I don't mean contests like what some devs do, but with threads where a dev posts "new game here with promo codes! " and a list of 5-20 promo codes I don't think devs should do that, instead they should do a email me or PM me system, to be more fair.
This has been discussed multiple times here. At the end of the day, the promo codes belong to the developers and they can distribute them however they want to.
To be more fair those threads should be tucked away in another forum. Non-US visitors here can't use them and trying to find any sort of review in those threads is just about impossible. They are so bad now that I won't read the thread because of the "I WANT ONE TOO" or "OMG the lurkers got them" followed by the inevitable frenzy of "Bestest game ever!!!!". Trawling pages of that just to find what the game is (1) about and (2) what it's like is a non-starter. I can't be the only one who would love to not see those threads. Devs get noise from those, they get a prominent position on the site pages. But they don't seem to get many reviews despite the promises and if there is something good buried in several pages of 10 word posts then it stays buried. A Promo/Competition forum would at least mean the Game Releases forum could concentrate on game releases.
I understand that its up to the developers to do what they want with their promo codes, but i think if they just list like 10 and give them out to whoever is a waste. They are literally gone in seconds and those people might not even like the game. They should do something like bitten devs did... Make you try the lite version and if you like it they will personally send you your own promo code.
Some other forums have a hidden text setting that won't display unless you post in the thread. That might be an option for these giveaways to cut down on people who don't post when taking a code.
It's up to the devs to "waste" or give away THEIR codes as they wish. People complaining are really only complaining because they didn't get a promo code. Honestly, if you want the game that badly, go buy it.
This is pretty much all it comes down to it. People in these threads are always like "Argh darn lurkers always stealing codes without even writing iTunes reviews " Developers are giving out promo codes to seed community interest, get people to look at their game, and more importantly, just get some people playing it. I think very few developers who post here are looking for shill reviews in exchange for promo codes. If you want to help out a developer, buying their game is the best way to do it.
Why do people continue to whine and moan about promo codes? They complain about "lurkers." They cry if the codes are all gone. They whine if someone took a code and didn't say they did. They want to email the dev and then get the code. They want a contest for the code. They want people to try the lite version first before getting a code. And on and on and on.... It's just plain silly. It's a code, people, for a game that only costs a few bucks anyway! Developers can dispense them however, whenever, and to whomever they wish. Imposing "rules" is offering a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. End of story. I'm sure that developers who read all these complaints about how "unfair" it is think that there is a certain faction of TouchArcade posters who are a bunch of whiny crybabies. I know I do!
PM = Private Message You can send one by clicking on the poster's name, and then selecting that option. Welcome to the forums!
Really? I have used the for years and I know what they are, but I never knew it stood for 'Private Message'. I thought it was 'Personal Mail', lol. It's one of those things that you use time and time again, but you never care to find out what it actually means. Maybe in a couple hundred years time, I could be on a quiz show and be asked a history question! 'In Internet forums, what did PM stand for'? Was it: A - Prime Minister B - Personal Mail () C - Piggy Mail D - Private Message Now I will now! God, I am losing my sanity by the minute on these forums.
If the dev wants to give out these codes to everyone, in a list, then they can, it is their right. Its not like you had the game for free and then it charged you because someone stole it from you. I recently made a US account in iTunes to use promo codes, cos i had 2 in my inbox. I am just happy I have the opportunity to get them!
