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[toythatkills]

Or SpaceChem. All you doing is drawing paths and combining things. But it's the intricacy and different elements on top of that main mechanic that makes SpaceChem so challenging and varied

You're bringing up SpaceChem quite often but I'm not sure how helpful it truly is as a comparison. Due to the nature of the game, anyone who likes SpaceChem is someone I'd credit with a fair bit of intelligence - this is not something I can say for people who post "LOL $40 FOR AN INDIE GAME?!?!?!"

Like, I don't think they're going to understand the point you're trying to make.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

There's gonna be a similar debate when No Man's Sky pricing is revealed. The pseudo-intellectuals "you just don't understand its brilliance/not smart enough for this game/ITS A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE!!!" vs "what do you actually DO tho/$40 for an indie game???/seems pretty boring" casual crowd

 

[More_Badass]

You're bringing up SpaceChem quite often but I'm not sure how helpful it truly is as a comparison. Due to the nature of the game, anyone who likes SpaceChem is someone I'd credit with a fair bit of intelligence - this is not something I can say for people who post "LOL $40 FOR AN INDIE GAME?!?!?!"

Like, I don't think they're going to understand the point you're trying to make.

Mainly highlighting how reductive a description of a game can be

SpaceChem is just drawing paths and combining things.
Portal is just shooting portals
The Witness is just line puzzles
and so on

But all those games are much more than their core mechanics

 

[TheCanisDirus]

Here's Blow answering the question of whether solving line puzzles is all you do in the game:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZbRBen7rCc&t=12m42s

From PC gamer's playthrough:

"30 minutes of game time later and it’s clear my doubts were misplaced. The Witness is a simple game at heart, one involving no item ferrying and no inventory management. I slowly pick my way through a quiet island and simply interact with electronic screens to open doors and manipulate the world. And I’m transfixed. The puzzles are more inventive than I could have imagined, and labelling them as simply ‘drawing lines through panels’ is akin to lumping every Braid feature under a ‘rewinding time’ banner."

There's a frame from the trailer that shows how the entire island is divided up into areas with different puzzle types:

All sounds awesome. Thanks guys/gals!

 

[5moke5creen]

I think it's a very fair price. In fact, I'd be happier paying more.

This is a labour of love, and will have more here and should poured into it that your annual CoD or Fifa updates.

 

[boeso]

Any review copies out there?

 

[More_Badass]

Any review copies out there?

Yup, Justin from IGN said he's talked with people who are playing it now and the Steam page says 4 people have played it this week (1 right now as we speak)

 

[mckmas8808]

People expected this to be $20 or less lol?

Wowzers.

I was expecting $30.

That is fine. I mostly wanted to talk about that for so many people there's actually an inverse relationship between the number of gameplay hours and our desire to play. Developers and publishers always seem to act like a longer game is always better, and that length often justifies a particular pricepoint.

When someone touts a game as being 40-80 hours, the question I ask myself is NOT "Do I want to spend $20/$40/$60 on this game?". The question I ask myself is "Do I want to spend 40-80 hours on this game?" because my time is generally more valuable than my money.

Price definitely factors into this in some way though. I will probably get bored of a game that long sooner or later, so it still makes sense to want it to be cheaper....

Exactly! And this is why I was expecting $30, because I was expecting the game to be NO MORE than 20 hours for everything to be completed.

 

[Manny Calavera]

that's way more than I'd expected. Twice more actually.

This. Didn't expect that much at all. Still loved Braid and I've been looking forward to this for a long time since it was first announced so I'll probably pick it up on release date. I might first check couple of reviews though.

 

[Vexidus]

So this means about $80 in Canada then, right ?
Regardless, I'll be getting this. Been interested in it forever and I'm glad it's finally (almost) here.

It's $43.99 CDN on Steam, which is a steal since a direct conversion from USD would be almost 60.

I can't wait to dive into this treasure of a game. I am looking forward to just being in the world, spending time gazing at the beautiful environments, listening to the wind blowing through leaves and water lapping against the shore. Fully absorbing every square inch of what it has to offer. I have a clipboard and graph paper ready to take notes and piece together its mysteries. This is the Skyrim of puzzle games.

The most exciting part is that most of it has been kept completely secret. I am shocked by some of the ignorant and closed-minded comments I've seen here. I feel sorry for those people who have so frivolously written off the wondrous experience this game will be to absorb.

 

[More_Badass]

This. Didn't expect that much at all. Still loved Braid and I've been looking forward to this for a long time since it was first announced so I'll probably pick it up on release date. I might first check couple of reviews though.

Braid was $20 in 2008. You really expected this to be the same price?

 

[INTERNET]

You're bringing up SpaceChem quite often but I'm not sure how helpful it truly is as a comparison. Due to the nature of the game, anyone who likes SpaceChem is someone I'd credit with a fair bit of intelligence - this is not something I can say for people who post "LOL $40 FOR AN INDIE GAME?!?!?!"

