Can a Youtuber Affect Game Sales?

[GamingRebel]

Hey guys today I come to all of you with a questions that people think is true and so do I. If you do not watch him you must have heard of him as he is the biggest youtuber in the entire world. He has a habit of after he plays a game it will go viral on the app store or wherever it was sold. An example of this is the game Skate 3, as this is not a mobile game it's sales skyrocketed after he played it. When the "pewds" played it the game went from 1 year old and no one buying it to, having to be re produced and sold. These types of things have been happening with almost all the mobile games he has played from Flappy Birds to Best Fiends(Spelt like this). Anyways give me your opinions and thoughts, I would love to listen.

 

[Atlas_Hope]

I think youtubers definitely have an impact on game sales, especially for people like....ugh....as you mentioned PewDiePie and such playing things like Five Nights At Freddies, people want to go out and play that game that their favourite youtubers made a lets play on.

I also think it affects what sorts of games are made, like for example Goat Simulator, it's intended as a silly broken game meant solely for youtubers to make videos on, then that itself attracts attention to something that in reality isn't deserving of the sales received.

 

[Brandon]

Yes I bought a few because of youtubers

 

[LitoLawless]

I think so. There are some channels that I watch pretty regularly because they play the game the same was that I would more or less. Usually, if they don't like the game, or these's something about it that bothers them it'll bother me too. I really can't remember anything that this frame of mind didn't work.,

 

[Ridge]

Any attention positive or negative a product gets has the potential to affect sales. This isn't exclusive to games.

 

[Esharion]

Youtubers can DEFINITELY affect the sales of a game. Games like Minecraft and FNAF all got hugely popular due to the output of content based on these games. Granted, there were definitely other things that made them popular, but a video about a game with a million views is definitely going to boost sales. Personally, I think that one of the best things a developer can do to spread the word about their game is to allow their players to make content for that game - be it art, video's, Machinima, etc. Word of mouth is an incredible thing, especially on the internet.

 

[kittyworker]

YES I remember a developer saying when their game was covered by Totalbiscuit they received over a 3x increase of sales on that day alone! When these developers take down videos etc. it always doesn't make sense to me as it is pretty much free marketing for them.

 

[weepforsweep]

If they video gets a lot of hits, then of course it will have an impact. The youtubers should get a kick back on the sales of the video game if it skyrockets their sales.

 

[Mackmax]

Ugh, Pewdiepie is awful.
But yes, a popular gamer can definitely affect game sales, as they are seen as a celebrity to the gaming community. When a celebrity endorses a product, it's fans will want to buy it. This is a very basic marketing technique.
Also, if a gaming celebrity talks bad about a game, naturally it's fans who trust the gamer's opinion, will not want to buy it. They may even tell their friend's not to buy it, even if they've never played the game for themselves, because they trust the gaming celebrity's word.

 

[Ridge]

Ugh, Pewdiepie is awful.

This is the general concensus with adults.

 

[RobertNick]

Totalbiscuit should cover some good mobile games too, that would help a lot with sales. That guy can destroy games with just 30 minutes of harsh words. So yes, a good Youtuber can help sales rise or plummet to the ground with just one vid.

 

[globulon]

Popular YouTubers, like any celebrity, can definitely have a huge impact on game sales. There are a lot of people who are easily influenced by star personalities, especially in the demographics of teens and young adults. To be honest, YouTubers often provide an accurate review/representation of games compared to reviews so it can be a good source of information.

 

[lgdg090596]

Of course, they can. The customers would want to buy games if they see the Youtubers having fun. It's a free-ad for games, so to speak.

 

[ato2000]

Youtubers can affect the sales in a negative way too. If a popular youtuber gives a game a negative review it can hurt sales. I can't tell any specific game, but in theory it's possible. But I think that 99% of youtubers give honest reviews and that only bad games get bad reviews.

 

[ProNine]

If I see my favorite you tuber playing a game, I will definitely get it and want to try it on my own. Even if he said it is bad, I would try it out and figure out why. In short, yes they affect sales both ways, positively and negatively.

 

[Benji]

A lot of game lovers usually depend on endorsements from Youtubers. With all the games out there, buying some could just be a risky game. People are usually glad when the risk of buying a wrong game is taken away from their shopping through a celebrity endorsement. It is true that you can still buy a bad game through these endorsements, but the simple truth is that they do work. Our world is just too infatuated with celebrities that whatever they say is fine.

 

[Guardian]

They can, and its already been proven that they have. There are a few big timers that have a massive following.

 

[xpictoc]

I believe exposure is positively correlated with the # of sales for a particular product. For example, if a famous brand were to hand out a free demo of game X, more people would buy the game as their doubts regarding the game they did not know before have abated. Simply put, the millions of people who watch famous gaming YouTube personalities DAILY learn about new, interesting games, which allows them to form their own opinion on it - including the choice to purchase game X or Y.

 

[Jasmine2015]

I think that game sales definitely are affected by prominent youtubers. By looking at youtubers play a game, it is a great way to see whether or not you will like the game before buying it. Sadly, I think some people play certain games simply because some famous youtuber like Pewdiepie played it. If a game is worth playing, it deserves all the attention it gets. If a game becomes popular only because some big shot youtuber played it, then the attention tends to go towards the youtuber more than the game.

 

[niightwind]

Absolutely! If a well-known YouTuber like Pewdiepie or Markiplier plays a game, viewers will be more likely to want to play the game themselves, and even if they don't decide to buy it, it still will bring more attention to the game. I've fallen in love with lots of games that I saw Markiplier play, but I never did play them myself. I still consider them some of my favorites though, and I've recommended them to people who would like the game, and many people have taken my advice and bought the recommendations.

A lot of indie games especially will become more popular after getting noticed by a popular YouTuber. Some indie games are pretty great, but they stay in the background because so many indie games are hit and miss. People don't want to spend money checking it out themselves, so they can watch a YouTuber play and see if it is something good and then give it a shot themselves.