View Full Version : Why do people still bitch about the price of games?!
Mimi Nakamura
07-01-2009, 01:24 AM
A lot of the people posting in this thread have worked as journalists, for development houses or in related industries.
Hahaha. Bullshit.
Maybe a few are "e-journalists", but that's all.
kupomogli
07-01-2009, 10:11 AM
You can pretty much get a lot of Nintendo games for less than $25 if you know where to shop.
On sale at Amazon for 18.97 instead of the list price of 34.99
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61vJSCAnUSL._SL160_AA115_.jpg
Yes, you can find a first party Nintendo game every once in awhile on sale by somewhere like Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc, but this is due to a sale. The other 5 years the game will be at full price unless you want to buy used. The point of the argument is that with Sony or Microsoft, even with items that sell well, I can wait a year or two and buy the game at a far more affordable price no matter where I buy, not just once every three years at an affordable price because of a sale by "specific store."
Icarus Moonsight
07-01-2009, 12:30 PM
About your comparison between Halo 3 and Mario Galaxy, we know 8mil sold of Mario at full price... How many of Halo 3 sold at full and how many sold for less (50,40,30,20 or how ever the step down was)? The law of prices always has a sway. Knowing the est sales at each price point could very well be self evident of the price reductions. When sales start to slump, drop ten bucks wash, rinse, repeat. Basic economics. Stop pretending they're charging you less cause they like you or something. It's absurd.
If you're making an argument that Nintendo is charging at a monopoly rate or higher than the competitive rate I'd like to remind you that most 1st party Nintendo Wii games get released at $50 (vs $60) and some for $30 (vs $40-50). Budget releases are about the same for all systems. You get the tech demos like Wii Play or Sports Resort at the same lower rate or less with hardware peripherals. With all that, I'd think the general market perspective is the $50 is the competitive rate and the $60 games are actually off scale. This also has an element of tradition in play since the PS1 50 has pretty much been the magic number.
The price of games is fine. New games on average are usually $49.99 to $59.99. Counting inflation, that's cheaper than ever. However, the price of controllers is insane. A Wiimote and Nunchuck is $60, so three extra is a whopping $180. A new PS3 controller is $54.99. The add-on keyboard is what, $45 or so? This is the highest controllers have ever been. Not sure about the 360's, don't have one...
duffmanth
07-03-2009, 04:24 PM
I would agree that game prices have remained pretty stable over the last 25 years or so, but the point i'm trying to make in this thread is that gamers casual and hardcore alike, have to know going in that gaming is usually a pretty expensive hobby. It just drives me crazy when people constantly complain about how much everything costs. I do agree that most games are way over priced for what you get, accessories are too much as well. I can live with the price of consoles though because you usually get a good 5 years or so before you have to upgrade. I've been gaming for probably the last 20 years and I know how much everything costs going in and I know what I'm getting into.
It's fine to buy used and to wait until games, systems, and accessories get discounted, I do it all time, but at the same time, I know full well that when I buy a brand new next gen console that games and accessories are going to be expensive. It's like buying a high end car, you have to know full well going in that parts, gas, insurance, maintenance, etc is going to be more expensive.
Iron Draggon
07-05-2009, 04:05 PM
most people who complain about the price of games being too expensive are the same people who piss most of their money away going out to dinner and a movie every weekend... they see nothing wrong with that, but they think that games shouldn't cost as much as that... it's pretty hilarious, actually... the rest of us all know that games have always cost about $50, sometimes more and sometimes less... and most of us complain about the price of going out to dinner and a movie... so it's all relative... we think dinner and a movie costs too much cause we could buy a game for the same price, while others think games cost too much cause they could go out to dinner and a movie for the same price... the way you see it depends on what your priorities are
kupomogli
07-05-2009, 04:46 PM
most people who complain about the price of games being too expensive are the same people who piss most of their money away going out to dinner and a movie every weekend...
Dinner and a movie for $50? Maybe for a family of three, but not a single person.