Like, I don't think they're going to understand the point you're trying to make.

Probably closer: JRPGs are just a bunch of menus

 

[ymgve]

Yup, Justin from IGN said he's talked with people who are playing it now and the Steam page says 4 people have played it this week (1 right now as we speak)

Note that reviewers often get access to a different version of the game that's not under the "official" Steam app number, so the number of players is only indicative of how many devs are testing the Steam version of the game.

 

[Manny Calavera]

Braid was $20 in 2008. You really expected this to be the same price?

Well I guess I was expecting more or less your normal indie pricing. Still I've no problem paying more for this since like I said I've been waiting Witness for a long time and I'm sure it will live up to expectations.



EDIT: I guess I was somehow thinking of Life is Strange which I though was an absolute steal with 20 euros. Almost felt guilty paying so little (One of the reasons I'l buy the physical copy) considering I've already played it through three times. So I think I got used to too good with the pricing of downloadable games.

 

[shmoglish]

Braid was $20 in 2008. You really expected this to be the same price?

And? Next Game from Blow will ne 60$ them I guess?

 

[duckroll]

And? Next Game from Blow will ne 60$ them I guess?

Why not? If he makes something he feels is worth 60 bucks what's wrong?

 

[shmoglish]

Why not? If he makes something he feels is worth 60 bucks what's wrong?

Nothing. Just not happy with The argument.

 

[GatticusFinch]

Why not? If he makes something he feels is worth 60 bucks what's wrong?

There's generally a weird market force in the entertainment industry whereby creative works should debut at the same price no matter how good or how shitty they are that does not really exist elsewhere (movie ticket prices, console games, music, etc.). I'm not sure whether this is good or bad, but the $60 price he set seems purely based on that system of "this is the top end of what the market will bear for a non 'indie' video game." I very much doubt he thought about any content to value ratio when setting the price. He's not going to price it at anything over $60 because you could imagine that thread if he sold it for $70 or $80.

The system we have now for non 'indie' games is basically "launch at $60 and then drop the price like a rock in a few weeks if necessary."

 

[Dazzler]

Any review copies out there?

I'm assuming Brad Shoemaker is playing it because he said he was playing a game he couldn't discuss yet on yesterday's bombcast

 

[PolishQ]

I'm assuming Brad Shoemaker is playing it because he said he was playing a game he couldn't discuss yet on yesterday's bombcast

Discuss it, Brad!! Gah, the wait is killing me.

 

[mrklaw]

lol to the people that are gonna pay $40 for line puzzles

You're right, we are silly.

Thanks, Dweebo

 

[cpp_is_king]

Mainly highlighting how reductive a description of a game can be

SpaceChem is just drawing paths and combining things.
Portal is just shooting portals
The Witness is just line puzzles
and so on

But all those games are much more than their core mechanics

No Mans Sky is just wandering around aimlessly
Fez is just spinning the world around
Dark Souls is just difficulty for difficulty sake.

 

[Kaako]

$40 for AAA Myst-like puzzle game that looks gorgeous as hell? Sounds good.
Oh you expected $10-30 rage? Fuck yo expectations.

 

[More_Badass]

And? Next Game from Blow will ne 60$ them I guess?

I mean, the game is many magnitudes bigger than Braid in both scope and scale, had a multi-million dollar budget, spent 8 years in development, and is releasing in a time when bigger-budget indies tend to release in the $30-$40 range

Why would you expect it to be the same price as Braid?

 

[Real Hero]

lol to the people that are gonna pay $40 for line puzzles

People pay more than that for Assasins Creed games, so it's not that crazy.

 

[Wallach]

Fuckin' crazy to me the reaction to the price. What more is the guy supposed to do for forty bucks?

 

[Weetrick]

Fuckin' crazy to me the reaction to the price. What more is the guy supposed to do for forty bucks?

Burn a file to a disc I guess. I think $40 is fine.

 

[BTA]

I'm conflicted because there are a lot of indie games I'd personally feel comfortable paying more for. I'm just not sure this is one of them.

It taking so long to produce only justifies it if that time was actually worth it, I guess. But I'm not super fond of Blow to begin with, so there's that in play as well. I'll probably still pick it up close to release just to see what the hell it is, which maybe says something about this game's appeal specifically. It's just that while I do think indie devs should be able to price their games higher without people being shocked, I can't fault everyone who's bothered by the price of this?

 

[More_Badass]

But I'm not super fond of Blow to begin with, so there's that in play as well.

Why?

 

[TM94]

Think it's going to bomb at that price.

But I've got no business telling the man who created the game how to price it.

If he feels that's what it should be the price point, then I see no argument really.

 

[More_Badass]

Think it's going to bomb at that price.

But I've got no business telling the man who created the game how to price it.

If he feels that's what it should be the price point, then I see no argument really.

Talos Principle did just fine at that price.

