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[Astral Dog]

They already cost $70 bro,in this economy thats not a small fee for a single game.

What you are asking is for people to stop feeding their families to buy videogames

 

[Bond007]

Only hobby im a part of full of suckers.
Yea lets pay more, lets allow subs, lets enjoy microtransactions, XBL Gold- best deal in gaming, lets remove physical media and be happy about it and not be able to own it.
The problem is this hobby is also full of teens/children ready and willing to get taken.

Sounds like these corps need to trim that fat and be more efficient with where they prioritize their funds.

 

[Buggy Loop]

The price hikes are shrinking the industry already lol. Wow, that was fast.


Steam lol? I definitely do recommend the game.

I can't buy it on Steam? Why is Ubisoft pikachu surprised if I have cash ready but they don't let me buy it?

Hollow Knight @ $15 is also not that far back in our heads to set the bar to what an excellent top tier Metroidvania can cost. Only Nintendo gets away with fleecing on that.

 

[Punished Miku]

sensibly yes, everything gets more expensive, literally everything, even basic necessities increase in price every year, but somehow videogames have been priced the same for like 30 years lol.
I believe it's also exactly because of this people are unwilling to pay more, they've been accustomed to what the price has been, unlike every other product or service that just increases slightly every year.

It's supply and demand. There's literally so many games I could stop buying games now and be set for 10-15 years just from my backlog.

Epic literally gives away games for free and people still don't even have time to play it. Anyone under the delusion that games can hold a higher price will be in for a rude awakening. They are devalued and can't keep up with inflation. It's not that they don't just out of the goodness of the company's heart. You can get a great game for $10 or free.

 

[avin]

I've gotten $200 of value from Hell Divers 2 already, $500 of value from Cyberpunk etc etc - it just feels like it's a crazy good deal, but are we hurting our own industry by not being open to a price hike?

I think gaming exploded in popularity, which hugely increased the audience and necessarily moved the price to what these people would pay. I'm pretty sure companies know the numbers much better than you or I.

avin

 

[Represent.]

Yup.

$95 CDN + 13% tax in Ontario is closing in on $110.

And that’s despite the avg US and Canadian getting paid about the same average wages per year of around $55,000 or whatever it is.

Al lot of stuff in the US is dirt cheap. And state tax in most places is roughly only around 7% if you skim all the states and try to average it out.

Yup. Jack them prices up in the US. Im sick of them raising prices everywhere exceept there. PS5 gets a price increase worldwide except US. Fucking ridiculous. As if we dont have expenses too

Games should cost less.

No they shouldn't. Thats the exact reason the industry is where it is.

 

[ToadMan]

We have one competing on price, and one that just raises it over and over while millions cheer it on.

Yep - that's xbox in a nusthell.

Not a coincidence its this same consumer base pushing for the most over budget games in the whole industry to be made, and to stick consumers with the bill by trying to shame them.

500 million for Halo Inf.

And then the gall to say - "if enough of you had bought it, we wouldn't need to go third party today"

 

[Elysium44]

We already pay more. Unlike in the States, New Zealand, Australia where it's been $60/$90-120 for years, we've had price hikes every generation since the xbox 360.

360/PS3 - £40
XB1/PS4 - £50
SSX/PS5 - £60-70

Console prices have gone up each generation. PS+/XBL prices have gone up. Most games have extras that once upon a time would of been pre-order bonuses or just included in the game. Microtransactions are rampant.

£40 in 2005 is £67 in 2024 with inflation. Game prices have barely changed in real terms. People are paid a lot more in 2024 than in 2005 nominally so why shouldn't game prices go up accordingly? Everything else has, why not that? Also game prices have risen elsewhere, not just the UK. And the US prices don't include local sales tax.

 

[Punished Miku]

I can't buy it on Steam? Why is Ubisoft pikachu surprised if I have cash ready but they don't let me buy it?

Hollow Knight @ $15 is also not that far back in our heads to set the bar to what an excellent top tier Metroidvania can cost. Only Nintendo gets away with fleecing on that.

Well personally, I think abandoning a Steam monopoly would be a great way to support developers without adding any extra cost to any consumers. Why should Valve get any money at all when you can still play it on PC? I don't get it. Ubisoft should have their own launcher. Everyone should.

 

[Red5]

You want to make video games even more expensive in this global economy? Who's going to buy them?

