• 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.

Death Tank is the XBLA Game of the Week (PR)

S

Shard

XBLAnnoyance
Assemble in the Death Tank arena this week on Xbox LIVE® Arcade

It’s time to get cunning and strategize! “Death Tank” arrives on Xbox LIVE Arcade this Wednesday, February 18, at 9 a.m. GMT (2:00 a.m. PDT).

Enter the ever-changing “Death Tank” arena and unleash your destructive power in multi-player, next-gen combat. Equip your futuristic tank with earth shattering weapons and roll on over to Xbox LIVE to join in epic battles between friends. Published by Microsoft, and developed by Snowblind Studios/Flat Games., “Death Tank” will be available for 1200 Microsoft Points worldwide. The game is rated E 10+ for Everyone 10+ by the ESRB. For more details on “Death Tank” please visit: http://www.snowblindstudios.com/games.php?game=death_tank
 
S

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
Another_visitor said:
It's one of the best multiplayer games I've ever played. It's worth it.
Click to expand...

I agree.

The problem is that people said Braid was worth it and Castle Crashers was worth it and SSF2THDR was worth it... I agree with those too. I'm sure if you doubled back there were plenty of 800 point games that were strictly speaking worth $15... but the more you excuse it for games that do "deserve it", the more that it's going to creep up and be the standard price point.

8 games released since mid-2008 have been 1200 points. That's more than the sum total from November 2005 to mid-2008. That's worrisome.
 
M

Mama Robotnik

Member
This was one of the reasons I bought my first 360 a month ago. I'm still a bit miffed at the lack of 7-8 player local support (the Saturn did this with multiple games nearly a decade ago, why two-gens later are developers lazy/unwilling/unable?)

It isn't the price point I was expecting either, but it is the greatest local multiplayer game ever made. So yeah, I'll buy it day one.

I'm still new to XBLA, is this the release date for the UK too?
 
G

Grecco

Member
Stumpokapow said:
8 games released since mid-2008 have been 1200 points. That's more than the sum total from November 2005 to mid-2008. That's worrisome.
Click to expand...


Whats hilarious is the peole that said it wasnt a trend, more like exceptions, we will still have 400, and 800pt games!

I miss the time when 400pt games were the norm.
 
K

Kuroyume

Banned
Banjo-Tooie has been announced for 1200 already, but that was expected after B-K.

Dishwasher will probably be 1200 just because it's going to be published by MS.

Lode Runner may be 1200 if R-Type Dimensions's pricing is anything to go by, but maybe they'll reconsider.

I'm sure they'll be more than that.
 
W

Wario64

works for Gamestop (lol)
When people bitch, Microsoft will just fall back on the falling state of the economy. Exit way out.

Never played Death Tank but seems a lot of people here liked it, so I'm giving this one a try. Havent bought a XBLA game in a while anyways.
 
S

Shig

Strap on your hooker ...
Hm, gonna have to think about this one. I was quick to defend R-Type, as it required a lot more work than people give it credit for... but this doesn't really strike me as anything that's a particularly more intensive effort than the average XBLA title, as far as I've seen. I think I may just wait for Rocket Riot.
 
G

Gowans

Member
1200 points, I'll try I know some people loved it here of GAF from the annoucement thread but 1200 points I'm gonna be very very picky now at my XBLA titles.

i'll normally buy anything up to 800 on XBLA but that bump to 1200 is a bigger difference in my brain, would probably buy a lot less (Half that for XNA games).


Flower being $10 and Nobi Nobi Boy at $5 on PSN really look like great deals if this is gonna be standard or XBLA.

And iPhone games I also kinda class in the same bracket at they have some great stuff for free - $5.
 
S

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
Gowans007 said:
Flower being $10 and Nobi Nobi Boy at $5 on PSN really look like great deals if this is gonna be standard or XBLA.
Click to expand...

Jeopardy! launched at $14.99 on PSN so I wouldn't say it's immune to this :p
 
G

Gowans

Member
Tranced Shadow said:
Isn't TL&D released the day prior to this? :(
Click to expand...

yep, A brand new 12 - 20 hours of Single Player Story plus a bunch of multiplayer modes for $5 more.

