• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Microsoft's move to real cash hurts UK buyers, helps Canadian buyers

Guys and Gals, don't look at it like Microsoft is increasing the price of "points" or simply raising prices, but increasing the value of the games you buy on the marketplace.


See, different mindset and it doesn't seem so bad, right? RIGHT? ugh I actually sound just like Don Mattrick.
 

Jamie OD

Member
Euroland prices:

400 Microsoft Points (€4.80) = €4.99
800 Microsoft Points (€9.60) = €9.99
1200 Microsoft Points (€14.40) = €14.99
1600 Microsoft Points (€19.20) = €19.99

It's similar to Windows Phone where $1 equals €1, while on Windows 8 there's an actual exchange rate.

Pretty much exactly what I was expecting the new Microsoft prices to be.
 

Tumo

Member
I think the worst part is they seem to be converting existing points to the old prices.

So if you had 1600 points they will give you £13.60 credit for it, but 1600 point games now cost £14.99........nice
 
Guys, you really thought real money prices would have been lower than PSN ones? They'll obviously be aligned from now on.

And yes, I'll miss MS Points :(
 

Tunesmith

formerly "chigiri"
Guys and Gals, don't look at it like Microsoft is increasing the price of "points" or simply raising prices, but increasing the value of the games you buy on the marketplace.


See, different mindset and it doesn't seem so bad, right? RIGHT? ugh I actually sound just like Don Mattrick.

You're in marketing aren't you?
 

Nags

Banned
Guys and Gals, don't look at it like Microsoft is increasing the price of "points" or simply raising prices, but increasing the value of the games you buy on the marketplace.


See, different mindset and it doesn't seem so bad, right? RIGHT? ugh I actually sound just like Don Mattrick.

Good point!
Hehe, now I'm just waiting to see the people actually trying to spin this in a positive.
 
Shit like this happens when people whine about points, still in utter disbelief people didn't like the points system.

And now we're getting fucked for it.

Word. I remember taking part in a few threads trying to explain what would happen if they disappeared, no one cared. All they cared about is having to buy 1200 points, when you only want a thousand, that they'd have points left over (because they were never going to buy anything else again, right?).

Now its happened and they've got the cheek to complain about something they've asked for. Did they really think Microsoft wouldn't raise prices to match PSN/Steam?
 

GeoGonzo

Member
Loving the Sony fans throwing rocks against their "own" roof. But yeah, this was a given.

You shall be missed in many territories, crazy microsoft spacebucks.
 

krae_man

Member
Quit your complaining. Canadians got screwed by Microsoft's "We're not adjusting points prices no matter what exchange rates are" policy. We've been paying $20 for 1400 points since 2005 Despite parody since 2008 or so.
 

RedStep

Member
Yeah I know. But the general consumer buys it at the store. That's how they make their money, from residual amounts.

That makes no sense, unless you think that MS somehow takes the 400 scrip cents in your account and invests them or something. The points were always yours - you would have $5 extra one day and then get $5 off something the next day.

There's no money gained by them unless you opened an account, bought one thing, left a bunch of points over, and never made another purchase in your life. Do you think that enough people (or any people, really) do that to make it "how they make their money"?
 

snap0212

Member
Was this not always the idea of points? One "price" no matter where it is sold? People that complained really had no idea why it was done that way... easy from a promotion standpoint for sure.

It is a bummer for sure now they they will be going away.
The only reason (from MS's point) I see for points are two things.

a) Being detached from real world money makes you more likely to spend more. There are studies out there that show how you'll spend more money if you don't use real money. In-game currency in free2play games, Microsoft Points and things like those make use of this fact.

b) Only selling a) in a way that forces you to pay more. You should be able to find similar things when you go to a festival or something. Instead of being able to pay your $/€3.5 beer in cash they'll sell cards that have a certain amount of money on them. Now imagine a festival where every drink is $/€3.5. It's very unlikely the cards they sell will give you three drinks exactly. They'll be more like $/€9 cards or something like that. This means that you'll have some money left over and because this is not a desired situation you'll just buy two of those cards. This is being used more and more these days.
 

123rl

Member
As soon as they said points were going, I saw this coming a mile away. Horrible situation for the us consumers.
 
...Wait, PSN prices have always been £9 in the UK and $10 in the US? How have I not noticed this before?

