Syndicate Sales "Hurt" By GAME Group's Troubles Says Starbreeze CEO

76
Richard Walker

Starbreeze Studios CEO, Mikael Nermark has claimed that sales of its FPS reboot of the 1993 Bullfrog strategy title Syndicate, were adversely affected by GAME Group's recent financial issues that saw the UK retail chain go into administration, closing many of its stores before being acquired by OpCapita.

Syndicate was released at the end of February, before publisher EA pulled support for GAME Group, which saw big titles like Mass Effect 3 failing to make into GAME and Gamestation stores. With GAME seemingly back on track, EA games are now back in its stores. Too little, too late though for Syndicate, which performed well below expectations.

"There's so many reasons why a game succeeds or fails from a commercial point-of-view. We released the game about a month or more ago, and we're doing our post-mortem right now: what did we do right, what did we do wrong, and of course we will look at the commercial side as well," Nermark told GamesIndustry.biz.

"The numbers are not as high as we would like, and I think if you asked anyone they would say the same thing about any game they made. But [Syndicate] was released in the midst of GAME going under; the retail space is hurting, and I think that hurt us because we were such a retail product."

Syndicate is actually rather good too, and can be snapped up on the cheap. Check out our Syndicate review to find out more.

Comments
76
  • Nothing to do with the game being poor then :)
  • Bullshit. It's more down to the fact that it wasn't that good, they released a crappy demo, and they rebooted a classic game that fans loved into yet another FPS game. It was never going to sell, and Starbreeze is simply looking for a scapegoat for yet another game that hasn't sold well from them.
  • Glad to hear the game didn't sell well, that's what they get for raping childhoods!
  • lol nice to see i'm not the only one that didn't buy the bs.
  • they blame game even though it was fully released by them perhaps if they had made a better game, game wouldn't have gone under i think game should be blaming them and ea personally
  • Have to say that IMO its due to the game being poor, not Game's financial issues, the demo for this was HORRIBLE and totally put me off buying it which is a shame as i was really looking forward to this and had high hopes as the original back in the day was in a class of its own. Own up to your own shortcomings please! There has already been statements from the games producers that they didnt feel totally happy with the final quality level of it upon release, don't try to hide behind others for excuses please.
  • That's it. Don't blame yourselves, blame someone else.
  • next thing you know they'll be blaming mass effect 3's poor ending on GAME nearly closing..... fucking EA ¬_¬ ...
  • funny how FIFA street and Mass Effect 3 weren't badly effected by GAME not stocking them
  • Fuck off! Your game was shit. Simple as that. I'm pretty sure Game got Syndicate in too. It came out months before all the troubles. The first game ea didnt stock to game was fifa street was it not? As they got ssx which was released a week or so before. This guy is talking shit.
  • That's rubbish, ME3 performed amazingly and that was during the same time frame. I'm afraid its down to the game being poor and they're looking for something to blame.
  • @8 it's not EA it's the developers. Prob at EA pleading for their studio to be kept open. No need to hate on EA when it's nothing to do with them.
  • Pretty pathetic that EA is making excuses when the blame is completely on them. The game clearly needed more time, but it seems like EA was hellbent on getting it out before ME3 to make a quick buck that they didn't care what shape it was in when it shipped. To make matters worse, they didn't spend a dime on marketing which all but guaranteed it was going to get overlooked by a majority of gamers. Personally, I really enjoyed the game. The singleplayer was decent, but the multiplayer was awesome (when it actually worked that is). Starbreeze is a very talented studio and I really hope that don't get shut down because of this.
  • This isn't an excuse many other games, Mass Effect for example sold just as well without GAME. The reason why it didn't sell well because no body wanted it. Nobody wanted a reboot of a classic. Especially since it was a typical boring FPS.
  • Yeah the game was just bad,plus it was in Game for sale.Mass effect was the first game to be pulled followed by Fifa street.
