Namco Bandai announced that the sequel to their infamously difficult hit, Dark Souls, will receive increased marketing support. A bigger advertising budget means the company has greater confidence in Dark Souls 2.
In fact, they admitted this same enthusiasm should have been given to the first Dark Souls, and it was a mistake they were not going to repeat.
PR Director, Lee Kirton said
“We’re going to go guns-blazing with it, and hope to God that it works. We’re going after people who love and adore Dark Souls, while hopefully widening the net a little. I’m not saying that every Skyrim player’s going to be jumping on Dark Souls, but it would be nice if some of them did. It’s a different game, sure.”
This talk of “AAA Treatment” might worry a lot of diehard fans and hardcore gamers. The fear that a bigger investment will cause the developer to change Dark Souls 2 to appeal to a more “casual centered” audience is a realistic concern.
It is strange for so much money to be given to such a hardcore game, when lately the casual market is where the money is. Will this push come back to bite them in the ass when the masses are unsatisfied or even frustrated with the game they bought?
So while it might seem like a good thing to push more money on this title, Namco Bandai has inadvertently put themselves between a rock and a hard place. Please the masses, or the fans?
For now, we can only hope Dark Souls 2 is everything its predecessor was, and let the advertisements bring in new fans who appreciate its soul crushing difficulty.
