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PixelJunk Eden $0.99 Steam sale huge sucess, made entire income in 8 hours

Eden is a great platformer. The best pure skill-based platformer last gen, IMO. Great that the game is getting a second look on PC. Shame that because of the nature of PC gaming, the local multiplayer aspect, which is where the game goes from being simply great to being fucking omg awesome, will not be touched by most players.
 

Hasney

Member
I think this is evidence that digital games are generally too expensive.

Not really. Someone mentioned earlier in the thread about the mentality of sales and how it attracts consumers. People are more likely to buy a game 80% off at this price than they would be if it launched at this price. Being part of a big event also helps visibility, so they make some money off the initial launch for the people clamouring for the game, then hits rock bottom in a sale and the sales go nuts.

With the sheer amount of games that come out on Steam these days, I think indie games are priced right and need the visibility for the sales. Works very well for developoers too:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/...w_deep_discounts_really_affect_your_games.php

There was a story a dev put up about how the increase in sales carried for a little bit even after it went up to full price, but I'm having trouble finding that one.
 

Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
Eden is a great platformer. The best pure skill-based platformer last gen, IMO. Great that the game is getting a second look on PC.

Eden was a real favourite of mine too, very underrated and original game. Its another one of those titles where I feel that it lost out because its not really reviewer-friendly. The later levels take a long time to complete mainly due to the sheer size of the maps, and I can well imagine people trying to get through as quick as possible getting really irritated by this.
 

Dario ff

Banned
Credit where it's due, we might've not gotten this information at all if he didn't inquire like that. :p And more reference points like this are always helpful.

People not only bought the game, they also actually played it.
qPVJ01S.png


PRcMkr8.png
Stuff like this is always very helpful to keep track of as well. I've been trying to see the correlation between peak players of a game on Steam on its release day and the possible sales (which tends to vary a lot depending on the type of game). This is not a re-release, but quite a significant bump.
 

derExperte

Member
There was a story a dev put up about how the increase in sales carried for a little bit even after it went up to full price, but I'm having trouble finding that one.

Many devs said the same and it's mentioned in the article you linked to:

Valve's Holtman says he's never noticed any negative consequences from these promotions. Instead, most games still see positive trends in their sales numbers well after the discounts are over. At the very worst, a game's sales will just revert back to what they were before the promotion began.

Not indie and a different beast but L4D2 is in the top sellers after being free (!) a few days ago. Personally I would never buy something right after a sale for a higher price but enough people do.
 
Good for them. I personally didn't buy it because I played it on the PS3 and thought it was awful, but I enjoy Q-Games' other games so I'm happy for them.
 

Draft

Member
Look how mad that one dude gets! Maybe release a $5 port on PS4, surely that will make a lot of money! lol.
 

Durante

Member
I'd have bought the PC port full price at release if it didn't remove local coop for some inexplicable reason. As is, I'm not interested.
 

kswiston

Member
It's less the port begging and more the fake as fuck sounding concerns about how much money the devs are earning. And the part about '5$ on PS4 -> more income'. Also how do you know they're all PC only gamers? I would buy PJ Shooter for 0.99 despite having 100%ed it on PS3.

Ya, $0.99 is well into double or triple dipping territory if I remotely like a game. I already owned PJE from a previous $2.50 Steam sale, but my wife bought a copy. With our PS3 copy, that makes 3 in one house.
 

Seanspeed

Banned
I think this is evidence that digital games are generally too expensive.
Not at all. Digital prices on the PC are fantastic. Devs still need to make money and relying on $1 sales on Steam is not a sustainable business model.

I think this is evidence that Steam sales are a great idea and can be a nice *boost* for a developer.
 
Except there's still this sensitive PC defense squad or worse the "elite PC gamer master race" - if you don't love the PC you must be on the other side!
I might be a bit over PC gaming lately but I'm INCREDIBLY over the vocal PC gamers themselves, some of the shit I've seen spewed on the internet in the last 24 months has made me never ever want to return.



I think I picked up 2 copies of PJM:U and Eden for friends on the PC,... you know the platform I apparently detest.

Hint:
it's not the platform, it's the bitchy users.

You live your life based on what internet people say on message boards?
 
One of the highlights of last gen for me, particularly the local multiplayer aspect. It deserves a wider audience, though I don't think it needs a PS4 re-release. (A sequel however, I say yes.)
 

genjiZERO

Member
Not at all. Digital prices on the PC are fantastic. Devs still need to make money and relying on $1 sales on Steam is not a sustainable business model.

