Can word of mouth help this football game?

[Spongedaddy]

I was not going to get APF 2K8 at first. The lack of NFL and more importantly franchise mode was a bit of a turnoff. Then I watched the Gamespot interview and I fell in love with the idea these guys presented. This is the game I have been waiting for since Front Page Sports football presented some limited customization. However, I am someone who has a gaming hobby. A lot of people wont be out hunting videos on the game. Currently this game is at #255 on the Amazon sales charts. The game needs to sell well to help future installments. I do know two things 1) "Casual" gamers might only know the Madden name and care for current NFL players 2) 2K has generally stunk at marketing.

My question is this: can word of mouth help sell a game. When it comes to movies word of mouth can turn a small flick into a box office smash. When it comes to games the results may vary. I believe the first Halo was helped by word of mouth, but there are many great titles that slip under the radar. Do you think as people play the game and love it, that word of mouth will help grow sales?

[Garrett67]

You know how us gamers are, we keep hearing great things about something and the next thing you know you're on your way to the nearest Gamestop or Walmart to pick it up. So I think that word of mouth will help out a great deal.

[BSanders]

I still can't get over the no franchise and single player season so word of mouth won't change my mind, I hope people do enjoy a different option this year for football.

[J.R. Locke]

I think that page 2 espn article was great for it and if other sports media would pick up on it that would be great. Once my Dad asks me about it I will know it has made it to the mainstream. Heres to hoping he does.

[dave360]

Word of mouth always sells more games than commercials IMO.

[muggins]

Word of mouth can help any video game that wants to sell.

[lovitz]

In any business, word of mouth is the most effective and obviously the least expensive form of advertising. To go along with this, a satisfied customer may tell 5 people but a dissatisfied customer may tell 20 people. So, yes, word of mouth will effect the sales for 2k. Whether positive or negative, depends on the majority of either satisfied or dissatisfied customers.

[xylocaine]

Reviews > word of mouth > commercials

That's how I see it.

www.gamerankings.com is great for reviews... takes averages of them all.