Ben-DutkaDuring the week of Grand Theft Auto IV 's release, the entire world knew it was coming. Now, while Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots won't be quite as gigantic, its launch should at least qualify as "huge." That being the case, wouldn't you expect to see plenty of television ads just like we saw with GTAIV? Well, according to Newsweek's N'Gai Croal, maybe not… Here's what he had to say on the matter:
Im hearing some reports that the marketing for the game, that there may not in fact be TV marketing for it in the United States. If thats true, thats definitely going to hold it back…
Croal also said the PS3's installed user base – which still isn't extremely high – may also impact the total sales of MGS4, but there's no doubt that fans of the franchise will make the game a success. Granted, GTAIV was available for both the PS3 and Xbox 360, and the TV ads may be non-existent in the U.S., but the gaming world remains a-flame with any news related to Konami's hotly anticipated masterpiece. Croal did compare MGS4 to another stealth type game, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed , which "was marketed phenomenally well" and ended up selling several million copies. As far as we're concerned, though, MGS4 will satisfy a great many gamers with or without a massive marketing campaign, and at the very least, Croal admitted that much:
I think the game is going to be incredibly rewarding for anyone who does decide to play it, but my feeling is that there is a bit of a ceiling on it."
We ain't too worried about MGS4 flopping in terms of sales; it probably won't top GTAIV, but there's little to no chance that MGS4 will tank. Not all games need TV ads, and the PS3 installed user base is growing every day. We figure it's plenty high enough by now, and what PS3 owner isn't aware of this game?
Related Game(s): Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
