> Even the content that made it into the game will never be seen by most users, as most buyers of a video game will never complete your game. But if the ending is not satisfying for those who complete it, they will impact the buying decisions of those who never play through it anyway.
That's because a lot of gamers will get it in a bundle, discount or as part of different passes. Those aren't the core audience that would even be expected to finish the game.
Similarly, I'd bet that "most people" these days don't finish Lord of the Rings books. Luckly we didn't have product managers telling Tolkien to not finish writing the books while looking at statistics saying that "most people don't finish books".
There are plenty of games I have paid good money for that I didn't finish for one reason or another. Sometimes the game just falls flat of my expectations (free demos went out of fashion about a decade ago), sometimes it offers me a compelling experience for a while, but not through the whole experience. And sometimes life gets in the way. I'm not rich by any measure, but I have enough disposable income that I don't have to force my way through an experience I stopped enjoying.
Similarly there are lots of books I started reading and never finished, and plenty of TV shows I started and dropped at some point. Even some few movies I started and never finished. And that's ok. But unless they are highly recommended I don't start TV shows that were canceled, and similarly a bad ending is a score against me ever purchasing a game or book. There is a good chance the show or game will lose me before I ever get there, but why would I set myself up for a bad experience in case I do like the product enough to get that far?
Quite often there will be games I love, but life gets in the way. Then when you try to go back, especially at higher levels, it's very difficult to get in the pacing/difficulty level so you just don't pick it back up. Even though it's a great game and you enjoy it.
That's because a lot of gamers will get it in a bundle, discount or as part of different passes. Those aren't the core audience that would even be expected to finish the game.
Similarly, I'd bet that "most people" these days don't finish Lord of the Rings books. Luckly we didn't have product managers telling Tolkien to not finish writing the books while looking at statistics saying that "most people don't finish books".