  • @12 EA do have a say in the game's they produce you know ? why do you think there where so many problems with mass effect 3 ? =/ do you know how big companies like EA work ? they tell the little guy they will have "complete control" but when they show EA stuff they say "nahhhh lets do this instead" causing problems and EA are majority share holder.... so they could shut down the studio if they don't agree to EA's terms, they've done it to other studios so why not to this one ?
  • Seriously? I'm sure it did poorly here in the states as well. Fans of the original weren't looking for a shooter & shooter fans weren't familiar with the branding. Oh, not to mention it probably would have done better if they actually hadn't released a demo. It sounded cool in concept but the gameplay was simply sub-par for a shooter and I've played some real crap for achievements....no thanks.
  • Had nothing to do with GAME's financial troubles, they had the game stocked, its just it was a poor console game and a even worse PC port. The multiplayer from what I've heard is laggy and effectively broken. Theres more alternatives than GAME and Gamestation: Grainger Games, HMV and supermarkets are completely capable when it comes to selling games. That's not even including online retailers. If Starbreeze want a game to sell, make it half decent and not a crappy half-hearted FPS that we get about 5 of every year alongside the AAA FPS.
  • Well to be honest I enjoyed this game other hand game is not bad but this developers talked like shit because yeah Mass Effect 3, FIFA Street and SSX sales no hurt by GAME lol Starbreeze, you making yourself silly. Look EA and you released demo in first place!!! BLAME DEMO AND YOURSELF NOT SALES!!!
  • I can see what they mean. If you go into a shop not really looking for something in particular your gaze is hardly likely to fall on something that isn't there. Mass Effect 3 sold regardless of Game's troubles because people would look for it somewhere else. Also to all the people commenting on how bad the game is, did you actually play it? The single player campaign is short but fun, and in a team of decent players I found the co-op really enjoyable. You've heard it was bad so therefore it must be bad? Great analysis.
  • I played the demo for 5 minutes and thought it was a pile of shite. Starbreeze have destroyed what was an inconic game of the 90's and a part of childhood gaming. I loved Syndicate back then, and when I heard it was being made into another generic FPS, I decided not to buy it. This aint Syndicate, except by name. There are better Arcade/Indie games for crying out loud. Truly disappointed, and blaming others for your own shoddy work is totally unprofessional.
  • The Demo was some co-op shit so I didnt bother buying it..
  • I was waiting for the first developer to moan about GAME's financial difficulties to back a game they released. And for those thinking it's EA moaning, it's not, it's the developers. They were lucky they released before GAME temporarily stopped selling EA games, otherwise their sales would be even less. SSX did okay, and Mass Effect did fantastic, the latter not being available in GAME until very recently. Look at your game before you start blaming other people Starbreeze Studios, this thread is for you.
  • Oddly enough I thought the demo was magnificent because it wasn't generic OR boring.... hm
  • Oh that's weird, I thought it was because the game was a pile of crap.
  • What, generic FPS reboots of old classics don't sell like CoD? Who would've thought. Here's hoping Xcom will tank as well.
  • wait what, i have a reason why it didnt sell well. i seen no advertising for it mabye that was a factor.
  • I wonder how many of you actually played the full game, let alone managed to get past the ridiculous learning curve and difficulty spikes of the demo before dismissing this game as shit? A team-based game where it pays to work as a team? Who'd have thought? That's not to say the game is perfect. Granted the single player was generally mildly entertaining, frustrating at worst and somewhat decent at best, but the co-op is where it's at with this, and it's a game that needs some time invested to get the best out of it. Like it or not, GAME's financial situation at the time did have a negative impact on sales. Of course, I also see the point that it's kinda poor form blaming them entirely for poor sales of the game. I just can't get behind the instant blanket hatred for this game which for most people is based solely on a demo which would have been at least 6 months old when it was released to the public, when far worse(and yet still generally competent) games have come along that get called "hidden gems" like Dark Sector, The Saboteur, etc. Hypocrisy is hilarious.
