179 réponses à ce sujet

[wantedman dan]

Bump

[Nobrandminda]

That is an interesting parallel.

[omntt]

The new coke formula didn't try to copy (badly) classic sci-fi literature.
Otherwise, it's a fitting comparison.

[wantedman dan]

omntt wrote...

The new coke formula didn't try to copy (badly) classic sci-fi literature.
Otherwise, it's a fitting comparison.

Obviously it isn't a 1:1 comparison, but there are striking parallels, yes.

[Ytook]

Very good read, well done, hope Bioware brings back the 'old coke'.

[Vigil_N7]

Considering Coca-cola was labelled as the world's most valuable brand last year, I think thats a complimentary comparison to bioware.

Time heals all wounds, if Bioware release a new IP of the standard of DA/ME, i'm sure people will buy it in their droves, regardless of how gun-ho they are right now about boycotting.

[wantedman dan]

Vigil_N7 wrote...

Considering Coca-cola was labelled as the world's most valuable brand last year, I think thats a complimentary comparison to bioware.

Time heals all wounds, if Bioware release a new IP of the standard of DA/ME, i'm sure people will buy it in their droves, regardless of how gun-ho they are right now about boycotting.

Considering the comparison ends up as a contrast between the two corporations, it's actually more so an insult.

[Neverwinter_Knight77]

What the Coca-Cola Company failed to realize is that if people wanted to drink Pepsi, they would drink Pepsi. People drank Coke to be drinking Coke. In the same way, people played Mass Effect for Mass Effect. They did not want some god-awful ending that reeks of some kind of grimdark sci-fi show ending.

[wantedman dan]

Why not a bump?

[wantedman dan]

This is relevant again.

[Helios969]

Really nice job OP. I've been extremely curious about the potential business ramifications to this fiasco. While ME3 might have done well for them in the short term, I question the wisdom of alienating their base of consumers - those who have been loyal to their products year after year. Given the current state of the videogame industry, it doesn't seem wise to play with gasoline near an open flame.

[wantedman dan]

Helios969 wrote...

Really nice job OP. I've been extremely curious about the potential business ramifications to this fiasco. While ME3 might have done well for them in the short term, I question the wisdom of alienating their base of consumers - those who have been loyal to their products year after year. Given the current state of the videogame industry, it doesn't seem wise to play with gasoline near an open flame.

Thanks.

Coke, at least, had the prescience to realize that upsetting their fanbase--who wanted to drink Coke, not Pepsi--was bad and immediately course corrected. From the hints Bioware has been dropping, this will not be the case for our generation.

[DPSSOC]

wantedman dan wrote...

Helios969 wrote...

Really nice job OP. I've been extremely curious about the potential business ramifications to this fiasco. While ME3 might have done well for them in the short term, I question the wisdom of alienating their base of consumers - those who have been loyal to their products year after year. Given the current state of the videogame industry, it doesn't seem wise to play with gasoline near an open flame.

Thanks.

Coke, at least, had the prescience to realize that upsetting their fanbase--who wanted to drink Coke, not Pepsi--was bad and immediately course corrected. From the hints Bioware has been dropping, this will not be the case for our generation.

Quick Bioware re-release Baldur's gate with a slight visual update across all consoles and PC, call it Baldur's Gate classic, do it now.

[Sharkey1337]

Ah yes, this thread. Definitely a great read still, thanks for reminding us OP!

[wantedman dan]

DPSSOC wrote...

Quick Bioware re-release Baldur's gate with a slight visual update across all consoles and PC, call it Baldur's Gate classic, do it now.

At least in context it would be irrelevant.

It'd be like Coke saying, "Oh, you don't like New Coke? Here's some refreshed Mellow Yellow."

[Helios969]

wantedman dan wrote...

Helios969 wrote...

Really nice job OP. I've been extremely curious about the potential business ramifications to this fiasco. While ME3 might have done well for them in the short term, I question the wisdom of alienating their base of consumers - those who have been loyal to their products year after year. Given the current state of the videogame industry, it doesn't seem wise to play with gasoline near an open flame.

Thanks.

Coke, at least, had the prescience to realize that upsetting their fanbase--who wanted to drink Coke, not Pepsi--was bad and immediately course corrected. From the hints Bioware has been dropping, this will not be the case for our generation.

Yeah, it's a bit disheartening.  Oh well.

