Report: Pre-Ordering A Game Makes You Sad

Adobe has published their U.S. Gaming Trends 2015 report which it has created using data from “consumer data comprising +4 billion global visits” to websites, and “20+ million engagements” on social media platforms.

The good news for developers and publishers is that pre-orders are on the rise, generating 33% more revenue than the same time last year. The bad news is that the emotion most related to pre-ordering a game is sadness.  Joy is the second most popular emotion, followed by admiration, with anticipation registering just 2% on the completely-made-up-ometer.

Screen Shot 2015-10-14 at 10_40_19 AM

They also report that Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, generated $179 million in revenue on day one, beating The Avengers: Age of Ultron by a factor of over 2:1.

Source: Adobe via Gamasutra

8 Comments

  1. What the… admiration?! Yeah, I admire people who can use an (online) shop and/or credit card… [for the sarcasm impaired, yes, that was dripping with it]

    It is sad that you often have to preorder to get mostly worthless DLC, beta access or a steelcase etc, but I really can’t see how that equates to feeling sadness. If you’re feeling that when preordering then that’s a pretty good hint that maybe you need to find another hobby!

    Or does the sadness refer to everyone else on social media thinking you’re a loser for preordering a title and announcing it to the world? Yes, that makes more sense. I think I need a hug :)

  2. I preordered Battlefront :(

    Doesn’t feel right :D

    • Ooh, can I try?
      I preordered Battlefront………!! :D \o/ YEAAAAH, STAR WAAAARS!!!
      Hmm, I must be in the 18% happy club.

  3. I really can’t see why everybody makes a big deal about preordering. If you want the game, and can find a price you’re happy with- go for it! Most places don’t even charge you until they send the game out anyway, so it can easily be cancelled if you change your mind. I’ve seen quite a few times shops not having stock of games on release days, except for preordered copies.

    • Agreed. If you want a game on release day, for a reasonable price then preordering online is the best option. You could buy from Game on the day and pay more, or try a supermarket that may not even stock it though.

  4. If it’s a game that I look forward to, of course I’m gonna preorder. I’m sad because I can’t throw more of my money at it. Damn $60 price limit

  5. I remember when you genuinely had to preorder a game, to ensure that you would actually get a copy on launch day. It was typically cartridge based games that you had to preorder. Sometimes it was weeks before anymore came into stock!

  6. I don’t get it, how can pre-ordering something you want make you sad? I’ve got COD, Battlefront and Syndicate on pre-order and the predominant feeling I have is anticipation. and they say gamers are weird.

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