  • Oh please, what a lame excuse. Seriously there's gotta be other retaileers in the UK that sell games. There is sure a plethora of stores to choose from in Canada.
  • I think their point is that without GAME, new lesser-known releases don't get as much exposure. Let's not forget that not everyone checks online for the latest games, and not everyone's as clued up as say the guys on here. The simple fact of the matter is that GAME has a clear "New Release" section, and this game missed out on having that. Obviously, FIFA Street, ME3 and SSX wouldn't have been affected as much because they're all well-known in-your-face brands. Classic or not, not even I'd heard of the original Syndicate game, so it's not popular enough to be carried by it's own name, unlike most other EA releases. That said though, the allegedly poor demo, and negative word of mouth - the two main points of promotion they would've had to rely on - has been the game's downfall just as much, if not moreso, than the situation with GAME. So, although I agree with them that GAME's troubles will have hurt their sales, they wouldn't really have made THAT much more if GAME DID stock it. And just for the record, I've heard good and bad things about the game, seems like a typical case of marmite, but I defo won't be givin it a try.
  • what a bunch of shit. game sucked. now blame them??
  • I like how so few people actually read the article and seem to think that it is EA making excuses... when it's the developer, STARBREEZE. It even says it right in the title. Get a clue, people.
  • It could be the fact the demo was terrible and the fact that its a brand new franchise reboot that came out of the blue with hardly any hype also contributed. You should have kept it as it was intended. Im glad Starbreeze won't remake Theme Hospital, would proabably be made into a FPS set in a hospital.
  • Prime example why the comment rating system on this site is pure Bullshit ! The top few people have valid points about how poor the game is yet they are trying to blame Game. What a joke !
  • @16 Don't tell me how "big companies" work. The dev had enough control to make the game good. They didn't. The only thing EA can be blamed for. Would be not giving the game enough press. You just look like an idiot commenting on EA being a-holes. Usual generic comment. So what if they are. Who cares. They were making games when i was growing up and they are still making them now. Not like it's going to stop. The game is down to the devs. If you don't know that then you're crazy. Even if the publishers have some input to what they want. The devs made the game.
  • I would have bought it, if it didn't out so close to Mass Effect 3. Bad timing on the release date.
  • lol at the obvious Starbreeze/EA employee thumbing down all the comments calling them out on the lame excuse why this game didn't sell. Game was average at best, and anyone who was on the fence was surely put off by the terrible demo they released for it.
  • Game was great, totally annoyed to see all the hate the game gets from people.
  • Its EA why are you surprised?
  • What a piss poor excuse for a shitty game.
  • Totally laugahable statement, now if this was a GAME only exclusive release he would have an argument. Bottom line people are waiting till the price become slightly more appealing and having EA in your corner does nothing but harm as their reputation is heading downhill fast, due to constantly ripping off their customers. I was really looking forward to this as a Syndicate veteran from the Amiga days, but what they turned out was nothing like Syndicate and the reviews were appalling.
  • Weak excuse for a mediocre game.
  • OR maybe the game was not really good. Like at all.
  • Could it just be that it is yet another shit FPS. Surely the developers should realise if something like battlefield isn't going to take cods crown then summin like this isnt
  • Did most of you guys play the game? Or just the demo? Cause I thought this game was pretty great.
  • I'm seriously wondering how many people have actually played this game, it's actually pretty good. The only complaints I had are the same complaints I have for almost ever single FPS that's been released in the past 2-3 years. Short campaign. The coop is beyond addicting, leveling up and upgrading your weapons keeps you coming back. But once you've upgraded all your weapons and reached a certain level, that's it. Other then those two things, it's good. Not great, but good.
  • I have never seen syndicate advertised on TV. On the other hand I have seen countless ads for COD, Battlefield and Mass effect.