[wantedman dan]

I think I might write my senior thesis on this and create a case study.

This is fascinating, as a communication scholar.

[Helios969]

My question now is does this spell opportunity for another gaming company to evaluate the general fan dislike for the deus ex ending to bring a choice-based RPG space opera done properly. Take all the good elements of the ME games and write a linear story culminating in a few tasteful and satisfying endings. I'd love to see John Scalzi bring his talents to the gaming arena.

[tamperous]

Coca-Cola admitted they made a mistake and paid Bill Cosby to say they messed up, BW will never do that.

But at least Coca Cola had lots of great research that showed people preferred the taste of New Coke, when it was done in blind taste tests. They were basically recreating the Pepsi Challenge with New Coke versus both classic and Pepsi. Heck New Coke tasted much more like Pepsi than Coke, and Pepsi was kicking their butts all through the early 80s. Michael Jackson's "Taste of a New Generation" Ads.

It's hard to imagine that Bioware's preview panels and playtesters would like what they gave us. The only people id imagine liking this are sycophantic yes men trying to get on Hudson's good side. Only a failure of an organization would surround leaders with Yes Men. Much as I like Jessica Merizan, I get from her tweets some times that sometimes she's like a fan at convention lucky enough to get a first job in the industry and that she's in awe of her bosses. This is no way to run a creative organization.

Bioware was founded by doctors. Doctors in general are known for having a god complex. The management of an corporation often is built in the image of its creators. Just look at the latest symptom, three months of fans raging and their solution will not begin to touch the root cause of the rage. Small blessing in that these particular doctors decided to make games and not practice medicine because if the fanbase were a patient, the past three months of treatment have all but killed him.

[The Revolut]

Ahem.

I magically know about this thread.

[chemiclord]

The "New Coke" phenomenon actually is a pretty good example of how no matter what you do, no matter what checks and balances you put in place, sometimes you **** up. Even the most dedicated of peer review will miss something fundamentally wrong.

Every step Coca-Cola took told them that "New Coke" would be a hit. Focus groups, internal testing, taste testing... but they hit that one time where all the samples in the world don't always accurately represent the whole.

[The Revolut]

chemiclord wrote...

The "New Coke" phenomenon actually is a pretty good example of how no matter what you do, no matter what checks and balances you put in place, sometimes you **** up. Even the most dedicated of peer review will miss something fundamentally wrong.

Every step Coca-Cola took told them that "New Coke" would be a hit. Focus groups, internal testing, taste testing... but they hit that one time where all the samples in the world don't always accurately represent the whole.

It all boiled down to the fact that if people wanted to buy Pepsi, they would have bought Pepsi in the first place.

People drank Coke because it... tasted like Coke. Shocking, I know--it, however, draws it parallel to the fact that if people wanted to play Call of Duty-shoot-'em-ups with poor narrative and great combat, they'd go buy COD.

[Code_R]

This theory hinges on the idea that they will fix the ending. However it's quite likely that a comparison would be like the release of a New Coke XL - just as bad but now more soda with a bigger can!

Modifié par Code_R, 24 juin 2012 - 10:19 .

[The Revolut]

Code_R wrote...

This theory hinges on the idea that they will fix the ending. However it's quite likely that a comparison would be like the release of a New Coke XL - just as bad but now more soda with a bigger can!

Exactly.

That's why I--erm, I mean the OP will amend the study after the EC's release.

[tamperous]

chemiclord wrote...

The "New Coke" phenomenon actually is a pretty good example of how no matter what you do, no matter what checks and balances you put in place, sometimes you **** up. Even the most dedicated of peer review will miss something fundamentally wrong.

Every step Coca-Cola took told them that "New Coke" would be a hit. Focus groups, internal testing, taste testing... but they hit that one time where all the samples in the world don't always accurately represent the whole.

Their studies had ahuge blind spot.  They didn't tell test consumers that this product would be replacing the old product. All focus groups for replacement products now include this information largely because of "new coke". Because they didn't think to ask this one question, they had no idea of the emotional attachments people had to Coke. Telling people that they couldn't get the same drink their grandpa bought them during those hot summer daysat the ballpark or the drink they shared on that first date with your husband as a consequence of new coke didn't go over well.

Still it actually worked out for them. After they brought back classic they started "the real thing" advertising campaign that played on images like I just described and finally started to reversePepsi's gains.