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For our third winner of a copy of the original Legend of Zelda, the magic of the Internet's random number generator brought forth the name . . .

Jeffrey Wittenhagen! 


Congratulations, Jeffrey! I'll send you a message with the details. There are still 27 more chances to win in the days ahead!


Which leads me to a Feedback Time question: Which kind of giveaway do you guys think is most exciting/enticing to potential new subscribers?


Option 1: Giving away a single copy of a new, comparatively expensive game like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD. So just one winner, but the prize is more substantial.


Option 2: Giving away lots of copies of a smaller, more affordable game like the original Legend of Zelda on Virtual Console. So lots of winners, but the prize is not as lavish.


I wanted to give away 30 copies of Zelda 1 regardless this month, just as a personal thank-you and because it's my favorite game – but it certainly seems like giving away Twilight Princess HD was more of a draw for people to get signed up quicker. But you tell me! I want to know what you all think, so that I can make good decisions for future giveaways!


~ Lucas M. Thomas

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Comments

Anonymous

Why not both?

Anonymous

I think bigger or newer prizes will bring in folks. Rather than an old game like Zelda, a new game like Shovel Knight would probably do well as well.

Anonymous

My personal opinion is something in the middle. A large-prize lavish giveaway a handful of times supplemented with the occasional handful of lower cost prizes. I would aim a tiny bit higher in terms of the reward though. Maybe something like "3 winners get 1 amiibo each" or one of the slightly higher priced eshop games (perhaps tie this in with the developer being interviewed in an upcoming issue?) The issue with "30 copies of Zelda 1" is that that's a really really cheap prize. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but a $5 prize isn't nearly as exciting (and thus doesn't drive as many pledges) as even a $12 one.

Anonymous

Awesomeness!!

Dark Side

Mix and match, I say. Jason's comment seems to be the most reasonable.

Anonymous

More smaller items.

Anonymous

Low cost prizes don't excite anyone. Just ask the people who do the lottery. And digital really doesn't do it for me, especially if it's a game I already own in non-digital format. I agree with Jason: give us more amiibo-type giveaways with every now and then some big thing like TP: HD. And try to keep the prizes things that we couldn't easily get ourselves, like rare amiibo or rare game packages. That makes it more exciting to win than just "oh, hey. I was going to buy this soon anyway."

Anonymous

Just do both

Anonymous

Why not have both? You can do a few bigger giveaways and more small ones.

Matthieu Loose

First of all, digital : Nope. Couldn't care less. Plus, usually cheap enough that "winning" it isn't even that special! Medium to larger prizes really make it substantial, physicality is important to me. It's why I dislike Ebooks so much. I'm sure you can strike a balance between medium, like one amiibo, to larger stuff, like rarer titles or amiibo + game bundles.

Anonymous

Obviously I think anyone would be happy to get one of the high cost prizes. That being said, I find I'm very excited at the possibility of getting the digital reward... because I realize the odds are much higher that I might actually be one of the winners.

Anonymous

Alternate I'd say. Buncha small ones on occasion than the big one on occasion

Anonymous

More smaller prizes is nice, but then again we like winning big things because they're harder to afford and/or more prestigious to win! And a digital format isn't really interesting for lots of us!

Anonymous

I like having substantial prizes because I'm not a fan of the digital format. I think the amiibo giveaways last year were a good balance of being interesting and physical but relatively inexpensive.

Anonymous

Actually I like both.... it is nice to have one big prize that you can win but then it is not over because we all have a chance to win the smaller but still amazing prize...being a Zelda freak, this is a perfect prize...... I was so upset over the loss of the original magazine, my prize is just having it back......Gail Macari

Anonymous

I agree with the idea that alternating the prizes is a good idea, if possible. If that's not, I'd prefer one "grand" prize over many small ones.

Anonymous

Flip a coin, both are great in my opinion. Though I think for the purpose of attracting new subscribers I would have to give the edge to the many smaller prizes given that they are still desirable.

