Video games are produced and published all year long, and yet there seems to be a rhythm that flows with each season. With the approach of Halloween, a lot of limelight is shown over any and all scary games. While other holidays may have less pull on when a genre becomes popular for a hot minute, it’s nice to pause and recognize the ebb and flow of video games throughout the year.
“Spoopy” month is commonly thrown around while gamers flock to horror games old and new. Not surprisingly, publishers hold Halloween-themed sales as well. Each year, you’ll be sure to find Outlast, any Resident Evil game, Pumpkin Jack, and more discounted. We also have newcomers such as indie title World of Horror and the wildly anticipated Alan Wake II. Gamers come out of the woodwork for horror games in October the same way American women flood coffee shops for Pumpkin Spice lattes in the Fall (present company sadly included).
No doubt there is a marketing scheme behind it to give sales a boost, but we know that scary games are enjoyed-year round. Would Alan Wake II sell as well if it were released in June? Perhaps not since summer can be a slow time; however, Dead Space Remake released in January and Resident Evil 4 Remake released in March–and both are successful in their own right because a well-made game can sell any time of year… But still, you can’t deny the timing nirvana of dropping October 27th. You’ll likely see Alan Wake II streaming through Halloween at the top of many trending lists.
Halloween tends to be the strongest “seasonal draw” for certain types of video games. Although, when Christmas time approaches, we do see a flood of new and discounted sales to rake in that holiday cash. Sometimes, we see a holiday-themed community event or DLC. The most recent example is a DLC of Lake. It’s called Season’s Greetings.
Animal Crossing: New Horizon nails Christmas and many other holidays to get you into the spirit.
Other holidays don’t receive a concentration of themed titles, but like with Animal Crossing: New Horizons (above), we see games-as-a-service take advantage of holidays like Apex Legends, Pokemon Go, Fortnite, and World of Warcraft. I think this avenue works perfectly since it can be hard to create a viable and enjoyable game purely based on one national holiday–especially since video games are enjoyed worldwide!
Image Credit: Epic Games via Express
Image Credit: Niantic via Comicbook
As mentioned before, sales can also help push themes. Steam holds regular sales year-round, but they lump them into categories like season (Spring, Summer, etc) as well as genre (Mystery Fest, Puzzle Fest, etc).
Seasonality of consumer products is not new, but the video game industry is newer compared to other areas. Over the years, I’ve recognized the pattern of themes, new game releases, and sales that revolve around the time of year and the presence of a holiday. I guess this speaks to us, the human race, as creatures of habit. We flock to certain things at certain times. Holidays bring us together as a community.
Do you feel drawn to certain titles or genres at different times of the year? Is there is go-to cozy game in the winter and a light multi-player in the summer? Well, how about Halloween–what spooky game are you playing? Please share your thoughts with us on our Boss Rush Facebook Group or our Boss Rush Discord (QR code below).
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