The Price Is Right?

[david.dakota]

"Wii Gamers Don't Buy Games". I keep hearing this, but is the problem larger than that?

 

Gamers Don't Buy Games. It might sound strange, but the evidence is there. I don't recall the 'bargains' thread being so busy- especially with top-tier, new release games discounted so quickly after launch- and its not Wii, titles on the 360 and PS3 suffer the fate. Big new releases in the bargain bin (in fact, only Nintendo published titles hold consistently hold their launch prices- but even thats begining to change with WiiMusic now going cheap).

 

Surely this is not good for the industry- just how can we expect publishers and developers to make money with games instantly reduced? Its not sustainable (more so in the UK, where the pound is so week) something will eventually give- your favourite developer, a popular publisher, your favourite console, or a retailer?

 

Saving pounds, not pennies- why should i care?

 

It doesn't matter how we like to dress up the industry- art, entertainment- each publisher, developer, marketeer, shareholder, retailer, wholesaler is in it for one thing- money and making lots of it. If they're not making any, its off to the knackers yard with them. Simple. Development costs, distribution costs, marketing costs, licensing costs all need to be recouped- along with a significant profit for retailer, wholesaler, publisher and developer- are we really expecting each company in the supply again to do all this on £20? Well, only if its cheap toot in the first place is the only answer i can find.

 

This isn't a case of selling the off the rubbish tat that we usually see, these are big, important titles that are failing at retail because our mindset is starting to change to "i'll wait 'til it drops". Its not just Wii stuff, dozens of titles across all formats discounted late last year- dozens of quality games. I'd actually argue that fewer Wii games are discounted- while many do appear under the £20.00 mark, a vast majority are designed to do so- they launch at that price, and on the whole maintain it. In actual fact, its only recently Wii games have seen such heavy discounting (and mainly only on third-party games).

 

Now its one thing searching out a bargain for a game you'd probably not buy otherwise, but it seems to me that we're actually waiting for our most-wanted games to drop in price.

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys.

Edited April 5, 2009 by david.dakota

[Ganepark32]

But here's the thing, and you haven't taken this into account: Some people can't afford to go out and spend £40 every week or so on a new title. For some, it's just not feasable. I know I certainly can't afford to do it what with being a student, but then I do trade in completed games to get me there, and with the changed economy and huge inflation of food prices and other things, there are many out there that, if their kids want a new title, can only afford to buy at reduced prices. While the reduction in prices of games may seem bad for the developers and publishers, it's actually the retailers who are taking a hit with them betting that the lower price point will mean more units will be sold and thus recoup the loss in profits they would get from selling at full price.

 

I do agree that the sudden reduction in price of titles that have been out on shelves for only a week is not only shocking but disrespectful to those who purchased the title the week prior at full price. But this is the thing now and it's the reason so many hold off of buying titles because stores are driving down the prices literally a week after release. £40 isn't a huge amount for a game when you think of how much they used to cost back in the era of cartridges but it's because this price drops so quickly that people hold off until it drops.

[Ike]

But here's the thing, and you haven't taken this into account: Some people can't afford to go out and spend £40 every week or so on a new title.

 

That's not entirely true, people are actually more likely to buy a game than go out since they are paying £40 on something that can be used many times and played by the entire family than saying go out for a meal.

 

Here's an article from the telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/4385871/Video-games-benefit-from-the-credit-crunch.html

[Ganepark32]

Yeh I can understand that but I was getting at families whose monetary constraints mean that they can't afford to pay £40 for a new title every week, let alone go out as a family do to the increased cost of living as a result of arsehole bankers wasting our money.

[jammy2211]

Why should I spend full price on a game, when there are lots of awesome games I've not played that I want to in the £15 - £20 range?

 

I don't owe these companies anything, it's a business and I've just as much right to buy games at the prices I feel I want too, then spend full price just cause they need the help, or something.

 

If they give me a reason to buy it at full price, i will, otherwise there's no possible reason to.

 

That's not entirely true, people are actually more likely to buy a game than go out since they are paying £40 on something that can be used many times and played by the entire family than saying go out for a meal.

 

Here's an article from the telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/technology/4385871/Video-games-benefit-from-the-credit-crunch.html

 

Lots of people sitll can't afford to buy games at full price... Like me... unless I don't go out for that week (Which ain't gonna happen).

[Tellyn]

I buy games when I can at launch and at full price, but in some cases I just don't deem a certain game to be worthy of an instant buy.