The 1 2 P
07-05-2009, 04:48 PM
most people who complain about the price of games being too expensive are the same people who piss most of their money away going out to dinner and a movie every weekend
I'm definitely not one of those people because I only go to the movies once a year tops and eating out is something that hardly ever happens. It would be nice if developers/publishers just dropped the price by atleast $10 on all new releases, if not a little lower. Preposterous? Well wasn't that what all those in-game ads were suppose to be paying for?
Dinner and a movie for $50? Maybe for a family of three, but not a single person.
Where can you feed a family of three for under $20, besides fast food? Movies for three will be around $33, and that's with no snacks.
unwinddesign
07-06-2009, 01:14 AM
and most of us complain about the price of going out to dinner and a movie... so it's all relative... we think dinner and a movie costs too much cause we could buy a game for the same price, while others think games cost too much cause they could go out to dinner and a movie for the same price... the way you see it depends on what your priorities are
You know, I rarely agree with anything Iron Draggon says, but I think this is spot on.
Entertainment is expensive. Tix to a basketball game are $30+ for just nosebleeds, probably $60+ if you want to be anywhere close to the lower levels. Baseball games are $30 for a decent set of seats. It cost me $11.50 to see a 2 hour movie the other day. Dinner from a fast food/takeout place costs me $6 - $7 at least. A gram of weed costs like $15. A semi-palatable bottle of wine is usually at least $10. Board games are even fairly expensive these days, at least for the "new and improved" versions of old classics like Monopoly. And none of these have any resale value whatsoever (save, I suppose, the board games...).
Games are so expensive to produce now that I think they warrant the $60 price. The only thing that makes it hard to take is the nickle and diming with DLC, and the raft of uninspired titles selling for $60. Companies need to tap into the budget market, but it's hard...
I thought releasing Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts at $40 w/ a free copy of Banjo Kazooie was a great move and a great deal. Shame more people didn't pick it up, too, because it was an EXCELLENT game (and a good remake to boot). Seems that when cheap games are offered, people seem to say "oh, it must be shit" or "I'm not picking that up, it's still too expensive." So, really, there's no reason to sell games for less. Because it doesn't really spur sales on. People usually wonder "what's wrong with this title" instead of "wow! I'm saving cash." One would think the laws of supply and demand should apply, but I dunno...it seems to some extent that the lower prices have a "reverse psychology" effect...
j_factor
07-06-2009, 02:29 PM
Where can you feed a family of three for under $20, besides fast food? Movies for three will be around $33, and that's with no snacks.
Where do you eat that costs $39 per person?
Where do you eat that costs $39 per person?
The person I responded to said movies and dinner for three can be had for $50. I merely pointed out that tickets (at least here in NYC) are $11 each, so that leaves just $17 for dinner for three. Possible if you order three kids meals and don't leave a tip I guess.
When I go out to eat, it's usually $15-$20 a person at the minimum, although $39+ had been done before (took my g/f to this $75 per person place and regretted it, but that's another story...).
BTW, where did you come up with the $39 figure?
kupomogli
07-06-2009, 03:44 PM
Where can you feed a family of three for under $20, besides fast food? Movies for three will be around $33, and that's with no snacks.
There are two theaters where I live in FWB and one in Destin, atleast that I know of. I have no idea how much the one in Destin is or one of the theaters in FWB as I rarely ever watch movies at a theater(Dark Knight was the last one with Rocky 6 being the one before that, almost two years apart.)
The last theater I went to was 7.50 when I watched Dark Knight(matinee pricing though.) Regular pricing is 8.50 I think. So if you take three people to a movie at the matinee pricing it's only 22.50 and you still have another 27.50 for dinner. At 8.50 it's 25.50 and you have 24.50 for dinner
You can get a fairly inexpensive meal at a good restaurant for three people. Sure you can't get one at an overpriced good restaurant, but would you rather eat at a good but inexpensive restaurant or good overpriced restuarant? Logan's Steakhouse has their two meals for 14.99 about half of the week with a main course, two sides, and free rolls. For an additional family member which would most likely be younger, it'd probably be 10 or less. With water for drinks, even with 15% tip you'd come below $50 if you watch movies at matinee pricing, five dollars more with non matinee movie pricing. There are other places like a cheap but extremely good Thai restaurant, Buffallo Reefs, Buffallo Wild Wings, etc, etc, that won't make you go broke by eating there, then there are other places you'll most likely spend $50+ just with two people.
