I would also like to add the difference between market research and marketing research. Marketing research is a broad term covering research such as new product opportunities, research about brand image, current customer feedback, competition etc. Market research is part of marketing research – research focused on researching the current market situation (for example, trying to find out need for a new product). One practical example for marketing research could be finding out what players think about your game. That’s one form of marketing research that is very linked to development – it was no intention to say that marketing would be somehow external or not anyway linked to game development.

Typically marketing is used by publishers to identify opportunities in the market. This is done doing market research. Unfortunately not many companies do proper market research (especially not game publishers) and their recommendation tend to be along the lines of “well, game X sold a lot so we need one of them”. That’s the point in time where developers get to pitch their project or their take on a project if it’s a work for hire / licensing deal.

Sales then step in and say “ok, if you make that game we can sell so and so many units, therefore the development budget is so and so big”. That’s the point in time where developers negotiate their contract. Of course, the more polished and representative of the final game a pitch or demo is the better predictions you get from sales.

Next step is exposing the game to the market. There are three phases to exposure. One is early in development, another is around preview time and the last is review time. Sometimes, if the game is truly succesful, you get a fourth round which is follow up when the game goes platinum or something similar.

These three steps of exposure not only serves the game but also the distributors and retailers as more exposure typically means more interest in the game from retailers to distributors and end-customers to retailers.

The exposure is often orchestrated by a PR department that is the filter from marketing to the specialist press or other media. PR are the ones with the contacts to the “outside world”.

Throughout time marketing has become a driving force in games development instead of the service organ that it once was. I don’t know if it the same in other businesses but personally I think marketing has too much power these days and share a great responibility in the creative stagnation of the games industry.