 

[Reizo Ryuu]

It's supply and demand. There's literally so many games I could stop buying games now and be set for 10-15 years just from my backlog.

supply and demand is a different thing from inflation, if games increased by like 40 cents every years since the 90s, nobody would give a rats ass now, because it would've been slow and steady like everything else; it's the "big" and sudden increases that set people off.

 

[Draugoth]

Do you work for Ubisoft OP?

 

[Elysium44]

But I'm being serious...

If a game is fucking good, I'll drop $150.00 NZD on it in a heartbeat (around $85 USD).

I'm glad someone is being serious, because too many people are cheap asses who want everything at budget prices but then act surprised pikachu face when the industry lays off people because it's no longer profitable.

 

[Codes 208]

Or, and hear me out: devs can do a better job utilizing their budgets and workers. Small developers have made games like phasmophobia, among us, lethal company and minecraft with next to no budget.

Meanwhile a game like halo infinite had essentially had an indefinite budget and still managed to fail its launch due to embezzlement and mismanagement.

Yeah, no thanks.

 

[samoilaaa]

After this just happened a few months ago and it enjoyed massive success at the right price?

Seems like the problem isn't with the content or price for it, but the unrealistic expectations that all the marketing department micromanaged GAAS live service DLC microtransaction filled to the brim experience has to sell 10M units to make a profit is the problem.

They can try to raise the price. It's a fast track for shit practice publishers to collapse. The faster the better.

and this game had smaller budget , 120 million i believe almost half of SM2's budget

 

[ahtlas7]

Feel free to give the corporations a grant.
I’m sure they will spend it to keep your favorite game maker employed.

 

[dragonyeuw]

Games went from $60 to $70 this gen and the increase didn't improve the end-user experience. You're still getting busted ass games at launch, you're still getting heavy post-launch monetization, and worst of all you're getting mass layoffs seemingly every week. I doubt increasing the game price to $80/$90/$100 or whatever arbitrary price you think is enough changes any of that. You'll still get busted ass games, you'll still get DLC, you'll still get dumb ass CEOs trend-chasing for whatever the perceived gold nugget idea is at the time. These things seem baked into the culture of the modern gaming industry and won't be solved by bumping up the price of a game. All that will accomplish is funneling more money to the aforementioned moronic CEOs, the overworked and underpaid creative talent back-boning the industry will still be at the mercy of said moron CEOs, and you'll price out the majority of people especially in this economy where everything is going up every week seemingly.

The issue isn't what the companies are making, it's what they're spending especially in the AAA space. Some of the budgets reported are outright obscene in some cases. Just maybe we all need to scale back, from the companies to the consumer, as far as what is most sustainable and healthy for the industry and it is the opposite of where shit has been heading the past decade.

 

[ultrazilla]

Hell no. We are already paying More. Subs, dlc, season passes, microtransctions ... Etc!!

$60 o $70 is just an entry fee

^Exactly.

We've been lied to repeatedly by publishers/developers about "passing cost savings down to the player" when they first
introduced ads/sponserships in videogames. Instead of the price getting lowered for the end user aka player, we saw a steady
rise in price.

As DonF mentions, if you basically want the "full experience" for a game today, you pretty much gotta pony up for the "super deluxe"
version that can cost anywhere from $100 to $150 with season pass, skins, maps, characters and so on.

Then on top of that, we're getting a shit ton of unfinished, bug ridden, alpha state or worse games being passed off as "done" but then releasing
with a massive "day 1" patch that contains the other half of the damn game. Even then, many of these games are in a very sad state and still
need many fixes/patches after *that* to get the game we were originally shown/hyped up about.

If these developers and publishers want us to pay more, they better fucking give us a very good reason to part with our hard earned money.
Hint-it's not releasing alpha state games or bug filled, crash ridden, multiple gig patches.

If you give me quality, I'll reward you for the quality with my money. It's not a hard concept to grasp but with game development, it seems to be.

 

[ReyBrujo]

What you are asking is for people to stop feeding their families to buy videogames

If you have to choose between feeding your family and buying a new Super Mario, you got your priorities wrong.

Regarding the topic at hand, in Argentina I paid USD 140 back when MK2 launched for SNES in 1994, the most I've ever paid for a game. Chrono Trigger was 105, Final Fantasy VI was 95, Earthbound was 90. Right now Switch games are about USD 60-70 even with low supply (like, I paid USD 69 for Another Code). That could make sense in Argentina (because of low supply, inflation, devaluation, etc).