When watching movies and eating you can actually budget it by choosing different times(matinee or other) and different places, with games the only way to budget it is by waiting upwards of half a year or more or hope the game goes on a real sale which it does maybe once a year.
TonyTheTiger
07-06-2009, 03:53 PM
There are two competing theories at odds here. There's "X is expensive" vs. "X is too expensive."
I think the former is easier to answer. The hobby is expensive and always has been. Disregarding bargain bins and the odd deal here and there, I don't think you'll find many people who would argue that video games are cheap. I think games are hovering right over the price point of begrudging acceptance. It's that dollar amount that people are generally willing to pay but aren't all that happy about it. Even people who preach how games used to cost $80 back in the day haven't been saying they're thrilled to fork over $60 today. Most people accept the price but admit that they have to fit what is an expensive hobby into a budget.
It's getting that way with everything. I used to be able to go see a movie locally for $3. The $10.50 theaters charge now is really pushing it and has had a major effect on how often I go to the movies. My friends and I no longer just go for the hell of it. We have to really want to see something now to justify the entry fee.
Garry Silljo
07-06-2009, 04:37 PM
When watching movies and eating you can actually budget it by choosing different times(matinee or other) and different places, with games the only way to budget it is by waiting upwards of half a year or more or hope the game goes on a real sale which it does maybe once a year.
Even if you penny pinch to make the Dinner and movie under $50, you have to think about how many hours of entertainment you get from the dinner and movie night versus the game. To make the comparison fair we'll assume the movie, meal, and game are all good. I'll say dinner was an hour, the movie was 2 and heck I'll even say the drive to and from added another hour. That's around 4 hours, I could be generous and say maybe 5 or even 6. A good game is almost always more than that. These days 10 hours is considered short. Plus the game can be replayed where as a movie you must buy a second ticket. Also the game can be resold where as I doubt anyone wants to pay for your stub.
Rob2600
07-06-2009, 04:41 PM
The last theater I went to was 7.50 when I watched Dark Knight(matinee pricing though.)
Logan's Steakhouse has their two meals for 14.99 about half of the week with a main course, two sides, and free rolls. For an additional family member which would most likely be younger, it'd probably be 10 or less. With water for drinks, even with 15% tip you'd come below $50 if you watch movies at matinee pricing, five dollars more with non matinee movie pricing. There are other places like a cheap but extremely good Thai restaurant, Buffallo Reefs, Buffallo Wild Wings, etc, etc, that won't make you go broke
I don't know where you live, but in major metro areas, a chef's salad at a plain old regular diner costs almost $15, including tax and tip. So, for a family of three to eat a healthy meal (instead of a bucket of "Wild Wings") at a normal diner, that would cost almost $40 total.
Sure, I could feed my hypothetical family a cheap bucket of fried chicken wings or Ramen noodles, but I don't consider that a meal...and I have more respect for my family than to feed them junk like that.
Movie tickets - again, in major metro areas - cost $10.50 to $12.50. A matinee might cost a dollar or two less, but where I live, not all theaters offer discounted matinee tickets. Besides, many of us can't see matinees during the week because we work full-time. And if I manage to catch a weekend matinee, again, there's no guarantee the theater will offer a discounted price.
But let's say I do manage to catch a discounted weekend matinee. That's still $9 a ticket. $9 x 3 = $27. And let's say I take my hypothetical family of three to a deli (forget a diner) and order three healthy salads for $7.50 each. $7.50 x 3 = $22.50.
$27 + $22.50 = $49.50, for roughly four hours of quality time and entertainment...and that's being conservative. A more realistic total is around $70.
