I know you are supposed to "do what works," but when others are catching up, STEP UP.
There are many cases of this and a lot of the time its an opinion that the game wasn't as good as it could have been because the lack of (perceived) competition.
Remember how mad you were when Madden 2005 was pushed by NFL 2k5 (for many people one of the best football games ever). So how did EA handle the threat, they purchased the exclusive rights to the NFL and thus could continue to not have to feel forced to make a revolutionary title. And therefore, Madden 06-07 were some of the worst of the franchise with gimmicks as "additions."
Take Two forced EA to better Madden with the release of All Pro Football 2k8. You cant use current teams, but football fans played APF because it boasted NFL Hall of Famers and playing with John Elway in the third generation was a breath of fresh air.
And because of that, Madden 10 was one of the best games of the series with tons of upgrades and improvements. Now 505's Backbreaker looks to get in on some of that "secondary football title" market like 2k5 and APF2k8 did.
Don't become complacent. Continue to improve your product, even if you are the one show in town.
Medal of Honor's resurgence is another example of this. Many say that Modern Warfare 2 was not as good as it should, or was expected, to be. EA has struck once with Battlefield Bad Company 2, but with the trouble at Infinity Ward and Activision, EA is primed to release a game that could dethrone Call of Duty.
Hype will help Medal of Honor's reboot and put so much pressure on Treyarch and Activision's Call of Duty Black Ops. Either way, its about being a good game. Hype doesn't give you staying power.
There are many cases of this and a lot of the time its an opinion that the game wasn't as good as it could have been because the lack of (perceived) competition.
Remember how mad you were when Madden 2005 was pushed by NFL 2k5 (for many people one of the best football games ever). So how did EA handle the threat, they purchased the exclusive rights to the NFL and thus could continue to not have to feel forced to make a revolutionary title. And therefore, Madden 06-07 were some of the worst of the franchise with gimmicks as "additions."
Take Two forced EA to better Madden with the release of All Pro Football 2k8. You cant use current teams, but football fans played APF because it boasted NFL Hall of Famers and playing with John Elway in the third generation was a breath of fresh air.
And because of that, Madden 10 was one of the best games of the series with tons of upgrades and improvements. Now 505's Backbreaker looks to get in on some of that "secondary football title" market like 2k5 and APF2k8 did.
Don't become complacent. Continue to improve your product, even if you are the one show in town.
Medal of Honor's resurgence is another example of this. Many say that Modern Warfare 2 was not as good as it should, or was expected, to be. EA has struck once with Battlefield Bad Company 2, but with the trouble at Infinity Ward and Activision, EA is primed to release a game that could dethrone Call of Duty.
Hype will help Medal of Honor's reboot and put so much pressure on Treyarch and Activision's Call of Duty Black Ops. Either way, its about being a good game. Hype doesn't give you staying power.