Current Events > Games are not worth $80+tax, like at all. Plus it affects a lot of people

(+) Yeah! (+)

Like who can afford $80 for one game?

Sure there's sales eventually but still not worth $80 especially when that doesn't include any DLC or future content.

Include all DLC and future content then maybe it's worth it.

Gaming might be headed for another crash, something needs to cause one that makes AAA publishers rethink this nonsense

I will always have a different perspective on this. Coming up with $80 for me now is so much easier than coming up with $50 to $80 for a game in the late 80's and early 90's as a teenager. Plus even if you are uncomfortable with full prices games fall in price so fast these days and within months they are often quite a bit cheaper outside Nintendo that is. The added bonus is they have often been patched and most of the early bugs have been corrected.

Games never used to decrease and I was limited to what my stores physically carried or had to order out of the back of a magazine. We now have so many resources to view a games footage and learn about it to see if we are interested in it. We never had this much access to viewing a game before.

Lastly I think games are way better than the shit I grew up with, have much more content and are pretty high quality. That isn't even counting online. I'm talking just single player. The hours of entertainment to price ratio makes gaming an absolutely dirt cheap hobby to me. But even at full price, not to sound elitist but coming up with $80 really isn't that difficult for many working adults.

The scenario that led to the North American crash in 83 is so drastically different than the reality we are in now. People have been predicting a crash since the price of the ps3 console came out almost 20 years ago. Gaming is healthier than ever.

I have a backlog of games back to the late nineties. I wont pay 80 but am fine waiting for a sale or for prices to come down.

It's pricing people out especially now with the Series X going up to $599.

It could be justified IF the increased cost it included DLC.

People buy $149-$199 versions of $60 games all the time.

I am right there with you but there are people buying games from scalpers. Are there still places that rent games?

the 20 dollar increase isn't exactly crazy, it's just that most of these games are cinematic AAA slop that you can beat in two days, i wasn't buying that shit then, certainly won't now.

the AAA bubble will only explode harder as it gets bigger and bigger like this. hopefully. i'm sure people will get GTA 6 even it's $100 because gamers are the easiest corporate marks

CobraGT posted...

I am right there with you but there are people buying games from scalpers. Are there still places that rent games?

Not around here and I don't rent from Gamefly. Only saving grace is I can borrow games from the library BUT more often than not none of the libraries in the system don't have new games til like 3 months after it comes out or never get them. But even then the selection is kinda limited which sucks.

I personally can't afford $80+ for a game I want to play and it's not on gamepass. I was lucky enough to come up with the money for WWE 2k25 new.

If GTA VI costs $100, I won't be buying it.

I simply can't afford it.

I won't say that they're not worth that amount, as development times and costs have increased over the years.

but, I do agree it'll affect people.

for the most part, though, I just pick games up on sale unless if I've really been looking forward to them and I have some extra money.

it'll be okay.

well, not for the people who are expecting the 80+ dollar game to be sustainable business practice for more than one or two releases. Those folks are gonna bankrupt. But everybody else will thrive, probably

They absolutely are worth that much considering how much expectations and costs have ballooned. It's gotten out of control honestly and I understand why they think a price increase is justified.

That said, I won't be buying anything at that price other than my absolute all time favorites.

I was about the pull the lever on a series X. Thanks MS. Guess I'm stuck playing my XB1 and Switch.

Gamers are freaky. Other industries probably dream of getting the kind of parasocial relationship between consumer and corporation that gamers have with their favorite videogame company. Is there any other type of consumer of any other product where they're like "all prices went up? yeah that's actually cool. i'm happy to pay that. if you want prices to stay the same you're actually ridiculously entitled. i'd be ok with them raising it even more honestly it's a steal"

I've played football manager 13 for thousands of hours. I've been routinely playing it since 2014. Have I gotten $80 in value out of it? Certainly, but I can say I wouldn't have wanted to spend 80 bucks on it. And I didn't buying it on sale for 4.99.

So I get that games can be worth 80 bucks. But I also get the complaints because if you told me I'd get thousands of hours of of FM13 but the cost was 80, I can't say I'd have bought it. There's just something about that.

Barely any AAA games are even worth pirating anyway.

Indies ftw

I'm a patient gamer. Over time every single $80 game ends up being sold for less than $20. Nintendo games never do, but my backlog from being a patient gamer is so large it's hard to feel like I'm missing out on that.

Affording it is easy. Justifying it when I have so many other things to buy, whether wants or needs, is the issue.

Also, once again, if you take inflation on 90s game prices, it was more than $80.

As someone who buys a lot of Collector's Editions, I'm just worried if those will spike in price... Since they're already getting a little nuts...

Kuuko posted...

