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Results: Where did you hear about GalCiv II from?

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Results: Where did you hear about GalCiv II from?

from GalCiv2 Forums

In our recent poll asking users of GalCiv2.com where they first heard of the game, we got around 1,400 respondents. 

Bear in mind, these results only tell us where people who happen to visit this website heard about the game. I was surprised how poorly the print game magazines came out.  All of them combined came out to only 6%.

The big surprise was Penny-Arcade. 11% of users who responded came from Penny-Arcade. This matches up with some of the referral statistics we've seen.  And I for one look forward to working in Tycho and Gabe's underground sugar mines.

Another interesting result was Gamespot which had 21%. Gamespot has some web design features that I think really do help. For instance, it has top 10 most popular games based on user interest on Gamespot overall and then on a per section basis right down to sub-sections. So a user can go to turn-based strategy games and sort by popularity. 

Interestingly, the demo version only brought in 1% of respondents.

The biggest chunk came from Stardock's existing communities -- 26%. We'd be interested in hearing those who answered "Stardock (Other)" to let us know how they found out about the game.  Even users who had Galactic Civilizations I would still have to find out from somewhere. ;)

Word of mouth was an impressive 7%.  That's a big chunk considering that we're talking about an on-line poll. People recommending the game is definitely key to the game's success.

Our second poll is going to ask that question outright: Would you recommend Galactic Civilizations II to others? The ultimate "has the game met your expectations" poll so to speak.

38,045 views 75 replies
Reply #26 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

Isn't the question kinda "preaching to the choir" so to speak? I mean, the vast majority of people who will see this poll are forumites, and most of them are fans of the game. It'd be more accurate to have the game itself ask that question upon shutting down.

Maybe.  But on the other hand, the forums, at a casual glance don't seem that "yeehaw" to me.  Lots of negativity in there IMO.

Reply #27 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
As others have mentioned, you really released the demo too late. I used to buy a lot of games after playing demos myself, although perhaps not so much since the internet came out. Anyway, the demo really needs to be before the retail game, because at that point if people are going to do big downloads then they'll get the full thing using bittorrent. And once someone's got the full thing they're not all that likely to pay for it. It does happen, but they're probably far more likely to if they've only got a taster version.

In addition to that, it was actually so late that it missed your hype window. By the time your demo was out, the next big thing (Oblivion) had come along and your chance to get people excited and impact sales through internet media was already done. There should've been your review on Gamespot to whet people's appetites, then the demo the day after.
Offworld Trading Company
Reply #28 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Maybe. But on the other hand, the forums, at a casual glance don't seem that "yeehaw" to me. Lots of negativity in there IMO.

Are you really serious...!!!!

You really need to spend a little more time in some other gaming forums if you believe that there is a lot of 'negativity' here. I have always thought that these forums seems a little sanitised and artificial in the lack of 'negativity' that you suggest is here in abundance.
I think that is part due to the dedication, hard work, constant improvements in the game, excellent communications and activity in the forums from yourself and others representing Stardock.
I hope that you aren't counting criticism about the bugs etc in the game as being negative, if not what, without necessarily being specific to anyone's post, do you think of as negative..?
Reply #29 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I heard about it through Penny Arcade.

Coincidentally, the first two systems I found in my first game were named "Tycho" and "Gabe".
Reply #30 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I read that it was a surprise so few people selected the demo. It shouldn't have been. People download the demo AFTER they hear about the game. If you had asked for the key factor that led to a purchase, the demo would have scored higher.
Reply #31 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I heard about it through Penny Arcade.

Coincidentally, the first two systems I found in my first game were named "Tycho" and "Gabe".


Pure... Coincidence. Right.


Anyways, here's some suggestions for your next polls:

What made you buy GalCiv 2?
1. Gaming site reviews
2. Magazine ads
3. Word of mouth
4. Product support
5. No messy DRM schemes
6. Game demo

Hmmm, now that I think about it, that's going to be a really tough decision. Can we get multiple choice here? Well, if nothing else, this poll should give a good indication on how important these concepts are to the players. (I fear the demo will die a harsh death in this poll as well though...)


What one feature would you want in GalCiv 2?
1. Multiplayer
2. Tactical Combat
3. Carriers
4. Better support for modding
5. Nothing (focus on fine tunning existing features)

This poll SHOULD stop all the multiplayer and tactical combat threads somewhat. Besides, it's not like you're promising them these features, it would just be a good gauge on how popular certain requests are. Again, it might be a tough choice for some, but that just makes it all the more important.
Reply #32 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

As others have mentioned, you really released the demo too late. I used to buy a lot of games after playing demos myself, although perhaps not so much since the internet came out. Anyway, the demo really needs to be before the retail game, because at that point if people are going to do big downloads then they'll get the full thing using bittorrent. And once someone's got the full thing they're not all that likely to pay for it. It does happen, but they're probably far more likely to if they've only got a taster version.

In addition to that, it was actually so late that it missed your hype window. By the time your demo was out, the next big thing (Oblivion) had come along and your chance to get people excited and impact sales through internet media was already done. There should've been your review on Gamespot to whet people's appetites, then the demo the day after.