 

Something definitely has changed. Back in the GameCube days, prices never dropped. About a year after the Wii came out, we started seeing game prices dropping to ridiculous levels (some have been going for less than £5 in recent sales). It's good for clearing the backlog, but I agree David, it's definitely not sustainable for the industry.

[darksnowman]

Twas a good read until the last paragraph:

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys.

 

Harsh words!

 

I do like a bargain and was just remarking to someone the other day how great it is that games for Wii and DS have such a wide range of pricing. With cheap games there are some fantastic impulse buys to be made. I wouldn't have some of my games if they hadn't been on the cheap because, as Tellyn said above, you know (as a regular/ hardcore gamer) what games you think will be worthwhile snapping up on release so you leave some others for when they are cheaper or you find you have the time for them.

 

Example: I bought Pro Evo the other week at full price and picked up Big Bang Mini the other night because it was £15 and I knew that I'd be silly to pass it up.

 

On the upside for companies and devs, its said that they can turn a profit easier on the Wii. So the moral of the story is to ditch the HD consoles and come to the Wii.

[Pit-Jr]

My conscience is in the clear then. Ive paid full launch price for every PS3 game i have other than Madden 07 (which was a fake xmas gift). Regardless i still feel like the $50-60 launch price of most games is more than a bit steep

 

In an ideal world, games would be priced similarly to movies and there would be no used game market. People would pay reasonable prices for games and keep them. But i also realize that some people, including people from this very forum, earn a living through the second-hand game business so i can't in good conscience wish for it to disappear (even though it would make launch games cheaper).

 

Also in my ideal world, the 3 platform holders would start denying licenses to shitty games that eat up shelf space from games that actually deserve strong sales but then theres the issue of whos to say whether a game deserves shelf space or not as its all a matter of opinion

[Ike]

Lots of people sitll can't afford to buy games at full price... Like me... unless I don't go out for that week (Which ain't gonna happen).

 

Of course, I'm not saying it applies to everyone.

[Hero-of-Time]

I usually buy all the games I want on release day but im thinking of changing this strategy. In recent weeks I have been burned what with games new releases going half price within weeks. The next Wii game im after is Little Kings Story and im really not sure if I will get it on release or just wait a month down the line.

 

This whole price dropping thing isnt just hurting the early adopters but also people who like to trade games in. Its very rare that I trade my Wii games but I always have a cleanout of my 360 games. Games such as Prince of Persia and Mirrors Edge are about 5-6 months old but with their prices dropping stupidly early all they were worth were £4 trade in!

[Emasher]

I think part of the problem is that we're not getting as hyped for games anymore. Back last generation, when a good game came out, you usually bough it on the day it came out, mostly because you couldn't wait to play it. There have been games worthy of doing that this generation, but most of us didn't know that until we actually played them. The only problem with hype is it tends to make us disappointed when we actually do play the game. But still, its part of the problem. The last few games I've bought on launch day/launch week were:

 

Pokemon Diamond - about 2 years ago (this shows how few there have been)

Pokemon Battle Revolution - A bit less than 2 years ago

Brawl - A year ago

Mario Kart Wii - Pre-ordered online

Tales of Symphonia: DotNW - Purchased the weekend after it came out because I had to look around quite a bit to find a copy

Onslaught (Wii Ware) - I think I bought this the day after it came out in North America, although not because of hype

 

Thats everything from the last 2 years! And the only thing this year that I plan on buying on day 1 is The Conduit.

Edited April 5, 2009 by Emasher

[Aimless]

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys.

Whether I pay £40 or £20 for a new game makes no odds to the developer or publisher; the retailer has already paid for that copy of the game. Technically speaking it's better for the production side of the industry if I buy two new £20 games as opposed to a single £40 game.

 

Similarly let's look at a case study: Wheelman. I really enjoyed the demo, it's a great knockabout arcade driving game that doesn't take itself seriously, and I'm going to buy it when it gets near the £20 mark as that strikes me as the appropriate price-point for what I'm going to get out of the game. If it did for some reason maintain full RRP — it won't — I simply wouldn't buy it at all. Any sale is better than no sale for all involved.

 

Brick and mortar retailers? The likes of GAME aren't my concern when I can get games cheaper, earlier, and guaranteed first-hand from the likes of ShopTo and other online retailers. I pre-order games through them all the time because I'm happy to put down £30 for a game that I really want, and highstreet stores don't give a damn about my lack of custom because they're making a killing from the uninformed — a lot of people wouldn't even think to shop for games anywhere else — and the highly lucrative pre-owned market which, lest we forget, is a far greater evil in the publishers' eyes than my buying of a discounted, brand new game.

