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[Stone Ocean]

How about a wider range of game budgets so we don't have to be stuck with one model and one model only?

 

[NullPointer]

Or I could continue supporting games like Divinity Original Sin 2, Observer, Cuphead, Battlechasers, Evil Within 2, A Hat In Time,ect that don't include any bullshit.

That too

There's still plenty of choice out there if you want to avoid the latest AAA monetization nonsense.

 

[Oersted]

Multiplayer Games - Loot Boxes instead of paid DLC so there is no player-base splintering. I'm fine having lootboxes if it means I get new characters and maps for free (so long as the boxes themselves can be earned within reason in-game).

Good that there is option C, Splatoon

 

[Brotherhood93]

I would be happier with smaller scale. Think how costly it must be to create some of the vast, open-worlds that most games have these days yet how many of them are actually that interesting? You know if developers could actually cut down on all the boring padding they include in games it could save them money and actually make the games better although I think it would hurt them financially in sales so it's not viable.

 

[Nosgotham]

worse graphic fidelity.

if you have a good art style and higher frame rate, ill take a hit in fidelity. no excuse for poor polish though.

 

[More_Badass]

That too

There's still plenty of choice out there if you want to avoid the latest AAA monetization nonsense.

Almost too much choice

Paralyzing choice

At least with AAA games, you can plan months in advance. With indies, you get something like a new Zachtronics game announced out of nowhere releasing in a day or two or some major indie title coming in a week

 

[FN-2187]

I think I’d rather watch movies and sports.

 

[eyeball_kid]

It's silly that AAA games continue to be $60 even though dev costs have risen, along with inflation. So if this stems the tide of loot boxes and microtransactions, sure, I'm all for that. We were basically already paying those prices back in the '80s.

 

[tombo85]

I vote for lowering the salaries of the CEOs

 

[Ricky Ricardo]

Become the norm? No. But I did ask for "Blockbuster" games, personally. I love my God Wars, my Uncharteds, my Final Fantasies, my Devil May Cries. They provide me with spectacle and entertainment.

Yeah, but costs are exorbitant for AAA story-based games. We can't live in a world where we get everything we want.

Games not marked by additional monetization, at a decent retail price, with spectacular polish and presentation are a pipe-dream at this stage. There may have been one or two titles like this over the past 2 generations, but you can say goodbye to that now.

 

[Fou-Lu]

I already have $80 games in Canada.

 

[hydruxo]

I'll take lootboxes and dlc over being forced to pay 10-20 extra on a game. At least that way I can spend what I want if I want to buy the dlc later or not.

 

[SourBear]

This is a terrible argument. Loot boxes would have come even if games today cost $200.

 

[nynt9]

Or I could continue supporting games like Divinity Original Sin 2, Observer, Cuphead, Battlechasers, Evil Within 2, A Hat In Time,ect that don't include any bullshit.

Kickstarted and Eastern European dev, Eastern European dev and a linear experience, first party backing and devs mortgaged their houses and took a very long time to make, kickstarted, no marketing and seems like it's not doing well, kickstarted and took a very long time to make.

These aren't generally sustainable models for every developer.

 

[carlsojo]

Lootboxes + DLC. Like this isn't a hard choice at all.

 

[Tyaren]

Brand new AAA games cost already 69€ here. That's 81$. So not much of a choice...

 

[strafer]

I just want a game I can play and enjoy.

 

[Doctor Ironic]

Can I pick worse graphics and DLC? I have no problem with the inherent idea of DLC, and even at its most exploitative I don’t mind it nearly as much as micro transactions and loot boxes.

 

[Mass Effect]

oh, you think $80-100 games means developers/publishers would drop lootboxes, season passes, and microtranscations.

how cute

(my pick is smaller scale games, which is why I'm starting to buying more mid-tier and indie games)

 

[Zukkoyaki]

If I had to choose, I'd go the DLC/Loot box route as that is usually the easiest to ignore.

Though thanks to the ease of indie development and digital distribution, we've been seeing an impressive array of titles in many genres finding success at a variety of price points while being made on modest budgets. I think we will just begin seeing more releases like this.

 

[QisTopTier]

My 2 top game of the year games so far are Ys 8 and Nioh, one had a long super fleshed out season pass the other was just a great game nothing extra with dlc or whatever.

I dont mind and welcome dlc if it's actual mini expansions that add to an already large package

 

[Rellik]

I think I’d rather watch movies and sports.

Yep. I'd rather find a new hobby than any of that bs mentioned.

 

[Shredderi]

Smaller fucking scale EVERYDAY. All of my favourite games are what are considered smaller scale compared to the open world bloat. I'll play Half-Life and Metro 2033 etc. everytime over Assassin's Creed and it's ilk. None of my top 10 games of all time is an open world game. Leave graphical fidelity where it is now and scale back from the bloat.

 

[harriet the spy]

GAF keeps complaining about backlogs. Games are too cheap. People would buy Zelda at 100 bucks.
The fact that they are not tracking inflation shows how ridiculous game pricing has become .

 

[robotuw]

I choose smaller scale/graphics first. The bigger issue is that games cost too much money to make when they try to be everything. If I can't have that, then $70-$80 games it is.

Spoiler

They'll still be $30 ~5 months later anyway.

 

[Solobbos]

Worse graphics all the way. I would be fine with all games being simple 720/1080p graphics with 60FPS if possible. Even if the game is the prettiest game ever, I get over the aesthetics in minutes. The only game where I appreciated how good it looked all way through was Uncharted 4, and even there the wow effect was wearing thinner by the hour. We don't need 4K textures, we don't need awesome natural shimmer reflecting from every surface. Gameplay is king.