Gamers are freaky. Other industries probably dream of getting the kind of parasocial relationship between consumer and corporation that gamers have with their favorite videogame company. Is there any other type of consumer of any other product where they're like "all prices went up? yeah that's actually cool. i'm happy to pay that. if you want prices to stay the same you're actually ridiculously entitled. i'd be ok with them raising it even more honestly it's a steal"

there are a lot of dudes who treat it like the spending olympics and use it to feel superior while busting a gasket at anyone complaining about the price. it's bizarre, like straight up simulation behavior

eh. i dont really think people are entitled to new releases. its a lot of money, for sure, but no one has to buy the hot new thing

plus most big releases dont really seem to have much bang for their buck imo

viewmaster_pi posted...

there are a lot of dudes who treat it like the spending olympics and use it to feel superior while busting a gasket at anyone complaining about the price. it's bizarre, like straight up simulation behavior

it bugs me how there are people who act like 80 dollars isnt a lot

Dungeater posted...

plus most big releases dont really seem to have much bang for their buck imo

Most games I play take 40 to 100 hours, so that is a good deal. I feel many are too long

Imagine paying $80 for a game thats an incomplete, buggy mess.

bsp77 posted...

Most games I play take 40 to 100 hours, so that is a good deal. I feel many are too long

yea its going to differ between people

I hardly ever buy a game on release now unless it was something I was really anticipating, like Elden Ring. There certainly aren't Elden Ring level AAA games coming out, so I guess they won't get my money

I already refused at $70. $80's beyond parody.

To be clear though, I only buy a few full price games a year. I wait for deals for the majority of games.

But I also dont think they are overpriced. I simply think I can budget my money better, especially because there are still older games for me to catch up on. I don't always need the shiniest, new toy.

I did buy Expedition 33 new (see sig), but that was $50. Huge steal IMO.

While I can afford the increase, I rarely buy games brand new. The average price in Australia can range from $80 - $120 AUD. This is dependent on where you go. Physical retail stores usually undercut the full price by about $10 - $30 sometimes.

Our tax is included in the price too, so we don't get stung with any extra unknowns. How is that not regulation to display price including tax on the store tickets!?

Its been a good time to catch up on the backlog. There hasn't been too many MUST play games for me lately.

We're definitely going to trend harder towards games as a service shit and game pass services until something inevitably breaks. With the constant shitshow going on with the buyouts and mass layoffs, they're going to keep chasing the golden goose and something is going to give.

ablegator posted...

I have a backlog of games back to the late nineties. I wont pay 80 but am fine waiting for a sale or for prices to come down.

same. very few games i'll preorder or buy at launch. last i did was zelda echoes of wisdom which was fun but really wasn't worth the $60 i paid.

but i do think i'd probably end up getting GTA6 at launch but have to see the price. if it's just the base game for $100 i might hold off awhile. but the hype around the game after it comes out i think will get me. that got me sucked into buying hogwarts legacy just because so much of my FB was people playing it and hyping it up and then i got it and the game was just fine but definitely overrated and all the people that were hyping it i don't think ever even beat it.

I don't mind it. The less people around the better I'm tired of the toxic internet community. Take RDR2 for example I bought the most expensive version and got like 2-3 days of online play before everyone else who bought the normal version. The online mode was perfect for those 2-3 days. The days ended and the casuals came in ruining it.

There's only a select few games I'd consider that price to be worth it, IMO.

Many people can afford $80 games ...now another matter is if theyre really worth it.

Thing is if theres a recession, which seems likely, there will be even less discretionary money to spend on this stuff. It will probably be the death of AAA gaming aside some titles.

Id say some are, like Baldurs Gate 3, but the ones that are arent typically going to overcharge you.

At this point, my backlog is massive enough I rarely ever pay full price for anything (BG3, MH Wilds, and AC 6 are the only ones in recent memory), and that is usually just to support the dev (Larian in this case).

Kuuko posted...

Gamers are freaky. Other industries probably dream of getting the kind of parasocial relationship between consumer and corporation that gamers have with their favorite videogame company. Is there any other type of consumer of any other product where they're like "all prices went up? yeah that's actually cool. i'm happy to pay that. if you want prices to stay the same you're actually ridiculously entitled. i'd be ok with them raising it even more honestly it's a steal"

It's not exactly the same thing but basically the same mindset happens in anything that's pay-what-you-want, or certain patreon tiers, or anything content creator ish that uses subscriptions (youtube, twitch, etc). as well as probably some other similar industries not coming to mind atm. online newspapers I guess?

I am willing to pay more than is "strictly" necessary because I enjoy the thing and want to support the people making the thing

basically. feels more common in like, creative / media industries than places that are solely about producing actual physical goods

Killmonger posted...

Imagine paying $80 for a game thats an incomplete, buggy mess.

Nintendo on their way to drop a $80+ Pokemon game that shipped unfinished and still runs like ass after several updates:

Been expecting for several years now. Didnt expect the orange fascist to be the accelerator for it though.

Time to remind video game companies that their biggest competitor ain't each other; it's piracy.

I suspect $80 games will be a disaster, especially for Nintendo. There's just too much cheap competition for your time nowadays.

Like everyone else, I would rather pay less money for the things I buy.

If games are not giving you acceptable value for money, then you shouldn't buy them.