Sony are the fuckers screwing us over then.

Nope, they tend towards £8 or £7, depending on the developer/publisher. Same with Steam. Microsoft defaulting to £9 for $10 is the one point on that list where I would point and cry "price gouging!", since it would make XBLA the most expensive platform in the UK for $10 games.

[Edit] Recent example: Magic 2014
PSN: £6.49
XBLA Points: £6.80
Steam: £6.99
XBLA Cash: £8.99 (lol)
 

Bgamer90

Banned
So they rounded up to the nearest dollar.

Hey, at least you won't have those 10-20 points left over anymore! (Heh)
 

Mononoke

Banned
I love how the blame gets shifted on those complaining about a shit system, and not the company that is implementing the shit system to begin with.
 
to all the people who cried about simple math and wanted 'real' money prices instead of points... HOLDAT

same old shit from Microsoft... not surprising in the least...
 
The J Allard system of currency worked fine I thought. I always figured the switch to cash money would end up fucking us, at least in some regions.
 

MORT1S

Member
So they rounded up to the nearest dollar.

Hey, at least you won't have those 10-20 points left over anymore! (Heh)

Not to mention the likely tax on a true currency amount. A $20 card won't buy you a $20 item anymore in many states
 

snap0212

Member
Why do people think that the price hike has anything to do with the switch from points to real money? Unless I'm not seeing something here, it looks like the exchange rate got changed in favor of Microsoft, which has nothing to do with the change from Points to real money.
 

Lakitu

st5fu
Glad I already got Minecraft and Bioshock Infinite season pass. Not going to buy anything else on Live for the rest of the year anyway. Then it's just PS4.
 
Why do people think that the price hike has anything to do with the switch from points to real money? Unless I'm not seeing something here, it looks like the exchange rate got changed in favor of Microsoft, which has nothing to do with the change from Points to real money.

The 800pts = £8.99 is definitely a price gouge, since most $10 games sells over here for about £6.99 to £7.99 (depending on developer/publisher) on PSN and Steam.
 

Gowans

Member
Nope, they tend towards £8 or £7, depending on the developer/publisher. Same with Steam. Microsoft defaulting to £9 for $10 is the one point on that list where I would point and cry "price gouging!", since it would make XBLA the most expensive platform in the UK for $10 games.

[Edit] Recent example: Magic 2014
PSN: £6.49
XBLA Points: £6.80
Steam: £6.99
XBLA Cash: £8.99 (lol)
Yeah they need to fix it, they have done in such a lazy way.

They are so US focused they don't get the detail, like the GoD pricing.
 

snap0212

Member
The 800pts = £8.99 is definitely a price gouge, since most $10 games sells over here for about £6.99 to £7.99 (depending on developer/publisher) on PSN and Steam.
Not claiming anything else. :) We can see that and it's shitty. To say this happens only because of the switch to real money instead of Microsoft points is ignoring the fact that there could have been a change from MS Points to money without that negative side effect.

The problem isn't the change to real money, it's the how this change is happening.
 

Gowans

Member
The way they have done it is so crack handed too.

Instead of a uniformed rise the borrow tiers go up by a third and the top by a 10%.
 

Forsythia

Member
The prices are the same on Steam, so I really don't have an issue with this (The Netherlands). Not that I will stop buying cheap points for as long as they exist...
 

GeoGonzo

Member
Since they are converting at old price, does this mean they're technically stealing from us?
No, it means they are rising prices. You are given what you paid for.

If they do it the other way around we could stockpile points now, negating the rise.
 
Always been a fan of points,

Get them cheap
One world wide price point
Etc.

You only need to look at games on Demand pricing differences when they broke it and PSN to see we had it good.

Yep, we've had it fantastic the past few years.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm currently in the process of stocking up on many cheap points cards as possible. Also keeping an eye out for stores that will be holding firesales for any points cards they might have in stock.
 

AlexBasch

Member
Guys and Gals, don't look at it like Microsoft is increasing the price of "points" or simply raising prices, but increasing the value of the games you buy on the marketplace.


See, different mindset and it doesn't seem so bad, right? RIGHT? ugh I actually sound just like Don Mattrick.
No, you're actually doing a good job instead.
 
Top Bottom