GC: Marketing was key for Gears

By Ellie Gibson Published 21 August, 2007

Epic boss on success, Lohan.

Epic Games president Michael Capps has said that big budget marketing was key to the success of Gears of War - warning that many good games are ignored because they don't have the same level of support.

Capps was speaking during a Leipzig GCDC panel discussion about what makes a best-selling game. When asked by a member of the audience how important a role marketing plays he replied, "Absolutely tremendous... It's so unfortunate that I can list 20 games that were fantastic that nobody ever saw."

According to Capps, Epic was "extremely lucky" to have the backing of such a big publisher as Microsoft, and access to high profile marketing as a result.

"I had Lindsay Lohan come to my launch party," Capps stated. "I'm not sure it was worth the money, but..."

At this point Stormfront Studios boss Don Daglow chimed in, "What did she have to drink?". Capps simply replied, "That's a story for another time. The point is, it's cool to have that kind of exposure."

Gears of War was released in November 2006 and became the fastest-selling Xbox 360 game ever. Within a month more than 2 million units were shifted, and total sales to date are more than double that figure.

Capps said that the secret to Gears' success also lies in the timing of Microsoft's next-gen console launch, telling the audience, "We absolutely attribute Gears of War's success to coming out at exactly the right time for the console, when Microsoft really needed a big Xbox 360 game to sell the platform.

"We've been very lucky with that, but it's so important to any sort of financial success."

Fellow panellist and Factor Five president Julian Eggebrecht said he agreed that marketing should be a serious consideration for developers when signing up with publishers.

"If you have any sort of chance in your contract negotiations to get a set number or at least a minumum marketing commitment in there, absolutely go for it," he offered.

"Even though you and your publisher are convinced at the point of signing that your game will be fantastic and the most important thing in their strategy, it could slip six months. And then somebody applies with another game, and that game becomes the most important thing in their strategy."

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (33) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Triggerhappytel #1 5 years ago

    The boy don't lie.

    How many great, clearly mass-market games have fallen on their arse over the years due to little or no marketing from their publisher?!

    A lot, that's how many.

  • SomaticSense #2 5 years ago

    No shit.

    Jesus, could they be anymore stupid?

  • skillian #3 5 years ago

    No shit.

    My sentiments exactly. If anyone doesn't know the importance of marketing in the entertainment industry then they're probably not out of high school (and most schoolkids know that better than most).

  • redd #4 5 years ago

    @Egster

    "PS3, I Choose You!", that group any good? I'm not into the whole eurogamers community stuff, yet.

  • JetSetWilly #5 5 years ago

    He's right. I couldn't get enough of the Mark Rein/Cliffy B double-act around the Gears launch.

  • smelly #6 5 years ago

    Of course marketing was the key..

    it wasnt the gameplay...

  • woodnotes #7 5 years ago

    Nintendo is the best proof that marketing sells games (even crap ones). Their superb marketing this gen has completely surpassed anything from Nintendo or Sony.

  • woodnotes #8 5 years ago

    Although to all those that say marketing was the only reason why Gears sold so well, you should go and check the average review score on gamerankings.com

  • neilka #9 5 years ago

    I had a minumum once.

    She died.

  • Garulon #10 5 years ago

    @smelly
    "it wasnt the gameplay... "

    I think it absolutely was the gameplay. And graphics. Prolly not the origonality though.

  • Clive_Dunn #11 5 years ago

    Developer in "it's all about the quality of the marketing" shocker !

    Odd how it's always about the marketing, and never about the actual quality of the game itself.

    Let's play pass the buck again.

  • Biggles #12 5 years ago

    @woodnotes: because reviewers are somehow imune to the subtle effects of well executed marketting?

    Besides, the point is that the quality of a game doesn't have nearly as large an affect on its success as marketting and lucky timing.

  • Rirekon #13 5 years ago

    Reviews are part of marketing ;-)

  • woodnotes #14 5 years ago

    @ Biggles: Reviewers have been completely immune to the Wii marketing. Wii Sports, Mario Party, Big Brain Academy etc, all received pretty bad scores.

  • smelly #15 5 years ago

    >I think it absolutely was the gameplay. And graphics

    Graphics i'd agree with, not gameplay though. I'm not alone in feeling a little case of "i paid money for THAT?" once i'd completed it. It was very pretty, very polished.. and even i bought into the marketing on it.. but i wouldn't say it shouldve been rated as highly as it was (Same goes for the original halo btw.. even though i know that's a can of worms opening there)


    >Nintendo is the best proof that marketing sells games (even crap ones).