What if the movie we just saw ended up being a boring, stupid piece of garbage like Transformers 2? That's $49.50 (or $70) spent on a night out that was only half enjoyable...and, unlike a video game, we can't sell our used ticket stubs on Craig's List or trade them in for store credit.
By comparison, I paid $15 for Dr. Mario Online Rx on WiiWare and that game has provided me with over 100 hours of entertainment. Even an unusually expensive Wii game like Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 ($60) has provided me with more entertainment per dollar than dinner and movie tickets ever have, and I've only been playing it for a week so far.
Gameguy
07-06-2009, 05:42 PM
New games just seem expensive because you can get old games for $5 or less pretty easily. How many other hobbies can you buy the same things a few years apart(within 10 years) for such a big price difference?
Lets say someone is into crafts like knitting, yarn is expensive. If you want to get some you have to buy it new in stores and buy enough of it to make what you want in the right colours. If you try to find some used, good luck with that. Either the yarn you see in thrift stores is the wrong colour, or what's there isn't enough to make what you want(and you really shouldn't mix different yarn because the colours can be slightly different). For video games you keep an eye out for certain titles and you can come across them within a few years unless they're extremely rare, you can pick them up cheap anywhere. I used to be into comic books, just try finding what you want outside of comic book shops.
I still don't buy games new, at least not for extremely high prices. For the most part I don't spend much on entertainment, I rarely ever go to the movies(even though I have a bunch of gift certificates now), I really don't eat out often at all(I brown bag my lunch everyday at work too, for years already). I also don't go to sports events or concerts.
The 1 2 P
07-06-2009, 06:31 PM
I'm still waiting for the "in-game ad" discounts to take place so that video game prices are finally lowered. I've sure been waiting a long ass time for this. However, atleast one company has decided to do this and it's none other than Microsoft themselves. 1 vs 100 is completely free because of all the ads that take place during the game(three commecial-style ads commence during every 30 minute game). Now if only other games started doing this.
garagesaleking!!
07-06-2009, 06:35 PM
I think games are worth the brand new full price if they are good games, and games that hold their value for some time, the problem is, the majority of games released are not worth the full price and drop in value rapidly. If the game industry earned more trust that a game would be worth the price, more people would pay full price. For example, a game like halo 3, i know im getting my $60 worth of entertainment out of it and even years after its released you can still get $25-30 for it. Not a bad deal at all. But games that are sold for $60, and weeks later are marked down to $9.99, are not acceptable. $60 is a lot to spend on a new game, thats why i never buy a game unless i know it will be good. Thats my 2 cents.
j_factor
07-07-2009, 12:15 AM
The person I responded to said movies and dinner for three can be had for $50. I merely pointed out that tickets (at least here in NYC) are $11 each, so that leaves just $17 for dinner for three. Possible if you order three kids meals and don't leave a tip I guess.
When I go out to eat, it's usually $15-$20 a person at the minimum, although $39+ had been done before (took my g/f to this $75 per person place and regretted it, but that's another story...).
BTW, where did you come up with the $39 figure?
$50 minus $11 (your stated price for a movie ticket).
The person you responded to was replying to an older post that said dinner and a movie cost $50, implying $50 per person. He disagreed with that by saying "maybe for a family of three..." I didn't think that part was meant to be interpreted literally; the operative clause was "but not for a single person". He said that because he took umbrage to the idea that it costs $50 per person.
A matinee ticket is $7. That would leave $29 for dinner for three. Cutting it a bit fine, but certainly doable if you were on a strict budget.