Companies know a few ways to reduce costs (rehashing old games, releasing a game before finished, firing staff, making games digital-only, using AI-assisted generation, subscription services, etc). My guess is that they want to be digital-only and forget about physical copies. The industries are going there even if it sounds awful. That would make games stay at the 60/70 range for an extra decade.

 

[Stuart360]

People go on about game prices not going up much since the 16bit and 32bit days (which is true to an extent, although they have gone up), but how about publishers were overcharging us back then?.
Games back then cost a few thousand, to a few million to make for the absolute most expensive games (Ground Zero Texas on SegaCD was by far the most expensive game at that time at 6mil), yet they charged us in the $35- sometimes $60 range. That to me now knowing what we know today that they fleeced us big time.
Karma can be a bitch sometimes.

 

[FoxMcChief]

I’d rather game developers stay on realistic budgets and only hire the right employees.

Maybe after that, and they prove that games need to cost more, I’d be ok with it.

 

[Punished Miku]

The issue isn't what the companies are making, it's what they're spending especially in the AAA space. Some of the budgets reported are outright obscene in some cases. Just maybe we all need to scale back, from the companies to the consumer, as far as what is most sustainable and healthy for the industry and it is the opposite of where shit has been heading the past decade.

Seriously. Another reminder, Hi-Fi Rush launched new for $25.

People go on about game prices not going up much since the 16bit and 32bit days (which is true to an extent, although they have gone up), but how about publishers were overcharging us back then?.
Games back then cost a few thousand, to a few million to make for the absolute most expensive games (Grand Zero Texas on SegaCD was by far the most expensive game at that time at 6mil), yet they chatged us in the $35- sometimes $60. That to me now knowing what we know today that they fleeced us big time.
Karma can be a bitch sometimes.

And this is exactly what the market shows. It can't keep up with inflation because it is not worth that much.

 

[Fbh]

Or ...devs/publishers can make games which are profitable selling at $70.

I think there's a part of the gaming audience that's unreasonable. They want insane production values and 50+ hours of content and no DLC/microtransaction but also for games to never get more expensive.

Personally though I've always said im fine with games not being so long and I don't care about AAA production values.

That said I think studios also have internal bloat and management issues.
Whatever Insomniac did to increase the cost of Spiderman 2 so much vs Spiderman 1 wasn't worth it.

 

[Catphish]

In my decades of gaming, I've probably spent enough to pay off this frickin house. But the industry has become corrupted, now to the point where its consumer base is viewed as a commodity, where all major publishers seek to suck as much time and money out of us as is legally allowable. Meanwhile, quality is down, innovation is stagnant, and left-wing politics is mandatory. And this is how it's going to be for the foreseeable future.

So I spend very little on gaming now. Go ahead and raise the prices. It'll just give me more incentive to wait for a sale.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Everyone who wants to pay more, what’s stopping you from sending these developers more money?

Put your money where your mouth is. Not all of us are playing as much as you, so if anyone should be paying more it’s you!

 

[Tajaz2426]

Followed by



It seems you have identified the problem. Yes they make money... by reducing the quality of games.

Ill happily pay more for better. You won't. Fine by me.

You happily pay more while folks with brain cells do not and your companies you bend the knee to will go the way of the DoDo bird. I’ll watch with others with smiles on our faces.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Raise gameprices on PC.
If people can spend tons on hardware, they won't mind paying €90 to €100 for games.

 

[Last Hearth]

It’s unsustainable not because gaming needs to cost more, but because the AAA gaming industry doesn’t deserve to thrive. Gaming is supposed to be a way to provide new experiences. Everything the AAA industry does is rehash old experiences with new shinier graphics.

There are basically only 4 genres of AAA games they make now. Open World Action, FPS, TPS, cinematic scripted Action. Every game is either one of those, or one that combines elements from those 4. Sometimes they’ll stick some RPG elements on top of it, in the form of gaining skills in a skill tree. That’s it.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

 

[Magic Carpet]

Release Rivet Plushies, Merchandise is where the real money from the games is made.
It would help keep Gamestop in business with Tifa underwear for sale.

 

[ComputerBlue]

Brand new games here in Canada are $103 with tax, I went from buying multiple new releases per year, I’m talking 5 to 10 back when games were $60 Canadian, to now buying 1 to 3. As a result of their increase in prices, I am now more patient and saving more. With most games I wait for a deep discount, if they increase the price I will just continue to do so, they’re not gonna be getting more money out of people like me.

