Taito brings the phrase "sold separately" a whole new meaning

[7th lutz]

http://www.wiiware-world.com/news/2008/08/space_invaders_get_even_stage_pack_details

Here is part of the article:

The main game package, aptly named the Starter Pack, will cost you 500 Wii Points and will feature the first level of the game along with the basic UFO. There will then be three additional packages called Stage Packs, which also cost 500 Wii Points each. Stage Pack A will include levels 2 and 3, Stage Pack B will include levels 4 and 5, and Stage Pack C will include levels 6 and 7.

As an added bonus, each of these Stage Packs will also come with a new UFO ship that players can use in the game. Stage Pack A comes with the Classic UFO, which resembles the UFO used in the classic arcade game, Stage Pack B will come with the Silver Hawk UFO, which resembles the classic spaceship used in the Darius series of shooters, and Stage Pack C will come with the R-Gray1 ship from the Raystorm shooter series.

Space Invaders Get Even is set to make its WiiWare debut this month in Japan.

[boatofcar]

How much is 2000 Wii Points?

[7th lutz]

How much is 2000 Wii Points?

It is $20.00 in North America.

[boatofcar]

$20 is the price for Space Invaders Extreme for DS, right?

[7th lutz]

$20 is the price for Space Invaders Extreme for DS, right?

Yes.

The difference is the fact you don't get the whole game after you download it orginally. The price isn't the issue, but the way Taito releases the game is.

[namzep]

I've only ever bought 3 games from the Nintendo store on the Wii (Bonk's Adventure, Actraiser, and Military Madness) and don't see myself buying anything any time soon. I'm still not entirely sold on the idea of digital distribution, though I know that it's the wave of the future. I'll hold onto mostly buying physical copies until it becomes no longer possible (despite the fact that my music collection is entirely MP3 based anymore :) ).

[Captain Wrong]

Huge fan of digital distribution. Not so much microtransactions.

[Cmosfm]

Huge fan of digital distribution. Not so much microtransactions.

I'm a huge fan of DD as well, I think it's nice to have classic games or wiiware/xbla/psn style games immediately available on your console. I, on the other hand, hope full games never become DD only...I can never pay full price for a game as it is, knowing that I'd HAVE to is something I never want to see.

[Clownzilla]

What bothers me is that companies short their games on purpose so they can add content later. I want quality from day 1 of the game release. If a company want's to add content later then that should be factored into the cost of the initial game price. Don't sell me half of a game while trying to add so many "mission packs" that the ultimate price is WAY more than what it should be. The Wii, PS3, and the XBOX360 is the beginning of the end for value in the game industry. Prepare to get screwed by the companies from here on out.

[Clownzilla]

Huge fan of digital distribution. Not so much microtransactions.

Same here but the problem is that ALL digital distribution is becoming a complex web of micro-transactions.

[NytroSkull7]

I've only ever bought 3 games from the Nintendo store on the Wii (Bonk's Adventure, Actraiser, and Military Madness) and don't see myself buying anything any time soon. I'm still not entirely sold on the idea of digital distribution, though I know that it's the wave of the future. I'll hold onto mostly buying physical copies until it becomes no longer possible (despite the fact that my music collection is entirely MP3 based anymore :) ).

Not the biggest fan of digital distribution either but it isn't like you're collecting music.

[mailman187666]

if you think about the space invaders thing in a positive perspsctive, they are making it so you can spend the whole 20 and get the full game, or for people who just want a casual experience, they can just spend a bit of money and get the base game. I don't think its too big of a deal to me because you aren't forced to spend the full $20 if you don't want.

[otaku]

Seems like a stupid move, just put it all in one big file at one price of 20 dollars! Of course I guess if you suck and you only pay for the first pack you save money!

[Clownzilla]

if you think about the space invaders thing in a positive perspsctive, they are making it so you can spend the whole 20 and get the full game, or for people who just want a casual experience, they can just spend a bit of money and get the base game. I don't think its too big of a deal to me because you aren't forced to spend the full $20 if you don't want.

I agree with that but the big problem is that the full game might only cost $15 in a pre-episodic content world and the $5 "base game" does not give a person the full game experience. This is forcing the consumer to pay more when in theory they should be paying less. All this is doing is increasing the profit margins of the game companies. This has nothing to do with "helping the consumer". Don't get me wrong, I think a corporation has every right to implement a cost structure like this but it isn't winning over many fans and will really hurt the industry in the long run.

[rbudrick]

Argh. Space invaders was about that awesome 30 years ago. I still use one the VCS carts as a doorstop.

-Rob

[Lady Jaye]

Actually, Space Invaders Extreme is a lot of fun -- beneath the eye candy, it borrows from Galaga and from Arkanoid (the power-ups dropped by some enemies). I'm not crazy about the original Space Invaders, but this is a cool remix.

Anyways, back to the discussion of the DD of the Wii version...

[Iron Draggon]

this idea would make alot more sense if you could buy your way past parts of the games that you aren't able to get past otherwise... can't seem to beat a certain boss or solve a certain puzzle? no problem, just buy your way past it!

[fpbrush]

...can't seem to beat a certain boss or solve a certain puzzle? no problem, just buy your way past it!

..Thats a kind of scary concept to be subconsciously learning actually ^^;;

I am also not completely on board with DD as I like to have physical copies of things--ESPECIALLY things which have physical copies (ie retro games) and their own hardwares they were developed on. On the other hand...I could see videogame distro in general going all digital with the increased ubiquity of hard-drives and broadband. Plus, game packaging is getting increasingly more boring as each 'next-gen' arrives, in my opinion...

But to the subject at hand. I think what Taito should have done, similar to what someone mentioned earlier, is have a price for a sort of "taste-test" single-stage, or whatever version at ~$5 and then a full version available, which is a BETTER value than $20--like $15. That's the only thing that really makes sense to me, is marginally up-charging the casual gamer who just wants a retro thrill, but giving incentive for those who want it all. I think that price structure would be just as, or more profitable than their current...

but I could be completely wrong on that, they could be pulling in loads of more money this way--but I think the one I outlined is a bit more respectful