    Im sorry.. but no.

    Nintendo are good at marketting consoles but are shite at marketting games.. always have been probably always will be.

    (looks for any marketting for metroid 3.. due out next week in america..)
    Edited by 1 at 21/08/07 @ 17:22

  • Xerx3s #16 5 years ago

    Of course marketing was the key..

    it wasnt the gameplay...

    No obviously it wasn't. It's a lie that the game was a shitload of fun and entertained EG people for months/is still entertaining EG people.

  • moggsy #17 5 years ago

    Nintendo are good at marketting consoles but are shite at marketting games

    They seem to be doing alright with the old Brain Training adverts.

  • hjarg #18 5 years ago

    Good marketing, but average run of the mill shooter that looks pwetty...

  • skillian #19 5 years ago

    Gameplay will keep a game selling months/years after its release, but it's marketing that dictates the week one sales that make the headlines and chart positions.

    and smelly, Nintendo traditionally have sucked at marketing software, but this time round they've pulled it off undoubtedly. Those Wii ads that we all hate so much (grannies waving arms around in Wii Sports, those Red Steel TV spots, the hundreds of DS ads [each for a different game] around the Underground are examples of absolutely top tier marketing.

  • Steroyd #20 5 years ago

    you mean marketing that makes the public aware that your game exists?

    SomaticSense said: No shit.

  • mkreku #21 5 years ago

    I want to have Lindsey Lohan at my launch party too!

  • redd #22 5 years ago

    @mkreku

    But what would you launch?
    Oh wait dont answer that...

  • teabagger #23 5 years ago

    ...and in other news:

    Bears said to shit in woods, Pope revealed to have Catholic leanings.

  • The_Inquisitor #24 5 years ago

    It annoys me when companies like EA don't support the few decent games they have under their belt, Stranger's Wrath for example.

  • The-Bodybuilder #25 5 years ago

    >"could they be anymore stupid?"

    How is it stupid to answer a question he was asked?

    What's wrong with some of you people? Do you feel driven to insult everyone and everything is every single thread? Why does everyone have to be such negative pillocks?

  • Vandrius #26 5 years ago

    Please understand people - you need to realise that you are the exceptions, the addicts and techno-geeks.

    Your average joe bloggs consumer hasn't heard of Bioshock yet. They don't know the launch dates for all PS3 and 360 games over the next 3 months (I'm sure more than a few of us could list off the majority...).

    In order to sell to these people, you need one of three things, in order of importance.
    1) Mainstream advertising. This brings in the joe bloggses by the hordes. Get an awesome looking ad in at a good timeslot on TV. Take out internet ads on non-hardcore gaming & leisure sites, etc. Get people interested, and they'll buy - maybe after checking out a review.

    2) In-store advertising. Less effective because it requires the person to already been in the store, but with a higher sell-through effect.

    3) Word of mouth. "Bobby at school said this game is awesome, mummy, can I have it?"

    If you ignore 1 and 2 for your game, you're doomed. The hardcore will know about it, and buy it, and some others will get it through word of mouth or seeing it on a shelf... but thats it. The millions of "Little Timmy's" sitting next to their shiny console won't know to ask mummy for it.

    Advertising > Quality. Sad but true.

    Extreme numbers of sales = 60% Advertising + 40% Quality.

  • Pirotic #27 5 years ago

    Having a gun with a chainsaw stuck onto it probably helped as well.

  • Martin #28 5 years ago

    I'm glad I bought Gears - best co-op experience I've had in a long time (played it with my brother on my big screen).

    Loads of fun and we're actually thinking about going back and playing it on the hardest level just to see how far we'll get.

  • Siberian_Khatru #29 5 years ago

    Yeah, without all the marketing it could have been another Pariah.

  • MuppetThumper #30 5 years ago

    it was the homoeroticism and the fact that every character was a "meat-head". Goes down well with teenage boys.

  • GitSomE_UK #31 5 years ago

    SHOCKER!

    Stating the obvious is the new marketing!

  • Carrybagma #32 5 years ago

    @Fruit_Salad: I agree. Good ad - got peoples attention.

  • Sucram #33 5 years ago

    How easy a game is to market is also important.

    Viva Pinata and Gears came out the same time with the same publisher. Gears is a technically impressive brown shooter, VP is a err... something with gaudy stuffed animals.

    Hence Bioshock being sold as a shooter and Psychonaughts selling half a dozen copies since it was sold as a quirky comedy about brains rather than as a platformer.