CHEAT SHEET
THE EDITOR INDIE POWER STRETCHES BEYOND THE STUDIO T
he big trend of the last 18 months has to have been the rise of the little guy. One-man studios and indie
outfi ts have been developing games that the big businesses would never dare to make. YouTubers and wiki writers
are supporting popular titles long after the major publishing houses have moved on to the next big game. As the big corporations consolidate around major mass- market releases, it has left huge gaps for new businesses to come through and fulfi ll the demands of the more dedicated fans. And this has translated into
retail, too.
The independent retailer was supposed to have died by now. Their numbers were dwindling at a rapid rate as publishers threw all their support behind Tesco and Asda and GAME and HMV. Those big stores have changed now. Most of them – even GAME to a certain extent – are now purely focused on the biggest titles. That leaves indies to become the place where you can buy that niche Tecmo Koei game or cult Japanese RPG. The disappearance of GameStation means that the indie is the only High Street outlet likely to stock retro titles, or even import games for that matter. The administrations of GAME and HMV (and the subsequent closure of shops) also means there are gaps across the country for the nimble indie to pop up in. And it appears the publishers and platform holders are waking up to this opportunity. Collector’s Editions and pre- order incentives are now no
July 11th 2014
Publishers and platform holders are waking up to the opportunity off ered by independent retailers.
longer the exclusive of the major chain: indies are getting them, too. Probably the best support indies have had over the last six months has come from CentreSoft’s DLCSoft initiative. It’s a real step forward for physical retail that even the smallest of stores can now sell digital games via this initiative. PlayStation were the fi rst to let indies do it and now these outlets can sell digital Nintendo games, too.
The big issue around the indie scene, however, is training. Some stores out there really get it and off er service and products that rival the biggest chains. Others need some help. What are the best practices around selling DLC to customers? How do you merchandise pre- orders and digital cards? That’s where we hope we can help. Over the next few weeks in MCV we will be providing advice from as many experts as we can fi nd in an eff ort to support all forms of retailers, but particularly our smaller friends across the UK. In fact, why not turn to page 16
now to see our picks of the latest innovations in gaming retail?
Chris.Dring@intentmedia.co.uk
02
THE WEEK IN VIDEO GAM
EA CONSIDERED OPENING UK DICE STUDIO BEFORE GOING TO LA
Market Data
No new games cracked the retail charts this week, which resulted in a three per cent decline in unit sales
£10m £5m £8.49m 286,164 units 9.4m 330,151 units £8.28m 319,591 units
£0m
Week Ending June 21st
Week Ending June 28th
Week Ending July 5th
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