I think this is evidence that Steam sales are a great idea and can be a nice *boost* for a developer.

No, but there's a price point at which you balance volume and revenue. If you sell 1000 things for $1 you still make as much money as if you sell 1 thing for $1000. In fact, I'd say you are doing better because you have more exposure and penetration with the former. That's what Wal-mart does. Personally, I just think digital games are too expensive for what you get, and that if the prices were lower companies would make up the differences with increased volume. I just don't think companies have hit that sweet spot for digital games.
 

Agent X

Member
I purchased Eden in 2012 on Steam for $3 I think, through the last Steam sales.

I did the same as well in 2012. The game doesn't even work on my PC (7 year old machine that's not really optimized for gaming), but I also got the soundtrack at the same time. I already had the PS3 version previously, so I knew how good the game was, since I was able to enjoy the game there.

It's great to hear that this most recent sale has been a success for them.
 

Imbarkus

As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
Dylan Cuthbert is a great guy to tweet around with because he will answer you back. Those guys did insanely great work that completely helped launch and legitimize PSN download area as a platform. To see ThatGameCompany get a compilation of all 3 of their games, or Fat Princess and When Vikings Attack collected for posterity on a disk, while the PixelJunk series remains download-only on PS3, really stuck in my craw.

And last year they were working on a PixelJunk disc collection, and got all the way up to cover design and everything, when the release was cancelled.

PC releases, at least, pretty much ensure that software will live forever. PSN and XBLA stuff is "in danger" in the long term, IMO. Here's an example of a game no one can have any more.

So I'm glad the PC ports are released and spreading far and wide.

The-Wireless-Lap-Desk-Keyboard-Bonjourlife.com_.jpg


Only $130 for relatively the same comfort as a controller.

I use a similar setup for my PC on my TV, and it's workable, but it's a dirty lie that there's any way it's as comfortable as a controller. I use a controller for every game I can, and set this shit up for stuff like Gunpoint.

I don't think the Steam controller looks particularly well suited to Gunpoint. It's an FPS controller.

Something is still needed to address controls in this space, IMO.
 
I bet a lot of people are benefiting from the card economy. It feels so satisfying to sell cards and get a free game out of it. Agreed the entire income wording is a little funny but I see what he means.

I got it shortly after launch when they added the pad controls back in, major respect for them for listening to a minority who wanted to play that way. Haven't checked out Shooter yet, definitely interested in it.

Long term they should consider bringing everything to Steam and having a complete pack for say $50.
 
I don't think the Steam controller looks particularly well suited to Gunpoint. It's an FPS controller.

Something is still needed to address controls in this space, IMO.

Then you haven't watched any impression vids. People are having an easier time with 2D and mouse driven games with it than FPS games.
 

Imbarkus

As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
Then you haven't watched any impression vids. People are having an easier time with 2D and mouse driven games with it than FPS games.

Yeah that's true. I based my impression on just looking at the touch panel and trying to imagine precision reprogramming in Gunpoint on it.
 

Haunted

Member
Discounts work. I'm actually glad that guy took the place and voiced the concerns of every megapublisher with his assumptions about brand value and how Steam and discounts work - and I like that he could be shut down so decisively by its success.

Publishers, take note.


Congrats Pixeljunk, please bring PJ Shooter 2 over next, looking forward to it. :D
 

Zia

Member
Good for them. Hopefully the proliferation of Eden helps to build a Q-Games fan base on Steam, as I'm seriously concerned with how Inc will fare, going toe-to-toe with the likes of Starbound and Terraria.
 

Imbarkus

As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
Pretty sure both Shooter 2 and Sidescroller are coming.

Also, if you haven't, check out some preview stuff for PixelJunk Inc. It's a PC exclusive (right now) and it looks awesome.
 
Yeah that's true. I based my impression on just looking at the touch panel and trying to imagine precision reprogramming in Gunpoint on it.

Check out this thread. You can sample some impressions. People are having their problems with it, some of it is the learning curve and time to get used to it, some of it is design flaws, but it seems to work well with certain genres.
 

Imbarkus

As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
Check out this thread. You can sample some impressions. People are having their problems with it, some of it is the learning curve and time to get used to it, some of it is design flaws, but it seems to work well with certain genres.

Thanks. I'll check it out. I'm still interested.

It's not like anyone else has had any better ideas!

