Football Manager ‘Q4’s biggest PC game’

Publisher Sega has predicted that the upcoming Football Manager 2010 will be the biggest PC release of Q4.

The game is the latest in the long-running Sports Interactive franchise and is due for release on PC on October 30th.

And in anticipation of its arrival, Sega has prepared an extensive marketing campaign to support the game.

Football Manager 2010 is the best game Sports Interactive has ever made,” Sega product manager Ben Payne told MCV. Retailers should expect strong pre-orders already, which will obviously increase between now and launch – as well as good in-store sales in the title’s opening weeks.”

Payne said that Sega has not become complacent in the wake of previous Football Manager successes, instead working hard to raise the bar with the latest version.

Our expectations for Football Manager never change,” Payne said. We want to deliver a game that is well-received both by reviewers and fans as well as selling through well for all of our partners at retail.”

The publisher is pouring significant resources into raising awareness for the game.

There won’t be a bigger PC launch campaign between now and Christmas across retail,” Payne confidently claimed.

Marketing includes an extensive retailer-specific promotional push.

Ads and coverage in national press around the game’s launch targeting the primary audience are planned.

There will also be a wide-spread TV campaign, with spots running during live football matches and other key programming. Ads will initially be focused on pre-orders, before driving sales in the weeks after launch.

Football Manager 2010 will also be partnering with Sky Sports and Football 365 online to reach an estimated four million unique users over the course of six weeks.