Stumpokapow said:
Jeopardy! launched at $14.99 on PSN so I wouldn't say it's immune to this :p
Click to expand...

Didn't it drop in a flash tho? XBLA releases tended to be locked at a price point for a long time.
 
U

UraMallas

Member
Gowans007 said:
1200 points, I'll try I know some people loved it here of GAF from the annoucement thread but 1200 points I'm gonna be very very picky now at my XBLA titles.

i'll normally buy anything up to 800 on XBLA but that bump to 1200 is a bigger difference in my brain, would probably buy a lot less (Half that for XNA games).


Flower being $10 and Nobi Nobi Boy at $5 on PSN really look like great deals if this is gonna be standard or XBLA.
Click to expand...
I was thinking the same thing about the bolded. I've bought Flower and next week Nobi Nobi Boy for the same price as just Death Tank. I'll buy it, sure, but I'm not happy about this upward pricing trend in XBLA.
 
I

Icarus

Member
$15 is nothing. I'm probably down for this. I loved Scorched Earth. I can't even tell you how many hours I invested in that in college as a drinking game.
 
PopfulMail

PopfulMail

Member
I bought both Quake and Duke Nukem on the Saturn just to play Zwei back in the day... and while the increasing trend of 1200 point games stinks, I'll happily throw $15 out to door in order to play a new Death Tank.
 
A

Another_visitor

Member
Stumpokapow said:
I'm sure if you doubled back there were plenty of 800 point games that were strictly speaking worth $15... but the more you excuse it for games that do "deserve it", the more that it's going to creep up and be the standard price point.

8 games released since mid-2008 have been 1200 points. That's more than the sum total from November 2005 to mid-2008. That's worrisome.
Click to expand...
I'm not so sure that there were that many worth 1200 points. A few obvious choices stand out but I think it's undeniable that there has been a massive increase in quality in that time period & that is reflected in the increased price.

The price you're willing to pay for entertainment is entirely subjective. I know I've spent more on retail games, cinema, nights out etc. that have given me nowhere near as much pleasure as Death Tank has. In that context, 1200 points is a bargain. Everybody has to make their own choice & those titles that aren't worth it will not sell.

Just find it depressing that we get such a quality game & the first reaction is to moan about 400 points.
 
P

Perdew

Member
Another_visitor said:
I'm not so sure that there were that many worth 1200 points. A few obvious choices stand out but I think it's undeniable that there has been a massive increase in quality in that time period & that is reflected in the increased price.

The price you're willing to pay for entertainment is entirely subjective. I know I've spent more on retail games, cinema, nights out etc. that have given me nowhere near as much pleasure as Death Tank has. In that context, 1200 points is a bargain. Everybody has to make their own choice & those titles that aren't worth it will not sell.

Just find it depressing that we get such a quality game & the first reaction is to moan about 400 points.
Click to expand...


This man speaks the truth. This is a game of forever. It's worth 1,200,000 points. Plus, $15 is $5 more than seeing a movie, comparatively speaking!
 
M

MightyHealthy

Banned
real_death_tank_power.gif

*burns one for Rlan's threads*
 
M

mollipen

Member
rcl66 said:
1200 points. Are they insane?
Click to expand...

It's Deathtank. Unless they've REALLY screwed up the game, it's worth $15. Hell, what were the Saturn games that Deathtank was part of? (Or was it just one?) I think I bought them with my only intention being to play DT.

Edit: Totally missed the post spelling out which Saturn games it was. So yes, I bought Quake and Duke Nukem specifically for Deathtank. Well, Quake wasn't too bad of a game though, really.
 
S

Stumpokapow

listen to the mad man
Another_visitor said:
I'm not so sure that there were that many worth 1200 points. A few obvious choices stand out but I think it's undeniable that there has been a massive increase in quality in that time period & that is reflected in the increased price.
Click to expand...