Hmm. I'm not sure. I think I have to disagree with this. I am not a big fan of demos. There's no evidence that not having a demo on day 1 hurt us at all.

Moreover, Gamespot had front page coverage of the demo for over a week. 

The sales of the game were already so far beyond what we had projected that I highly doubt that an early demo would have helped one bit. I'd rather focus those energies onto paying customers first and not let people who steal software make our development choices.

Reply #33 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The truly negative posts, can mostly be sorted out as trolling, and may often exhibit a total lack of research on the writers part. Everyone can access the net, and it shows.

These forums can however be considered calm waters compared to the storming oceans out there. I have unfortunately used heavy criticism myself in the past, in other gaming forums. And it will sooner or later just end up as flaming or trolling. These days, it's better to pull out in time. Let the ship sink by itself. Hmm, quite a few aquatic references. Need to cut down on that.

On topic: I always had an interest for 4X games. So GalCiv I was found merely by monitoring various forum activity, in many places, over time. There was not merely one source. The interest to search for new developments in the field, was the key.

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Reply #34 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I have (had, rather) absolutely no interest in 4X games. I was brought around to GalCiv primarily from Penny-Arcade. However, besides their referral, that was not what made me -buy- the game (in a genre towards which I am otherwise apathetic).

First of all, I would not have bought the game if the demo had not been available. I never buy a game for which a demo is not available (or where I can play at a friend's first); it is too much of a crap-shoot as to whether or not it will be worth it (and at a cost of $45, it is hardly an inconsequential expense). Considering my dislike of 4x games, I would not have tried the demo if not for Penny Arcade, and would not have bought the game if not for the demo. (I should note that I did not answer the previous poll, since I am not a frequent visitor of this site).

Second, I was encouraged by the fact that cheats were included in the game. I almost never buy a non-MMO in which there are no cheats; I'm really not that good at video games. I do, however, enjoy them regardless; and cheats let me bridge that skill gap without the costly investment of time required to actually become better (and my time is in short supply). Sure, one can download trainers, but those are buggy and prone to crashing to desktop - I much prefer that cheats are included (and, with less incentive for people to create trainers, one has less worry of them showing up in multiplayer games).

And, last (less important than the first point, more important than the second), was the ability to download the game immediately *and* get boxed version mailed to me for what was essentially the same price. If I'd had to drive to the store to pick it up, I would have put it off for weeks - if not indefinitely (I only use cash in stores; online is always on credit, naturally). Downloading it directly (such as Valve's Steam) was no choice at all; one bad hard disk error and you have to buy the game anew. The ability to download /and/ recieve it for essentially the same price was not only a very pleasant surprise, but ensured that I bought it - and bought it promptly!

I doubt I'm altogether representative of my age group (twenty years old, male) for my purchasing habits, but I do hope that the feedback above provides some information of value.
Reply #35 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I think I came here from an article posted on www.bluesnews.com, it was one of the gameplay diaries that you'd done, and they intrigued me, I stuck around, and wound up buying the game. Haven't regretted it for a moment.

As for would I recommend it, I already have. I've been pimping your game on bluesnews to every forum member there, and two of my buddies bought it on the recommendation.

Creston
Reply #36 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I actually heard about GalCiv2 on the Civfanatics forums. Some people whom I play SGs with had mysteriously disappeared for lengths of time. When they returned and I asked where they had gone, they replied that they were playing GalCiv2. GalCiv2? What's that?

Needless to say, I wandered in here, and was immensly impressed with the game. That, along with the stunningly positive remarks from my friends at Civfanatics, led me to buy the game. And I haven't regretted one penny of it.
Reply #37 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Miedvied - great feedback!  Thanks!!
Reply #38 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I read about the game first in the gaming forum at somethingawful.com.

I would definately recommend the game to people who enjoy turn based strategy games or prefer games with loads of depth. Besides being a really solid turn based strategt game, the developer support has been top notch and I really enjoy the ship design feature.
Reply #39 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Galciv I user from MOO insert. Followed development from game sites.

Brad, before you fall in deep waters, remember that the data from this poll is not a random sample of your game buyers and is unscientific. The sample is not random, but self selected, and has a ton of possible bias elements. It may be a valid sample of your forum users (gee heavy internet users mostly heard about you from game sites, how shocking!) but may be absolutely invalid to determine how the majority of your users found you.

Even a email survey, or program that randomly or fully sampled Stardock utilty users could get you better data.

Beware of self selection for any polling, it is a sure sign of sample bias.
Reply #40 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I think the demo numbers are misleading, for the simple reason that players would have had to hear about the *demo* somewhere else -- likely one of the other poll options.

The way I heard about the game was in an online news article about Starforce linking to a bittorrent of this game in thier forums. I read it and thought "Wait... there's a galactic civ TWO now?"