I mean, look at my shitty setup. Not the optimum way to play Gunpoint, or Pixeljunk Games.
 

Fersis

It is illegal to Tag Fish in Tag Fishing Sanctuaries by law 38.36 of the GAF Wildlife Act
Eden is my favorite Pixel Junk game and Q Games is hella cool on my book.
So glad it worked wonders for them.
 
cool stuff, now please give us Pixel Junk Monsters 2...

Like SERIOUSLY..

Did Eden/Shooter sell more? Monsters was my favorite in the series. I have all of them btw

Pixel Junk Racers
Pixel Junk Monsters
Pixel Junk Eden
Pixel Junk Shooter
Pixel Junk Side-scroller

I even tried the move music amplifier title.
 

Mozendo

Member
Man, people like Abrasion really need to know to stop port-begging every time.

Aside from that congrats on them. My friend and I got PixelJunk Monsters Ultimate when it was in a bundle a few weeks back and we've had a blast so far, such a great game.
 

besada

Banned
While I think it's a shame that so many waited until they could give the least possible to the devs, I'm very happy that PJ made some bank. Both Eden and Monsters were some of the very best smaller games to come out last gen. Just beautiful gems of perfection.
 

Sulik2

Member
Gotta love the steam affect. All these steam sales successes at lower price points should teach big publishers they are charging too much for games.
 
While I think it's a shame that so many waited until they could give the least possible to the devs, I'm very happy that PJ made some bank. Both Eden and Monsters were some of the very best smaller games to come out last gen. Just beautiful gems of perfection.
Sometimes it's also a matter of exposure. It's a pretty wild experience to have your game on the front page of a digital store that 7.5 million people see at peak times. That only happens once a year and people all of a sudden learn about that obscure game they missed months or years ago.
 
Wizzbang making an arse of himself? Must be a Tuesday.

Game doubles it's income to date in eight hours? Must be a Steam sale. etc.
 
I'm actually more surprised that during the off months the peak players was FOUR. Not knowing much about what the long tail would look like, I think I assumed that prior PS3 release + reasonably good word of mouth on those platforms = higher player counts.

I think I bought Eden during that 117 peak bump and played it shortly afterward. Really clicked with me the second time in a way that it didn't when I first played on PS3, even though everything was the same right down to me using a DualShock 3 instead of mouse/kb. Glad to see the flash sale was such a huge success.

And honestly, even if Q Games could've gotten more from pricing the game only slightly higher, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing in the long run. Recettear has a ton of people ready to go to bat for the game now, and I think despite their early $1 sale there don't seem to be a lot of people going, "well it was one dollar before, I'm definitely not buying it at five dollars two years later." Though obviously SpaceDrake would be in a much better position to comment/tell me how wrong I am.
 

wazoo

Member
cool stuff, now please give us Pixel Junk Monsters 2...

Like SERIOUSLY..

Did Eden/Shooter sell more? Monsters was my favorite in the series. I have all of them btw

Pixel Junk Racers
Pixel Junk Monsters
Pixel Junk Eden
Pixel Junk Shooter
Pixel Junk Side-scroller

I even tried the move music amplifier title.

I have all of them on ps3. ready to rebuy them on steam for conservation
 

Seanspeed

Banned
No, but there's a price point at which you balance volume and revenue. If you sell 1000 things for $1 you still make as much money as if you sell 1 thing for $1000. In fact, I'd say you are doing better because you have more exposure and penetration with the former. That's what Wal-mart does. Personally, I just think digital games are too expensive for what you get, and that if the prices were lower companies would make up the differences with increased volume. I just don't think companies have hit that sweet spot for digital games.
That's not what Walmart does. Walmart is a wholesale outlet. They buy generally already-cheap stuff in bulk so they can afford to sell at lower prices than competitors. Quite a different situation.

If you think digital games on the PC are too expensive, I don't know what to say, man. Its much better than retail games or console games in general(retail or digital). I'd say you should be quite thankful.

Anyways, your idea that they should just sell games cheaper in order to get more sales can apply to lots of things in life. And it just doesn't work that way in the real world. If developers/publishers thought they could get more money by pricing lower, they would. You're not the first person to have this idea and businesses tend to have people on hand with education and experience with market pricing. They generally do know what they're doing.
 
Congratulations to Q, hopefully this will end the myth about Steam sale purchases being less valuable to devs than full price sales. Who am I kidding, that will never happen.
 
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