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer — perhaps regular gamer is a better term — find yourself discussing sales numbers and misguided company allegiances more than the games you don't have time to play because you spend so long posting on internet messageboards, you're a fan of the industry, not the medium; you're an armchair analyst, not a gamer.

[Pete]

The Video Game Industry we are allways being told is bigger than the movie indusrty and we do not see these worries from the industy there (nor have I heard anyone within the video game industry majorly airing concerns of this nature) many people simple buys dvds on the whole when they 'see them cheap in asda or on play.com', I know one guy who buys 99% of his DVD's when there in the pre owned/ex rental section of Blockbusters and as far as I know the DVD market is thriving. Back to the video games, all your seeing are the signs of harsher economic times. also many games go for less then RRP as there just not that good and people are clued up, would you spend RRP on every game?

 

"Wii Gamers Don't Buy Games".

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore Rubbish. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry [b]or on a budget perhaps[/b]- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys. Er tell you what thanks for the suggestion (I have bought 3 Wii games at launch this month) but Ill look after my own cash thanks

............................... Edited April 6, 2009 by Pete
Automerged Doublepost

[Sheikah]

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys.

 

What? Is this a quote or a joke? If it's not then do one! We as poor consumers have every right to buy games cheaply, because games are overpriced to begin with. Why on Earth should we pay the traditional £40 for some games that might not last us more than a day? If the money we were giving for games wasn't enough, there wouldn't be any more games being made.

 

What you have suggested is nonsense. Insisting people pay more for any product that they can get for cheaper is just mesmerisingly silly, no matter what you're talking about. Would you pay an extra few thousand pounds on top of the price of a new car to support the car industry? No! Also, the games wouldn't be reduced if it wasn't commercially viable.

 

And let's face it - at the end of the day they're just games. If they all just disappeared, we'd live. And if people who couldn't live without games died, I'd say that's natural selection at its finest.

Edited April 6, 2009 by Sheikah

[Guest Captain Falcon]

I must be in the minority in that if I don't pick a game up on day one, the odds are I won't bother getting it all.

 

The only game in my collection I didn't get on the first day of release was NMH, and that was simply because the date was too close to FE.

 

But then I only tend to get games I really want and so I don't have that many, but it was the same story for my N64, GC and handheld collection.

Edited April 6, 2009 by Captain Falcon

[Shino]

Games shouldn't be half the price after two weeks and it shouldn't be lowered at such precise cycles, gamers know that two weeks is enough to get a great discount at the expense of the only working part in the trade. What's happening right now its bullshit.

 

Man I can't wait for digital distribution to be the standard.

 

I must be in the minority in that if I don't pick a game up on day one, the odds are I won't bother getting it all.

 

The only game in my collection I didn't get on the first day of release was NMH, and that was simply because the date was too close to FE.

 

But then I only tend to get games I really want and so I don't have that many, but it was the same story for my N64, GC and handheld collection.

 

I'm basically like that, I don't do "impulse" buys on anything and unless I don't have the money at the time, I buy the game as soon as its available.

[ThePigMarcher]

If you, as a hardcore gamer- perhaps regular gamer is a better term- are not buying your games at launch price you're not hardcore. You're a cheap ass git with no passion for this industry- on the foodchain you're far below those grannies and bald uncles paying launch price for Mario Kart or even Imagine Pets. If you keep buying bargain basement software, eventually, that is what you'll get.

 

Spend a little more guys.

 

What the hell.

 

Good for you if you want to spunk out full RRP for a game on release , but not everyone is fortunate enough to be in that position in the current climate.

 

I have seen my energy bills rise by 40% in the last year , grocery bills by around 20% and even my rent by 12%. Yet my income has only increased by 3% , something has to give somewhere (and I can guarantee that I am not alone).

 

Using Madworld as an example , I was daft enough to pay full price for it on release , apart from the game being over-rated and questionably justifying a full RRP release , I then see it plummet in price within a couple of weeks. Why in the hell would I want to bother taking such a hit with my next planned purchase (Little Kings Story , a game destined to be reduced quickly) ?

 

If I was to follow your advice to spend a little more then there would be far less games that I would be willing be give a go , surely that would be a bigger loss to the industry.

[Will]

Whether I pay £40 or £20 for a new game makes no odds to the developer or publisher; the retailer has already paid for that copy of the game. Technically speaking it's better for the production side of the industry if I buy two new £20 games as opposed to a single £40 game.