Anonymous

Definitely do both, it will give everyone a chance to win and keep everyone hooked on a big prize.

Anonymous

The one amazing super awesome special "OMG I'm the luckiest person alive" kind of unique prize is what we all long for :3 ... it is frustrating when u're not the winner, but the one that is is the happiest lotto winner kinda person in the whole wide world ... or until he wins another thing, whenever that is XD I think this answers u'r question :p

Anonymous

Option 2

Anonymous

Personally, I'd rather Twilight Princess HD, but I'm biased since I already own it on the virtual console. :D

Anonymous

Option 2. Although it's a "smaller" prize, it covers more readers. A larger base would come out happier after each giveaway.

Anonymous

I believe you'd generate &amp; KEEP more interest if you offer 1 large prize to definitely draw attention and subsequent smaller prizes to maintain that interest.

Anonymous

I prefer Option 2. Even though the prizes you offer aren't as extravagant, the greater odds of winning will help you have a good reputation among us fans.

Anonymous

I prefer option 2 also, but I am already subscribing so I am not certain about those who haven't.

Anonymous

Maybe this wouldn't work, but what if you increased the number and type of prizes as goals for funding levels after the initial $8000 required is reached to print the magazine? (e.g. you do both option 1 and 2 once funding reaches x amount. Basically like a grand prize and runner up prizes.) If that isn't possible, I prefer option 2.

Anonymous

I like option 1. Big prizes are exciting!

Anonymous

I would have thought Option 2, but I think Option 1 ended up being a bigger draw for me. May just depend on the specific prize, rather than the type!

Anonymous

Option 2 for sure! A better chance of winning would draw me in.

Anonymous

Option 2

Anonymous

Instead of only asking the paying public, I believe you should take the research and opinions of professional psychologists into account. Therefore I recommend you read [ <a href="http://freakonomics.com/2013/10/28/in-praise-of-big-prizes/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://freakonomics.com/2013/10/28/in-praise-of-big-prizes/</a> ], [ <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/in-excess/201410/eyes-the-prize" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/in-excess/201410/eyes-the-prize</a> ], and [ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tournament_theory" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tournament_theory</a> ]. The short version of those articles is that the bigger the prize(s) are, the bigger the attention from the public at large will be. (Just look at the $1 billion+ lottery that recently occurred.) Therefore, if you want the largest boost to your subscriber base, you should offer the biggest or most expensive prize possible. Generally, people psychologically prefer a long-shot at a fantastic, typically out-of-their-reach prize, than a good-chance, mundane, they could have just spent a few bucks prize. The other takeaway from the articles would be to offer an NX at launch as a year-long, drawn from all the subscribers grand prize, an expensive limited edition game or controller as the second prize, and a $5 download code as the third prize.

Anonymous

I think Option 1 would be the more enticing option for people, but if possible, both would definitely be the best option!

Anonymous

I vote for option 1

Anonymous

Option 1

Anonymous

Option 1, especially if it's a newer game that not many people have purchased yet.

Anonymous

I prefer option 2, but I think option 1 will be more of a draw for casual fans. Also, I would like to note that there's a lot of Patreons who will pledge for chances at something like this, and then cancel just before the end of the month to get out of actually paying for a reward, so if this becomes a regular thing, you should probably wait until after that time to actually send any rewards out.

Anonymous

I LIKE EM BIG!!!....

Anonymous

I'm obviously late to the party here for the comments section, but thought I would offer my two cents anyway :P I do think that the larger big time prize is the bigger draw to those people who have not been NFmag subscribers in the past, but as a previous subscriber who intended to renew no matter what prize you offered, I prefer the greater probability of winning a small prize. So the not listed option 3 of "both choices" is my selection :D

Anonymous

Option #2, but something like Box Boy or Gunman Clive 2 over something everyone's owned 5 times over

Anonymous

Option #2. It's better to give people more chances to win instead of one.