Geometry Wars, Marble Blast Ultra, Uno, Alien Hominid, Worms, Rez, Ikaruga, Triggerheart Exelica, Soul Calibur would all fit the bill for me. Definitely Bionic Commando Rearmed and Geometry Wars 2.

On the other hand, Bankshot Billards, Lumines, Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader, both Penny Arcade games, and R-Type strike me as pretty big scams at their launch price points.

There's never been a connection between price and quality, or price and investment. If anything, the connection has been between price and milkability/scamability.

The price you're willing to pay for entertainment is entirely subjective. I know I've spent more on retail games, cinema, nights out etc. that have given me nowhere near as much pleasure as Death Tank has. In that context, 1200 points is a bargain. Everybody has to make their own choice & those titles that aren't worth it will not sell.
Click to expand...

In the context of cinema or nights out Prince of Persia 360 for $100 would be a good deal. Hell, in the context of nights out, a 1 hour game for $70 would be a good deal.

I'd have paid $89 or more for Mario Galaxy, $50+ for Chrono Trigger DS, hundreds for Tie Fighter or Theme Hospital or Civilization on PC. I'd pay hundreds today for SMB3.

... but we don't need to pay the maximum amount we're willing to pay for every game that comes out. There are standard price points. $10 was the standard price point. $15 is now. This is not a good change, even if a given individual game is worth $15 (or $20 or $50 or $200). You should never cheer people charging more. Being willing to pay more shouldn't mean being eager to pay more.
 
P

Perdew

Member
Stumpokapow said:
You should never cheer people charging more. Being willing to pay more shouldn't mean being eager to pay more.
Click to expand...

Listen, you're a smart guy and I'm just this dude, and I understand you worrying about games trending towards a higher price, but it's Death Tank. It's such a fantastic game that you used to need 2 games just to play it
Or blow up toilets or something
. I think they know that they have AN audience that'll slurp it up at this price point, trend or no trend.

Hell, I'd be just as excited and pay as much for something like Midway's The Grid
if I didn't already buy the arcade!
but I'm sure everyone else would say 'Make it $5 and I'll try the demo'. I don't see why digitally distributed games can't go through price discrimination just like retail ones do.
 
D

Dwayne

Member
Pricing appears to just reflect development costs, hence simple title being cheaper, and more complex titles being more expensive. I would have picked 800 for this, but i'm willing to pay 1200 :) How much was GripShift on launch?
 
F

FightyF

Banned
I remember having this discussion with Shig when it came to Braid's pricing. So I won't reiterate my points or bring that up again.

But I do have to say that when these classic games get HD remakes...it's something I want to see more of. Whether it's a Sonic the Hedgehog HD remake, MegaMan HD remake, or whatever, if developers and publishers are going ahead with these but are re-doing them in HD, and are deciding to sell them for $15...it's a tad bit higher priced but I'll bite.

And what an HD remake it is! The video looks HOT:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9U5UcQnvVk
 
S

Shig

Strap on your hooker ...
FightyF said:
I remember having this discussion with Shig when it came to Braid's pricing. So I won't reiterate my points or bring that up again.
Click to expand...
Maybe I'm misreading here, but I was a pretty vocal defender of Braid's pricing, not a detractor.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

[Jez Corden] OPINION: This week's big Xbox drama showcases how little people trust Nadella's Microsoft — a legacy forged in the death of Windows Phone
2 3 4
164
12K
Rosoboy19 replied
Phil Spencer interview - Says that their intent is for all Xbox games, including Call of Duty, to be available on Xbox Game Pass Day One
2 3
102
6K
Kenneth Haight replied
Coming Soon to Game Pass: Persona 5 Tactica, Rollerdrome, and Dune: Spice Wars
News
18
1K
adamsapple replied
Coming to Xbox Game Pass: Need for Speed Unbound, The Bookwalker, Sword and Fairy: Together Forever, and More
News 2
80
5K
StreetsofBeige replied
  • Poll
SONY/SIE: The Balance Of Chasing Margins, Multiplat Expansion, And Maximizing The Console
Opinion Business Analysis 2
96
6K
Celcius replied
Top Bottom