I actually wasn't that big of a fan of GalCiv 1, honestly, and almost didn't look farther. But I googled myself up a review of the game (don't remember where) and saw how closely it was linked to the MoO 2 play style. Since I *still* fire up MoO2 fairly often, I went ahead and picked up a copy of GalCiv2, and liked what I found. Mostly.
Reply #41 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Kosty and some others mention a critical point. Anyone willing to write in a game developers forum is a heavy internet user, which many, many gamers are not. On the other hand, I do know many "casual" internet users who still rely on things like Gamespot and IGN for their gaming news.

As far as to how I bought it, it was in several steps:

1) Saw it on display at Gamestop (the store), looked at the back. Looked interesting. Did not impulse buy. Saw perhaps one other interesting title.
2) Went home, checked out Gamespot and IGN for reviews. They were very positive.
3) Checked out Stardock's website. I can't abide a game with no developer support or online community.
4) Returned to Gamestop, purchased, enjoyed.

I do really love the game by the way, but if there was one major thing to ask for (especially because it would widen your audience) it would be to include real-time tactical battles (that could be auto-calced) ALA MOO3, but actually done well. I know so many people that are dying for some epic space battle game so badly that they would buy an empire builder if the combat was cool enough. Hah.
Reply #42 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
The game was recommended to me (and others) by a member of another website. "Word of mouth" is a popular choice, because you can learn which friends have similar tastes to yours, and they're are usually more trustworthy than online reviewers (and its cheaper than buying gaming mags).

Incidentally, the other game I'm from is "Laser Squad Nemesis". <-- Shameless plug (well, it worked for you guys).
Reply #43 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
How I found the game... Heh, that's actually a funny story.

Well, not funny actually, but...

I first got it from a download site. Yup, I was browsing some BitTorrent site, noticed this game in the "recently added" list, checked it's description, liked what I read, and downloaded it. Of course, I ended up liking it, and when I like something I'm always willing to pay for it. So I started looking in stores for this game, but I couldn't find it. *sad panda* Then I made a PayPal account, transferred some money to it, and bought the game from this site (download + Retail CD. I like having something to hold in my hands).

So there you have it... As many people have been saying before me... Piracy isn't all bad.
Reply #44 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
It worked perfectly for me on the mainpage, and I'm using Moz Firefox. No issue.


I put Stardock (Other), since I found out from the GC1 page when I was there downloading a patch.


I have absolutly no idea what you mean by "I put stardock (other) since I found out from the GC1 page when I was there downloading a patch."


But, given that you say that you were able to access the poll via the galciv2 main page using firefox, I have to ask, "what gives?"
There were certainly enough posts stating that people couldnt vote (Link) to indicate that there was a problem.

So what was/is going on admins? Given that I still can't vote off the main page (galciv2.com) something is obviously still not working correctly.


Reply #45 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I think you released the demo way too late for it to make much difference for three reasons:

a) Most people who 'tried' the game tried through BitTorrent and then bought (or discarded) due to the game being protectionless.
b) Most reviews took people through a great part of the game (such as the one on my own site) anyway and the high scores pretty much indicated it was a must buy by the time the demo came out.
c) There is such a lack of turn based strategy games out there (lets face it only Massive Assault 2 and Civ4 stand out in the past 12 months) that TBS fans couldn't wait for the demo and splashed out on the game.

Personally I think you shouldn't have realised the demo once you realised you couldn't release it at launch (or before). To my mind it was a wasted effort.
Reply #46 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
[
Maybe. But on the other hand, the forums, at a casual glance don't seem that "yeehaw" to me. Lots of negativity in there IMO]


Brad, Man, LIGHTEN UP!

Gamers bitc* because gamers bitc*, it's what we DO...We complain about everything over and over, and when we finish, we complain some more. If people are busy complaining that means that they are actually playing the game, which is good. Ignore the useless forum-noise, it means absolutely nothing. Your game rocks, you can be sure of that. It's one of the best 4X games I ever played, if not the very best. You should be proud.
Reply #47 from GalCiv2 Forums Top

Personally I think you shouldn't have realised the demo once you realised you couldn't release it at launch (or before). To my mind it was a wasted effort.


Well, I have to disagree. I've played the demo for about a week before I've bought the game.

It also helped me to bridge the gap between the decision to buy the game and being able to buy it. Funnily it was sold out in my favourite games store.


How I learned about the game?

I've downloaded GalCiv1 half a year ago (yes sue me) and played. Got the link when I went looking for turn strategy games. Thought it was a decent game and wanted to buy it, but was unable to do so, because there was no store who would sell it anymore. (Not really a suprise...) Then, when I went looking for the game online, I found this site, bookmarked it and waited until it's arrival at my local gaming store.
Reply #48 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I found the game on the Best Buy gaming shelf....thought it looked neat and decided to give it a try. so Best Buy browsing should have been a category maybe.

-Lee
Reply #49 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
I picked up GalCiv 1 back when it first came out. I learned about it on the MOO3 forums during that horror show of a release.
Reply #50 from GalCiv2 Forums Top
Originally I heard of GC/GC2 from recommendations on the MoO3 forums, for anyone who hates that piece of rubbish that should have never borne the name MoO.