Man, even with the moves GameStop pulls for pre-orders, there's no reason to do so. And Critics are all so biased from playing a MILLION games a month that you can only take their recommendations with a grain of salt. Just trust in your own gut feelings.
For example: I loved the first Godfather game and was stoked by the features of the sequel, but the impression gameplay videos gave me turned me off from a purchase to a rental and even then never bothered to finish the game.
I only pre-order when I badly want to play the game and I know that it wont fail in the reviews. The last game I pre-orderes was GoW III UTE, before that Batman AA.
Depends on the game. With certain games you can tell they'll be great without needing reviews. My pre-order list is Red Dead Redemption, Crackdown 2, Fable 3, Dead Rising 2 & The Last Guardian.
Most are sequels or from a developer with a solid track record so you know what to expect.
I preorder everything there is a chance of me wanting. Almost all games come with extras now and if I am not sure I will want a game I just have it preordered, don't pick it up until I see a review, then go to the store and either get it or cancel and get my money back.
I have no fanboy affiliation with any game, so I always await reviews. I have more than plenty games to tide me over for a waiting period, so there's no need to rush it.
I wait two weeks after the game has been released to see if I could pick up a second hand copy for $15 less. That way, it is not only cheaper but also safer (coz the reviews are out by that time) :D
Well I pre-ordered Alan Wake, but other than that I rarely Pre-order and I think I am going to cancel my Pre-order on Alan Wake and pick it up later. Its not that I think its any less of a game in fact I'm excited as ever for it, but I've just bought 3 games in the last 3 weeks so I'm more than happy and I don't think there is a need to drop down another $60.
I try not to pre-order games. If it's a game I'm looking forward too, I'll just get it on day one of its release. There will be plenty of copies.
majadamus
Why would you not preorder, a lot of games come with extras or some free thing now and you can also get your $5 back. Some games get very few copies in and will get none if no one preorders.
I preorder quite often. I read reviews, but normally demos, gameplay videos, developer interviews and previews can tell me whether or not I'll enjoy a game.
Depends what games... Games like Uncharted 2 & Bioshock 2 I pre-ordered straight away because I knew they would be awesome. Other's (like Red Dead Redemption) I'm waiting for reviews.
I rarely pre-order games. I like to read the reviews first, but if I want to try the game myself I'll still by the game no matter what the reviews say.
Pre ordering, unless it's for some obscure ps2 rpg coming out, seems almost pointless. This day in age showing up day 1 for a game launch will usually guarantee you will get a copy.
I pre-order games I'm really looking forward to, but if I have too many games to play already I wait for a price drop.
Sometimes I get bad surprises though... I pre-ordered Lost Planet 2 after playing the mind-blowing co-op demo, but now that early reviews are in... I'm still going to give it a fair chance, but I wish I had waited a bit for that one.
unless i know the game is going to be good (gow3, gears3?, me3, sc2, etc) ill wait until the game is out and i can try the first level at a friends place....my friend buys everygame known to man lol......if there are game like the ones ive said tho....they are preordered asap......ive had sc2 on preorder since september 2008
The reviews don't mean much to me if a game has been on my radar. They are only good for 2 things. Saving my ass in case my gut feeling was way off (almost never) or they let me know about a good game I wasn't paying attention to. I make up my mind about a game from seeing gameplay, listening to podcasts, reading previews. Hearing guys talk on a podcast shows true emotions and frankly mean more to me than the well thought out review. I will watch video reviews though since they are enjoyable.
EDITL No I don't preorder unles there is true incentive. Gamestop is very unnecessary with all the Best Buys and Targets around that have kajillion copies and don't gut their games.
I always wait for reviews. The one time I actually did preorder was for the PC version of Bad Company 2 so I could play the MP beta, and that was a huge mistake. Most of the time, I actually wait for the price to drop before I actually get it, so I'm generally a full season behind whatever games are coming out.
If I really liked the prequel or trust the developer, I pre-order. An example is I trust Square and Nintendo and maybe even Sega (though to an extent). For games that I'm not too excited about, I wait for reviews.
It really depends. Some games just give me an awesome feeling and I wanna play them, such as red dead redemption, i've had that preordered a while. The halo 2 and 3 I preordered cause I knew the first game was fun and i trusted the others to. But there are some games where I'm just not quite sure. Usually thats from being burned before with crappy games.
I've never relied on a review if a game appeals to me. Reviews are sometimes full of bunk or bias/opinion I do not share anyway - I'll cite the universal praise for MW2 despite the fact that the game had zero innovation, a criminally short single player campaign and was sold with a multiplayer infested with bugs/cheats/exploits since day one because they couldn't be bothered to beta test it. But if you looked at the reviews you'd think it was the most perfect game released in the last year. This is why I don't put too much stock in reviews.
However, I would never, ever order from a game from GameStop. There's just no point.
Right....Unless the game comes with extras, or a preorder reduces the price ($5 off Trauma Team, Left 4 Dead 2, etc), or it's a special edition, or if a preorder upgrades it to a special edition for free (Red Dead Redemption), or it's a game that no one else has preordered that they won't get any copies in unless you preorder it.
Amazon UK does a price fix thing on pre-orders which can be really advantagous. Basically whatever is the lowest price prior to release is what you pay. My Dead Rising pre-order is going to be £29.99 or less even if its much more expensive on release.
i don't really wait for reveiws but i dont pre order either. Exept Red Dead Redemtion - I pre oredered that kinda hard not to when from amazon you get the Golden Guns pack (earn fame faster) and a $20 amazon gift card.
I rarely let reviews sway me to get a game or not, I tend to read news about the gameaswell as gameplay trailers to for my own opinion on if I like the game or not.
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