I don't actually know the sales numbers; they're probably something like 150,000," says Croteam's Damjan Mravunac. "The sales are picking up. This is the game, unlike Serious Sam...Serious Sam, it's a fan game. People are waiting for it, when it comes out people buy it and then the scale goes a little bit down, you know, like a steep hill. With Talos it's always a constant. You know the game is selling very well so we are actually expecting it to do very well in the long run.

 

[slightconfuse]

think ill wait for some reviews

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Why?

This cant be the first time you've heard somebody disliking Johnathan Blow.

 

[bobeth]

I don't mind the price, as long as it's worth it! Will wait for reviews, which I would have done anyway..

 

[wutwutwut]

All you do in Mario is run and jump.

 

[rafaelr]

Yep.

Got The Talos Principle at launch and it is one of my favourite games ever made. Currently have 230+ hours in it and it was worth full price and more IMO. The Witness sounds like it's my kind of game and $40 is completely justified. Can't wait for the release.

i´m gonna get this day1 on PS4 (where pre-orders aren´t possible for this game...)
but would still like to have that "warm fuzzy feeling of having pre-ordered The Witness".
your post happens to be #126 (and you seem to be excited for the game), so i´d like to gift a copy via Steam to you. pm´d for details.

 

[BTA]

Why?

In general, I feel that he's become pretty elitist about game development in a way that bothers me. He's also made authoratitive statements/judgements related to this that completely ignore how hugely different the position he's in (financially, with regard to his recognition as a developer, how the market for indie games is very different now, etc.) is from the average dev in a way that's pretty groan-worthy.

I'm sure he's an ok person and this is more of an eye-rolling dislike than some kind of hatred, but it does affect my decision to give him my money. I would also add that this feeling is dissimilar to mine towards Phil Fish, who people seem to use as a similar example, but I see their situations as very different and have little negative feelings towards Fish.

 

[Wok]

And? Next Game from Blow will ne 60$ them I guess?

Next game would be released in 2023, so if we take into account inflation, $60 seems like a good price.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

i´m gonna get this day1 on PS4 (where pre-orders aren´t possible for this game...)
but would still like to have that "warm fuzzy feeling of having pre-ordered The Witness".
your post happens to be #126 (and you seem to be excited for the game), so i´d like to gift a copy via Steam to you. pm´d for details.

Wow! Thank you so much! This is unbelievably generous of you, rafaelr! What an awesome gesture to brighten up the thread. You've made my day. I was going to order through Humble yesterday but they weren't sending out keys to redeem right away so thought I'd wait, as I wanted to see it in my library as stupid as that sounds, hahaha. I hope you get that feeling as we wait until next week!

Thanks again. Really kind of you. Been waiting for this for a long time and I hope other GAF members can show you some love on behalf of me as well. Thank you!

 

[Neoweee]

Think it's going to bomb at that price.

But I've got no business telling the man who created the game how to price it.

If he feels that's what it should be the price point, then I see no argument really.

At that price, it will "make money". I don't see any reasonable chance of this selling, say, under 200k, 300k, something like that. It has been too hyped for too long and has a good lineage on top of a small development budget.

 

[Tregard]

lol to the people that are gonna pay $40 for line puzzles

The Witness |OT| Drawing a line in the sand

 

[OldGangWarily]

lol to the people that are gonna pay $40 for line puzzles

I thought I was on GAF to get away from shitty posts like this.

 

[God Dayumm]

$40 is a perfectly reasonable starting price. Don't want to pay for it? Wait one year or two for a steam sale when it will half priced or less

 

[Wallach]

I wonder if they will have VR support in this at least by the time Rift ships. Considering waiting to play this until we hear more on that.

 

[TheKastorian]

Really looking forward to this game! $40 is not bad at all for the amount of gameplay it is supposed to offer.

 

[GhaleonEB]

I wonder if they will have VR support in this at least by the time Rift ships. Considering waiting to play this until we hear more on that.

Blow has expressed interest in VR support. They did a blog post last year about testing it for the Rift, but hasn't said much since.

 

[PSqueak]

Think that's a "wait for reviews" price for me.

Pretty much.

Not to sound like a dick, but as much as his previous game was praised, he doesn't get a free pass for that price.

 

[OnionPowder]

Braid was $20 in 2008. You really expected this to be the same price?

Braid was $15 at launch. He wanted to do $20 on PC a year later but ended up bringing it back down to $15 before it came out.

 

[Wallach]

Blow has expressed interest in VR support. They did a blog post last year about testing it for the Rift, but hasn't said much since.

Yeah I remember, I just haven't seen anything more recent than that (September or something). It would be cool if it launched with the game now (like some of the other games that just use the Betas tab for experimental Rift support), but I wouldn't mind waiting until around the CV1 launch to play it in VR if they're going to just wait and announce it then for the press attention. Anything later than that and I'll probably just play it on release.

 

[Darth Smurf X]

I was expecting between $30 and $40, so I am now expecting to own it this month.