Remember Kids: Pre-Ordering Games is Bad

Image courtesy of Kotaku

Well, now I've seen everything. Earlier this week, new information on the next entry of the Deus Ex franchise, titled Mankind Divided, was revealed. It got a firm release date of February 23rd, 2016, a pretty cool looking collector's edition, and a new form of pre-order program that Square Enix is calling "Augment Your Pre-Order". It works like this: the more people that pre-order Mankind Divided, the more pre-order bonuses are unlocked, starting with new character skins and working all the way up to new levels and even the ability to get the game early. Think of it as Kickstarter for pre-orders, which is just as horrifying as it sounds. It claims to be a way for fans of the game to "collectively expand and enhance their own Day-One edition" of the game, but I just see it for what it is: a shameless cash-grab.

Now I kind of understand where Square Enix is coming from; they want as many people to play the game as possible. But as someone who rarely pre-orders games, this is a terrible attempt to gain a quick buck and once again cheat a good number of gamers out of some cool content. Personally, I only pre-order games if I want a collector's edition that has the potential to sell out quickly (like Fallout 4's Pip Boy Edition). Back in the day when games weren't as widely spread, pre-ordering made sense, as you wanted to guarantee you had a copy on release day. In today's world games are everywhere, and you can almost always walk into any store and pick up a copy without having to worry about it being sold out. I've even had experiences where the store I bought a game from gave me its pre-order bonuses anyway, without pre-ordering it.

The biggest problem with this campaign is that once pre-order number grow enough to unlock a new tier, all the previous rewards are rendered obsolete. So if you really want those character skins, you better hope that no one else pre-orders the game or else you're stuck with a lousy digital art book instead. What's worse is that Square Enix is teasing the ability to release the game four days before it's released if enough people lay down their money early on a game that may or may not be any good. They are purposefully holding back the game's real release date because they want their money right now. If that's not an evil scheme, I don't know what is.

I don't really have anything against pre-orders in some situations. I think if publishers provide tangible rewards for putting down money on a game early (like Mad Max did with a die-cast replica of Max's Interceptor) then I'm all for it. However, I feel that digital rewards, like new levels or characters, are a scam. Gamers who opt to wait out for reviews before purchasing a game are cheated out of some potentially cool stuff and are forced to purchase them later. It serves no purpose other than to ensure sales.

Can pre-orders work? Of course they can, just with the right mindset. If a publisher is going to offer exclusive content to those who pre-order, make it available for free six months or so after launch. That way there's an incentive to pre-order a game without punishing those who don't.

My faith in the gaming industry wanes more and more each day, but I still see hope for it. Please game publishers, don't continue down this path! Treat your consumers with more respect, and maybe you'll get some back.