As part of my 4th year at Abertay University, I am currently undertaking my Honours research, developing ‘Game Over, Please Try Again’. This project serves as both a dissertation and a framework, exploring games that received negative receptions and identifying the common factors that contributed to their failures. My goal is to analyse these patterns…

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jackmurray60418

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Game Over, Please Try Again (Honours)

Honours Project

📄 Project Summary

Title: Game Over, Please Try Again
Degree: BA (Hons) Game Design and Production, Abertay University
Submitted: May 2025

Abstract:

This project investigates production and marketing pitfalls in the game industry using case studies of Cyberpunk 2077 and No Man’s Sky, and proposes a recovery-focused framework adapted from Agile methodologies.

The research is informed by my dissertation available here:

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✅ Core Themes:

  • Failed launches & causes (feature creep, crunch, investor pressure)
  • The damage of “hype marketing”
  • Post-launch recovery strategies
  • A new framework for realistic development and stakeholder communication

🔧 GameOver Framework

This document builds on the dissertation to propose a real-world solution:

  • 🎯 Marketing based on feature maturity to avoid overpromising.
  • 📌 Adapted Agile for games
  • 🔄 Focus on realistic planning, creative buffer time, and post-launch recovery.
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