I suspect that this is because of the Sony layoffs, in which case you’re delusional if you think they would use that money to hire more employees, or prevent employees from getting laid off.

 

[ByWatterson]

You're gonna get a lot of laugh emoji drive-by bullshit, but you're dead on correct.

 

[Wildebeest]

Value is subjective. You would have to pay me to play a lot of these AAA games.

 

[Stuart360]

Raise gameprices on PC.
If people can spend tons on hardware, they won't mind paying €90 to €100 for games.

How about NO.

 

[DonF]

*old man voice*

In 1995, I paid $100.00 here in New Zealand a game for my SNES, today in 2024, I paid $100.00 here in New Zealand for a game for my Switch...I didn't feel like I was being ripped off in 1995, so why is it a rip now to adjust?

Also, not all games have those wretched things you describe, and the live service games that are doing it right? (nudge nudge HD2), they are charging bugger all - they need all the $$ they can get to buy servers the size of the Kink.com building.

under this logic, games have become cheaper then.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

How about NO.

Why? Did you go broke?

 

[Nydius]

Is Men_in_Boxes' stupidity contageous?
Because this post reads like the ones he wrote on these boards last week.

Fuck outta here demanding we pay more when the industry is already overloaded with anti-consumer money grabbing bullshit. Diablo 4 selling at $70 and then having "micro"transactions (quotes for sarcasm) that cost as much as the game itself. $70 is rarely the cost of the base game as it is. $70 gets you the "entry level" version of the game. In most cases if you want all of the features at launch, that stuff is paywalled behind premium and deluxe editions that cost $90+.

Developers are the ones who are tasked with delivering a profitable project under budget. Stop trying to offload their failures onto consumers by making us pay more for mediocre shit.

 

[twilo99]

I had no idea how deep this echo chamber is….

 

[Stuart360]

Why? Did you go broke?

Well why should PC gamers pay more over console gamers?.

 

[Hunnybun]

First things first, I'd like to know exactly WHY a game like Spider-Man 2 cost double what the original did.

People always cite next gen and additional details etc, but the game reuses a ton of assets from the first game, and the overall detail is similar. There's probably less actual gameplay content.

Where's all this money actually going?

 

[Punished Miku]

Why? Did you go broke?

Guys, Sony might stop making cinematic games. Quick, raise prices on the entire PC market for all games by +$40.

 

[justiceiro]

I pay more than enough for a media that adds nothing of value to anyone either making or playing it.

Drugs or guns asides, there is nothing that we monetize in this world that it's worth more.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Guys, Sony might stop making cinematic games. Quick, raise prices on the entire PC market for all games by +$40.

Only for Playstation PC releases.

You know, for extra revenue.

 

[Dr. Acid Avatar]

Fuck no. Mismanagement, bloat, greed and disillusioned expectations are the fucking problem.

 

[twilo99]

I spend ~$8,000/year on gaming.

I spend around ~150,000 Microsoft Rewards points per year on gaming so go brag about that somewhere else

 

[Krieger]

LMAO, not for me. 99% of the games are coming out unfinished and need a dozen patches over the next 12 months before they are actually good, and until then I'm waiting with buying these games. This also means the games will go on sales and I'll be able to buy the fully patched complete/gold/premium editions with at least 60% off.

 

[Elysium44]

We already do. Consoles have never been more expensive, and games are now $70 base price, Nintendo is even adopting that as they head into the next console.

In real terms that isn't true at all.

 

[Danjin44]

Games don't need to cost more, development needs to cost less. The market will pay what it wants to pay, charging more for games above what they're worth will only lead the industry further into the grave.

This, I dont need super expensive graphics in my games, FROM makes AMAZING games with beautiful aesthetics without over spending on the graphics....

This is something movie industry also needs to learn...

 

[Tajaz2426]

Why? Did you go broke?

No he is probably a person with some sort of brain that knows it isn’t the consumers job to please the company that makes the product, it is theirs. It isn’t my job to pay more for someone to have a job, it is theirs to properly manage their manpower, financials, etc. These companies do not care for you or anyone else, they care about profits and they are making them.

When did we have this shift that we are supposed to support a company that their sole job is to make us want their product?

 

[Elysium44]

This, I dont need super expensive graphics in my games, FROM makes AMAZING games with beautiful aesthetics without over spending on the graphics....

They make the same simple game over and over again but slightly different from the last one.