 

It doesn't really work like that, it's not as simple as publishers sell to retail who sell to consumers. There's lots of deals in place that complicate matters.

 

I'm sure I could write pages and pages on this issue but I'll simplify matters. If you're buying new titles then regardless of price your supporting everyone involved in bringing that game to market. So long as you continue to do so there's every chance that those you're supporting will continue to operate.

[Zechs Merquise]

A very interesting little piece - however no one wants to be taken for a mug, and if I'd got my copy of Madworld for 29.99 on day of release only to see it for 16.99 two or three weeks later I'd be pissed.

 

Secondly, no it's an established fact that games drop in price so quickly a lot of people are just waiting, and the wait isn't long. I wouldn't mind so much if the drop came 3 or 4 months after release, but 2 weeks?

[Cube]

Most of the games I got over the Christmas period (admittedly they were all 360 games) were £20 or less because I waited a few weeks before buying them. Why should I get one game on it's release day when I can wait a few weeks and get two?

[Jav_NE]

The price is wrong bitch!

 

/// end Happy Gilmore reference

[nekunando]

..it feels like I haven't watched Happy Gilmore in a while.. will have to do that some time soon

 

Anyway, it seems almost insane that anyone would buy a game at full price if it's likely to be lowered in a couple of weeks time.. it is understandable if the price is unlikely to drop significantly in the months that follow, but with MadWorld, for example, I predicted that it would go the way of House of the Dead: Overkill and have a price drop within weeks..

 

..and that is what happened! I now have MadWorld on the way (thanks to my girlfriend ) for £16.99 from Gameplay. Having said that, I almost ordered it when the offer of a free T-Shirt was available.. but when those became unavailable I thought I may as well wait- I have so much university work to do (and a mountainous pile of games to get through as it is..) that I probably wouldn't really be able to play it properly for a few weeks or months anyway! I still have Okami sealed from when I got it from Zavvi for £12.99

 

It depends of the game really.. I couldn't have seen myself waiting for Super Mario Galaxy or Mario Kart Wii so I had those ordered months in advance ..but it now seems difficult to find the time to play everything I have already so there is nothing to stop me from waiting in future til the prices are really low before I invest in a new game!

[Daft]

Whether I pay £40 or £20 for a new game makes no odds to the developer or publisher; the retailer has already paid for that copy of the game. Technically speaking it's better for the production side of the industry if I buy two new £20 games as opposed to a single £40 game.

 

Similarly let's look at a case study: Wheelman. I really enjoyed the demo, it's a great knockabout arcade driving game that doesn't take itself seriously, and I'm going to buy it when it gets near the £20 mark as that strikes me as the appropriate price-point for what I'm going to get out of the game. If it did for some reason maintain full RRP — it won't — I simply wouldn't buy it at all. Any sale is better than no sale for all involved.

 

Brick and mortar retailers? The likes of GAME aren't my concern when I can get games cheaper, earlier, and guaranteed first-hand from the likes of ShopTo and other online retailers. I pre-order games through them all the time because I'm happy to put down £30 for a game that I really want, and highstreet stores don't give a damn about my lack of custom because they're making a killing from the uninformed — a lot of people wouldn't even think to shop for games anywhere else — and the highly lucrative pre-owned market which, lest we forget, is a far greater evil in the publishers' eyes than my buying of a discounted, brand new game.

 

If you, as a hardcore gamer — perhaps regular gamer is a better term — find yourself discussing sales numbers and misguided company allegiances more than the games you don't have time to play because you spend so long posting on internet messageboards, you're a fan of the industry, not the medium; you're an armchair analyst, not a gamer.

 

That's ownage right here. You utter fanatic.

[Shino]

What a sad outcome for this thread.

[Pete]

Games shouldn't be half the price after two weeks and it shouldn't be lowered at such precise cycles, gamers know that two weeks is enough to get a great discount at the expense of the only working part in the trade. What's happening right now its bullshit.

 

Man I can't wait for digital distribution to be the standard.

 

 

 

I'm basically like that, I don't do "impulse" buys on anything and unless I don't have the money at the time, I buy the game as soon as its available.

 

OK so you think the time scale for price drops should be greater but also you say ''Man I can't wait for digital distribution to be the standard.'', what on earth for, that means A)Less options for purchase and no chance of any price drop (IE everywhere seemed to have a January sale but Wii VC shop did not) Is a price drop such a bad thing to you? B) at moment you dont need to have/pay for the internet to play most games, but you will if that becomes the norm. You must love spending money man.

 

Great end to the thread IMO .

Edited April 6, 2009 by Pete