 

[zeniselv]

Games for a while have tried to be like movies, going all cinematic and with a lot of setpieces, but the biggest point I think is the price of entry, wich is why f2p games went big some time ago, im not saying games should be as cheap, but cheaper price would encourage more people to get or give a game a chance, specially now that are fewer the games without microtransactions or cutted content put as DLC.

 

[Bobo Dakes]

I can live with $70.

 

[NullPointer]

At least with AAA games, you can plan months in advance. With indies, you get something like a new Zachtronics game announced out of nowhere releasing in a day or two or some major indie title coming in a week

So true. This keeps happening to me.

Recently Hob and Shadow Tactics just came out of nowhere for me. Echo and Battle Chasers look nice too. And all of those examples have far more visibility than most indie titles.

 

[watership]

Mobile games model is coming and there is nothing going to stop it. I feel there isn't enough people that care about the problem to make a dent.

I don't mind DLC, and new content at a cost, but loot boxes and the gambling aspect of games needs to die. Especially modifying or designing a game's progression, making it slower for the non paying customer to progress on purpose.. to incite sales. I hate it even in free to play games, and would rather pay for the game. It's perhaps the worst monetization of video games in the history of the medium.

 

[Classicblunder]

$60 game that feels like a 100% complete fully satisfying 40+ hours game, then sell DLC later for those that love it so much they want more, or better yet, a $60 sequel.

I mean, isn't this what sequels have always been about? You make a game, you get $60, you take 2 years to develop a sequel, you get $60 again. Plenty of games still follow this in 2017, so I frankly reject "$80, loot boxes, or worse games" as answering the question would be to give it dignity it doesn't deserve.

 

[Viale]

If forced to choose, I'd definitely go C. Some of my favorite games this year were easily games like Persona 5 and Ys which clearly had lower budgets than western AAA.

Otherwise, I think it would be a decent idea to have more models with certain games to have a wide breath of pricing as opposed to just $60. They've started that with the introduction of more $40 games, but I wouldn't mind going in the opposite direction for certain games as well.

 

[PshycoNinja]

Yeah, but costs are exorbitant for AAA story-based games. We can't live in a world where we get everything we want.

Games not marked by additional monetization, at a decent retail price, with spectacular polish and presentation are a pipe-dream at this stage. There may have been one or two titles like this over the past 2 generations, but you can say goodbye to that now.

I am very much aware of how much games cost. Mismanagement, more often then not, is the reason budgets will explode and games aren't able to make a profit.

 

[Eidan]

I pick wait a year, get the GOTY Edition for $29, and never get a game with loot boxes.

 

[Crazy Diamond]

It doesn't really matter. Just take it how it comes then go from there. If a game costs 60 and it has additional content amounting to an additional $30, so be it. If it costs 70-80 but has no post-launch support, fine. If it's a $60 package with loot crates but they can be attained in game, I got no problem with that. I almost never pay full price anyway and the few times I have this gen, I would have easily paid more (or did, in the case of FFXV for example).

 

[Poimandres]

I really think we need better tools to make games. Things that make it far quicker and easier to make games. I'm sure we'll get there eventually!

 

[Quadraphonic]

I know what I prefer, but I also know what the community at large prefers.

Remember when the Xbox 360 launched? The core console didn't have a hard drive, memory card, wifi, wireless controllers or an HDMI port. You had to pay for all those things.

People will always take the cheaper option, even if they pay more later to bring it up to speed.

 

[Strike]

I'd rather see smaller $30 - $40 experiences become a trend.

 

[Alienous]

Smaller scale, I suppose.

Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, even without UC4's multiplayer, was more worth $60 than UC4. Rainbow Six Siege doesn't overwhelm with content - it does a smaller amount of things well, and is probably be best shooter I've played of the last 5 years.

Quality over quantity would be a good thing to chase.

 

[Mechanized]

Smaller scale + "worse" graphics.

I don't want 40+ hour games. 10-15 is plenty. Devs are chasing the tail of bleeding edge graphics in the AAA scene, and I really don't give a shit about that. Simple 2D art is all I need. People will say "2D is soooo expensive". Binding of Isaac has been made, and remade. It's still 2D, done indie. The big boys can manage. Or maybe they can adopt a timeless style like low res, cel shaded, etc.. instead of going for generic "realistic" bullshit that nobody will care about a year after release when the sequel comes out.

 

[KorrZ]

Divinity OS 2 is probably my GOTY and they’re ecstatic with 700k sales.

You don’t need AAA budget and sales to be a great game. In fact it’s increasingly the opposite with how generic AAA has gotten.

 

[mantis23]

When I got my first job and started buying my own video games they were all $70-$80 with the RPGs hitting up to $100. I have no issues with AAA games going back to those prices, especially with smaller games coming in cheaper.

 

[Renna Hazel]

I'll take cheaper games with worse graphics. Gameplay polish is essential however and I wouldn't want to sacrifice that.

 

[Leafhopper]

Bigger budget doesn't make the game any better.

 

[rokkerkory]

I choose neither why must we accept those options?

 

[JordanN]

$80 games

No one complains about cars that cost half a million dollars. I would be ok if we got "Ferrari tier" video games with godlike production values.

 

[Glass Shark]

.

 

[jdstorm]

1. Smaller scale. Too many games are extremely bloated
2. 70-80 dollar games. In non US markets games are already this price or higher at times. No reason that can't continue
3. Invest in photogrametry and other tech that will increase the speed of asset creation. Horizon Zero Dawn's GDC talk is a masterclass on how to quickly and efficiently design an open world using procedural tools.

 

[ArkhamFantasy]

Bigger budget doesn't make the game any better.

If anything it hurts the games, with such high dev costs you have to make them super generic and cant take many risks.

 

[Triteon]

A. I like big games and I like graphics tech to be pushed. I don't like loot boxes and have the cash to pay for my purchases up front, so A is the no-brainer for me.