  • At everyone who is saying "did you even play the game" No, most of us didn't. Probably because we don't need another FPS, especially one which launched to mixed reviews, was full price and came off the back of an uninspired demo which did nothing to impress the cynics who saw no need to buy this in the wake of superior FPS games on the market. I and many others said way back when this game would not sell (check older articles) so if we could see it, then surely EA and Starbreeze must have seen it as well. Shifting some of the blame for poor sales on Game is frankly laughable.
  • I rented this game from LOVEFilm, and sent it back after playing it for half an hour, and I can see why so many comments go against EA's attitudes, it was dire. Nothing at all to do with GAME/Gamestation.
  • His argument is sort of invalid, I got my copy from Game..
  • Good to see some really balanced comments on here, such as playing the game for 5 minutes and deciding it's shite. The thing about the co-op is that it grows as you play and unlock abilities and level them up, it's a great co-op game given too little chance by too many people. Loads of people playing Mass Effect 3 online...WTF! Now that's an awful co-op game, Horde mode with the fun surgically removed.
  • When your (fully retail priced) game requires a minimum of four players to be enjoyable, it's a little hard to believe that the sole reasoning for it's failure would be because of a single retailer. That said, I will now be blaming the internet for any of my failures to produce anything within the upcoming years.
  • Got my copy from game, I didn't play the demo (probably should have) and i found that it was an ok shooter but that's it, nothing special. If it wasn't for nostalgia, of it being based on the strategy games I wouldn't have bothered. The textures are shocking, imo.
  • This just makes me laugh...I'm not a big EA hater like most are, but I remember the article before launch saying there would not be an online pass for Syndicate because it "had enough content and quality that it didn't need one" according to EA -_- Most of us called bullshit and said the lack of an online pass was because it was already going to have low sales and online passes would only further destroy this games sales. X360A users: 1 EA: 0 Called it. Keep blaming GAME if you want -_- Mass Effect 3 sold TWICE as many copies as ME2, and that was WITHOUT GAME stocking it....
  • Here it is: http://www.xbox360achievements.org/news/news-10719-No-Online-Pass-for-Syndicate.html "Upcoming shooter Syndicate will not have an Online Pass, because EA Partners believes that the game is so good, and offers so much quality content, that people won't want to trade it in." >_< Oh EA...I normally don't have an issue with you, but the bullshit you've spewed about Syndicate is starting to get deep.
  • Yeah bull crap if you are going to release a mediocre online game then maybe you should release it at a lower price. A friend of mine kept trying to get me to buy the game. Thankfully I rented it. It was hard to get a good game going online because everyone wants to just run in guns blazing. Plus 3/4th of the game I played in weren't using mics anyways.
  • Hated the demo but bought the game anyway cos there was nothing else to play, and I really enjoyed it. The co op was great, sp was a little lacking but this game is far from being crap, Id buy a sequel without question
  • Thank you numbers 28 and 30 for having the best two well informed comments. The game was MUCH deeper than a one mission demo could offer. But there were a lot of factors as to why this game didn't sell well. 1) This game was a reboot of an old IP that most people of this generation had never heard of. There wasn't much marketing for it. 2) Bad timing. It was released pretty near to Mass Effect 3 which for ANY game, really, would be a bad idea. Most people already had their sights on ME3. Most people I had talked to about it all said the same "The demo was pretty good but I can't afford to get this AND Mass Effect 3." 3) Alienation of past fans. Most people who actually have heard and played old Syndicate games were annoyed by the fact that one of their favorite game's was being turned into another FPS. As to the quality of the game, I will refer you to #28 above.
  • Shame, epic game I found!
  • Another Game Developer blaming everything else apart the studio itself. No wonder some games are so bad, they just throw their toys out of the pram and sulk like a child. another example from a while ago http://www.videogamer.com/xbox360/fall_of_liberty/news/turning_point_dev_hits_back_at_poor_reviews.html rented syndicate from lovefilm and was sent back on the monday, very bland single player and quickly got bored of co-op. Single player really felt like the hand of EA on this game, it felt like another by the numbers shooter that lacked depth.
