Ok, I’ve talked a lot about online communities as a vehicle for capturing product insight and generating a sense of maternity in your innovation…well, here’s an example right here close to home:

Halo 3 beta preaches to the converted: Landmark program lets fans influence development of favorite franchise

A ton of interesting things going on here in terms of getting feedback, managing change to a franchise with RAVING fans, and building momentum and buzz for an upcoming launch expected to rival Spiderman 3 in terms of open weekend gross revenue.

A good illustration is from the article quoted here:

Download troubles
“Crackdown” was a minor critical hit, but the game’s impressive sales figures (approximately 900,000) were no doubt boosted by the inclusion of the “Halo 3″ beta. Gamers that tried to enter the beta via “Crackdown,” though, were treated to a nasty surprise last Wednesday when they were unable to download the demo while other beta players enjoyed rousing sessions of digital gunplay.

Bungie’s message boards were an inferno of impassioned freak-outs, but the crisis was averted that evening when the “Crackdown” bug was fixed and downloads began. To read the message boards now, all is forgiven. Master Chief is truly the Dr. Phil of rampaging gamers.

Bungie must inch across a precarious tightrope for “Halo 3.” The shooter’s mechanics are so beloved — over 5 million gamers have played around 700 million online games of “Halo 2″ — that Bungie risks upsetting the fanbase by making too many changes. However, there is an equal danger in playing it too safe and not delivering a new enough experience to justify buying an Xbox 360 for “Halo 3.”

Looks to me like a real and committed relationship between Bungie and it most passionate users…with such a franchise as Halo, everyone wants a win…Bungie and its loyal Halo fans!!

Sean

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