version (Sonic Racing Transformed).
6) I feel good about pre-ordering indie and indie-ish games (The Cave) because it makes me feel like I'm helping out the "little guys."

I'm probably gonna stop pre-ordering now. It is a bad idea after all. I'll survive without a few TF2 items, alternate skins and 10% off. Also, my backlog could do battle with ogres if I could instill the pile of them with life (also rage).

Even pre-order bonuses that look neat turn out to be stupid or never used: E.g. The deck of Tarot cards from my Dishonored pre-order remain unopened; the Saint's Row 3 DLC looked cool, but those special weapons got boring pretty quickly (mainly because you ran out of ammo way too quickly, and nobody drops more for it--have to go back to a store :/)