  • EA once you get rid of online passes, then you can talk. So for now, shut up.
  • Most stores still had Syndicate before and AFTER Game stopped taking EA games, so thats completely flawed argument. If there was any lack in sales because of Game, it was MARGINAL! Number 1 reason it wasnt bought? Ppl were waiting for Mass Effect 3! Other reasons include no marketing other than online, it was a new IP, demo was MP only and Single player was fairly short.
  • @40 I agree, Syndicate Wars had already killed the franchise for me, with its ability to destroy buildings ... and some crazy spinny camera. Long live the original forever in our hearts, back to 93'.
  • Just wow the hate and total bullshit I am reading. The game was freaking awesome but you all want another COD like the drones you are.
  • Game is good but I already have a lot of FPSs and other games
  • FU EA
  • You're honestly off your fucking rocker if you thought this game was bad....go spend another 48hours on CoD.
  • Damnit lets blame GAME i mean they only stocked the title in 1 nation because they only do business in the UK it's clearly all their fault it failed everywhere else in the world.
  • The demo killed all interest for me and I was totally ready to dig it. The only thing to ever come back from a demo that crap was Dead Space and that was a breath of fresh air in an fps saturated market; Syndicate was not.
  • People seem to be overlooking a really obvious point that he makes in this sentence "The numbers are not as high as we would like, and I think if you asked anyone they would say the same thing about any game they made." Just because the sales weren't as high as they'd hoped and sales were "adversely" effected doesn't mean the game sold badly. It never says that anywhere in the article. Not hitting sales targets can be as easy as a company overestimating how well a game will sell (which pretty much all companies will do. Foolish optimism perhaps?). Don't mistake lower sales with no sales.
  • I call bullshit. Syndicate looked terrible to begin with. Gice me Deus Ex:HR any day of the week.
  • Fuck all of you. Syndicate was awesome. I'm sorry it wasn't Call of Duty enough for you shooter fans, and that it wasn't 1990's archaic for you other guys. The coop in this game was AMAZING. It had the right amount of customizable depth that you'd find in something claiming it was an RPG (COUGH BORDERLANDS COUGH) with the variable replayability of Left 4 Dead. If it had the Director AI, or had sort of a forge coop map maker, I'd still be playing it. I played it for like, two weeks straight, and believe it or not, a week after I had smashed everything to do in coop. I wish the campaign was a bit deeper, but the fact that I got anything of quality (especially the caliber of the coop) out of a reboot is astounding. I'm as much for nostalgia as the next (Fez is doing it for me with my childhood of NES games) but don't let it blind you. By your logic #64, the first game in a series to do anything differently is the first horrible game for the series. You sound like an idiot, honestly. There were more problems with Syndicate Wars, but destroying buildings? That's what made it bad? What the hell is wrong with grandpa gamers?
  • It has fuck all to do "wasn't enough call of duty" or what ever excuse you want to use
  • I liked the game, but the bugs the game had wasn't patched. I returned the game after kindly letting the devs know about the bugs (I still got the Facebook replies somewhere) and they never got to it. So I got my money back from it. it also kinda got stale after a bit. Good game, just the bugs that was in the demo that got carried over was a killer to me. Was the game even patched yet??
  • ofcourse mass effect 3 sold fucking well no matter what it was the conclusion to a trilogy of a great game there was no incentive to buy another reboot but Syndicate isn't bad at all for what it is, I'm in australia and i had to import it coz it's banned here (why i'll never know) and i've had no issues with the online ill put up with sub par connections just because the co-op is that good and there was an update i'm sure it was for those bugs. syndicate isnt as generic as the rest of the shit out today other than deus ex its a more fast paced cyberpunk experience, its epic and it sucks there prob wont be more of it because of this
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