Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
Left 4 Dead 2 Gets $25 Million Ad Campaign
Left 4 Dead was a huge release for Valve last year. It was the fastest selling game in the company's history, and according to the company's press release it was also the best selling new IP for both the PC and 360 in 2008. With those hefty achievements in mind, it's no small wonder that Valve is stopping at nothing to spread the news about round two of the zombie apocalypse. What's the tab for the ad campaign, you ask? Try $25 million.
Valve has good reason for nearly tripling advertising expenditures since the first Left 4 Dead. "Based on the strength of pre-orders, Left 4 Dead 2 will be the fastest-selling product in Valve's history," said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. "Left 4 Dead 2 has consistently run at 300% of Left 4 Dead's numbers."
300 percent is more that 100 percent, in case you were curious. It looks like Valve is set to match their advertising with their projected pre-order sales. The selected venues for the video game peddling will be Monday Night Football, UFC broadcasts, billboards, and popular gaming websites. If Valve was really serious about tapping into the zombie survivalist demographic, they'd be better off advertising in army surplus stores and the local Cabela's.
The house that Gordon Freeman built truly has a monster on its hands. We'll know come November 17th whether or not the $25 million will make Valve's optimistic projections ring true. That money sure would buy a lot of painkillers and med-kits, though.
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
