Next Gen gaming is here at last, and so are Next Gen prices. Seriously, what’s up with the pricing for games that are being released for multiple platforms?
Let’s take a look at a number of games that are being released cross-platform and check out the prices:
|
Title
|
PS 2
|
PS 3
|
Xbox 360
|
Wii
|
PC
|
| Transformers The Game |
$39.99
|
$59.99
|
$59.99
|
$49.99
|
-
|
| Ratatouille |
$39.99
|
$49.99
|
$49.99
|
$49.99
|
$19.99
|
| Spiderman 3 |
$39.99
|
$59.99
|
$59.99
|
$49.99
|
-
|
| Harry Potter & OOTP |
$39.99
|
$59.99
|
$59.99
|
$49.99
|
$29.99
|
See a pattern here? This is just a small sampling, but some things are apparent:
- The PC versions of the games are the cheapest.
- The PS2 version is next cheapest, still coming in at the standard price of new titles as it has done for the last seven years, even although it’s no longer seen as the current marketing baby of Sony (even if it is selling more units than both PSP and PS3 combined still).
- Of the current Next Gen consoles, the Wii, which uses different media than the GameCube did and has raised prices to a standard $49.99.
- The PS3 and the Xbox 360 come in at the most expensive. The Xbox 360 uses standard DVDs, just as the previous Xbox did. The PS3 actually uses up the space that Blu-Ray provides on a number of titles.
The thing is, that across these platforms, most titles are virtually unchanged. There may be changes for underlying technology and control schemes, as well as for online access, but 95% of these games are the same across all platforms.
Q. Now, why on earth would I buy the more expensive version of the same game if the play experience is about 95% the same?
A. I wouldn’t but many people will because they tend to focus only on the current systems they play, caught up in what I call Next Generation Tunnel Vision. They don’t look at price.
Next Generation Tunnel Vision is when you focus on the shiny new version of a game for the shiny new console that has pride of place in your living in room instead of looking at the game and its comparative versions on other platforms. You’re paying up to $20 more to play the same game on another console.
There’s a $20 price difference between the PS2 and the PS3 version of a game. Is that down to the cost of the media? Nope, because that would only inflate the cost a little. Much of that extra cost goes into developing the console specific engine for the console and making sure it works. This takes time and money. Game companies need to recoup that someway.
Here’s the problem though; this doesn’t quite square up when you look at older platforms. The PS2 is so well understood today that there’s no reason games should still be costing $39.99 new. The same goes for the Wii. It’s a modified GameCube. It’s not like there’s a lot of online interactivity that needs to be added. Those games should be $29.99.
As for the Xbox 360 and PS 3 games, those should be $39.99 as far as I’m concerned, and this is more than enough to recoup the cost of development on a Next Gen platform. It’s also the same dollar amount difference that’s currently in place today.
Look at how quickly prices for games drop. After a few months, there’s a $10 price drop on most platforms, and after 6-12 months the price drops by about $20. Games companies need to get out of this and just set a price and leave it at that. Apart from the fact this will help retailers out by not messing with SKU prices, having a set price throughout the life of the game means that early adopters don’t get shafted, and people will more readily buy the game at a reasonable price when it comes out until it drops.
Games companies are always bemoaning that they don’t make much money from games close to release dates, and that the used games market is really hurting them. Here’s a novel concept: price your games at a level that a large amount of people will buy and they will buy. Let’s call that the Wal*Mart Pricing Strategy. Spread the profit across larger sales numbers. Sure, it might take a little longer to recoup your costs, but you’ll make just as much, if not more money over the long haul because people will be purchasing your products and sticking with your brands.
But what do I know? I’m just a gamer that would rather buy used because the price is much more in my ball park. I’d love to buy new games when they come out and support the publishers, but I’m not spending $60 on what is really a $20 game, even if I get to play it on the latest consoles and a year earlier. I can get three games for that price, and have just as much fun at that price point.
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Tags: Opine by Teh Bagder
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