T3chnologyGuy
07-07-2009, 01:51 AM
See i get what your saying but besides it being expensive to make a game just by itself you have to remember you have to pay all the employes of your company really i know this sounds stupid but i really dont want the price of video games to go down you know they say you get what you pay for and what would you really get if you bought a game for 20 dollers oh i know crap. If you hate paying 60 dollers for a game you got 2 optioins 1 wait a month or to for the price to go down or get gamefly and be the first to buy the game and keep it its really cheap i got prototype new for 35 dollers so stop your bitching bro.
smork
07-07-2009, 08:26 AM
See i get what your saying but besides it being expensive to make a game just by itself you have to remember you have to pay all the employes of your company really i know this sounds stupid but i really dont want the price of video games to go down you know they say you get what you pay for and what would you really get if you bought a game for 20 dollers oh i know crap. If you hate paying 60 dollers for a game you got 2 optioins 1 wait a month or to for the price to go down or get gamefly and be the first to buy the game and keep it its really cheap i got prototype new for 35 dollers so stop your bitching bro.
Punctuation please. It's not a very convincing argument when you sound like a 12 year old who huffs glue.
I only pay full price for a game two or three times a year, max. I usually spend my money on classic stuff, and it's usually gone down in price as much as it will (more or less). I figure there's thousands of games I haven't played yet so I might as well get more of the cheaper ones than one that will be 70% cheaper in a year.
garagesaleking!!
07-07-2009, 11:17 AM
Punctuation please. It's not a very convincing argument when you sound like a 12 year old who huffs glue.
I only pay full price for a game two or three times a year, max. I usually spend my money on classic stuff, and it's usually gone down in price as much as it will (more or less). I figure there's thousands of games I haven't played yet so I might as well get more of the cheaper ones than one that will be 70% cheaper in a year.
well put , i am very similar to you.
b0ub0u
07-07-2009, 11:48 AM
I am doing the same. I rarely buy games at full price. Always waiting for a price drop or to buy used on ebay or boards like here.
Anyway there is not that many games worth buying at full price.
rpepper9
07-07-2009, 01:24 PM
TVs? Unless you are buying crap quality TVs, there is no real reason to replace your TV more often than every 8-10 years or longer. Yes, with the move to HD, a lot of us have bought new TVs in the past few years, but as long as you own a 1080P TV, there shouldn't be a reason to upgrade for a very long time. Similarly, I still use a Mac G4 from 2000 and with some very minor upgrades, I can still word process, play games, surf the Internet, etc...I bought my parents a mid-range PC four years ago and it still plays most games with the exception of some of the higher end FPS games. Video game consoles go out of date much more often than TVs, more often than DVD players and just slightly less frequently than PCs.
I haven't bought a new TV in over 10 years. They last forever. And as far as computers go, I still have a Blue and White G3 working as my server and a Dual 1.25 G4 as my everyday computer. People who use Windoz seem to need to replace their computers more often, but I think that is just from shoddy craftsmanship on the components, and the fact that Windoz sux!
chicnstu
07-09-2009, 01:02 PM
I don't know where you live, but in major metro areas, a chef's salad at a plain old regular diner costs almost $15, including tax and tip. So, for a family of three to eat a healthy meal (instead of a bucket of "Wild Wings") at a normal diner, that would cost almost $40 total.
Sure, I could feed my hypothetical family a cheap bucket of fried chicken wings or Ramen noodles, but I don't consider that a meal...and I have more respect for my family than to feed them junk like that.
I must be more poor than I thought, my family considers fried chicken from Bojangle's or KFC to be a full meal and steaks and Golden Corral to be too expensive.
garagesaleking!!
07-09-2009, 01:24 PM
a thread about bitching has turned int a big bitch fest, lol.
The 1 2 P
07-09-2009, 07:35 PM
This thread is making me hungry.
Fuzzball24
07-10-2009, 03:05 AM
The person I responded to said movies and dinner for three can be had for $50. I merely pointed out that tickets (at least here in NYC) are $11 each, so that leaves just $17 for dinner for three. Possible if you order three kids meals and don't leave a tip I guess.
When I go out to eat, it's usually $15-$20 a person at the minimum, although $39+ had been done before (took my g/f to this $75 per person place and regretted it, but that's another story...).
BTW, where did you come up with the $39 figure?
How are you spending $15 per person? Are you ordering some large Pepsi for you to drink with it?