We have to put a stop to the Nickel&Dime'ing before it gets out of hand.

[jakem1]

?120 doesn't seem like a microtransaction, it seems like an unreasonably massive amount of money.  That's just not right.

[Fourjays Veteran]

?120 doesn't seem like a microtransaction, it seems like an unreasonably massive amount of money.  That's just not right.

Certainly isn't "micro", but is it really unjustifiable? People will plough days if not weeks worth of gameplay in GT to get the 20 million needed for those cars. Of course, it depends on the balance of the game economy too...

[Showan]

Aren't the NBA games supposed to be about the players skill more than the avatars skill though ?

You would think it would be that way. Play on Hall of Fame mode. You play with Orland and then play against the Heat.

You will lose 9x out of 10 even if you did everything right those 9x

[HoochieMamma]

Would you rather pay 120-180 for modern games with the graphics and work that's gone into them, or would you rather they "tax" the rich and stupid ? 

 

There is no reason why any modern game should be more than $50. Doesn't matter how much time and effort they put into it, anything more and it's only a cash grab.

 

They don't seem to understand that lowering the prices will make more people inclined to buy it.

[HawkMan]

There is no reason why any modern game should be more than $50. Doesn't matter how much time and effort they put into it, anything more and it's only a cash grab.

They don't seem to understand that lowering the prices will make more people inclined to buy it.

Lowering the price does automatically mean making more money, even if more people buy it, basic understanding of how margins work and all that. And you need to sell as much more as the margins you're cutting off.

And seriously, do you understand how much it costs to develop modern games ? It's insane, just the modeling is a crazy amount of man hours, the. You have rigging and animation, level and environments need to be built, sound effects and voice acting. We haven't even gotten to the game code yet.

No of course there's no reasons modern games today should cost as much or more than a SNES game back the days....

[Atomic Wanderer Chicken]

I think the Old Man from Pawn Stars has been made in charge of developing all the games now! Paying $60 for a game is painful enough but paying $60 plus little micro transactions is really asking it from consumers.

[Athernar]

Certainly isn't "micro", but is it really unjustifiable? People will plough days if not weeks worth of gameplay in GT to get the 20 million needed for those cars. Of course, it depends on the balance of the game economy too...

 

Microtransactions in this manner are just the latest industry fashion for gouging the consumer for every last penny.

 

People will eventually wise up to these practices and reject them, and the industry will move on to the next big thing.

 

Ultimately the best solution to all of this is to stop supporting shareholder-backed game publishers/developers and urge the industry to go private. As long as companies have "the interests of shareholders" to accommodate, their business models will continue to be abusive.

[HoochieMamma]

Lowering the price does automatically mean making more money, even if more people buy it, basic understanding of how margins work and all that. And you need to sell as much more as the margins you're cutting off.

And seriously, do you understand how much it costs to develop modern games ? It's insane, just the modeling is a crazy amount of man hours, the. You have rigging and animation, level and environments need to be built, sound effects and voice acting. We haven't even gotten to the game code yet.

No of course there's no reasons modern games today should cost as much or more than a SNES game back the days....

 

Oh OK, so games like GTA V which made >$800m in the first 24 hours is perfectly fine to justify selling it for ~$100 if not more? Clearly they are making MUCH more than what it takes to make the game by a long shot. Doesn't matter how much voice acting/animation/etc is, they make it back and 10 times more.

 

Like I said there is no reason to charge ~$100 for something they can mass produce millions of with little effort (not even getting started with digital releases like Steam where there is no physical game). It's basically like printing money to these companies.

[trooper11]

I get why people are upset by this, and I agree when its done in the wrong way.

It is funny though, we are all upset about what amounts to paying for cheat codes.

I remember back in the day, as late as the ps2, when I would buy a gameshark, action replay, etc. In that way, you were paying to win. Cheat codes disappeared with the 360/PS3 era and now they are back, but instead of cheat codes, you just pay for the 'Cheat' that you want.

The micro transactions that get people upset the most simply amount to cheat codes.

I guess the reason its more taboo today is because it seems more mainstream and game developers have found a way to monetize each 'cheat code'

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

I get why people are upset by this, and I agree when its done in the wrong way.

It is funny though, we are all upset about what amounts to paying for cheat codes.

I remember back in the day, as late as the ps2, when I would buy a gameshark, action replay, etc. In that way, you were paying to win. Cheat codes disappeared with the 360/PS3 era and now they are back, but instead of cheat codes, you just pay for the 'Cheat' that you want.

The micro transactions that get people upset the most simply amount to cheat codes.

I guess the reason its more taboo today is because it seems more mainstream and game developers have found a way to monetize each 'cheat code'

 

You have achievements and the increase in multiplayer to thank for that :P

 

At least some developers are now including sandbox modes where you can enable cheats / disabled achievements. Or in some developers case, charge for them like you said.

[trooper11]

You have achievements and the increase in multiplayer to thank for that :p

 

At least some developers are now including sandbox modes where you can enable cheats / disabled achievements. Or in some developers case, charge for them like you said.

That's true, people are very proud of their achievements and to see others pay to get around that sucks.

Maybe we should go back to selling generic cheat code devices. That would be interesting to see. Heck Sony or MS could come up with a cheat code 'app' that could be sold and then any developer could supply codes. Just disable achievements and not allow it online unless you create a special online mode just for cheat codes :laugh:

[HawkMan]

Oh OK, so games like GTA V which made >$800m in the first 24 hours is perfectly fine to justify selling it for ~$100 if not more? Clearly they are making MUCH more than what it takes to make the game by a long shot. Doesn't matter how much voice acting/animation/etc is, they make it back and 10 times more.

 

Like I said there is no reason to charge ~$100 for something they can mass produce millions of with little effort (not even getting started with digital releases like Steam where there is no physical game). It's basically like printing money to these companies.

 

And every game is GTA ? 

 

Forza for example, as a realistic Sim racer is a niche game and will never sell in those numbers, even with the launch title boost. 

 

Also you're wrong anyway.  you're forgetting a few things there.

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-09-18/grand-theft-auto-v-is-the-most-expensive-game-ever-and-it-s-almost-obsolete

 

You have to remove 115 million dollars for development and 150 for marketing. 

 

Then you have to remember than of the price of the game, Rockstar gets a small fraction. production wants it's share, distributors wants their share, stores want their share. And there's a few more that want a piece of the pie to. 

 

what the game sold for, isn't what they made by a long shot. 

[Xerxes]

Yeah, I agree that this is becoming a problem. I mean I understand the primary concern of the game developers/publishers is to make money and make as much as possible. However, treating us like cattle to be "milked" is just wrong. That said, the customers still get a say in how this happens. If we just stay quiet and let them get away with it, they'll just keep doing it and keep pushing it further and further seeing how far they can get away with it. Customers have already complained about this problem in Forza 5 and reportedly it's getting changed/patched out so we can stop it. So vote with your wallets and be vocal, don't let the devs/publishers push you around. That is my 2 cents, take with a grain of salt.

[droolingmonkey]

For another perspective, as a casual gamer...wait, as a very occasional gamer, say one or two (maybe a couple more if I'm luck/lazy) good gaming sessions a month, for me I just don't have the time to do the grind, much as I would love and prefer to do. It's just not possible for me to put in that time. Yet, when i DO get to have a blast, it sux cos Im only able to access newb content. Screw that, I wanna drive a flash car, or stomp around with a significant character, rather than a shell waiting to be filled, so for me being able to *pay* to just shortcut my way there means I get to enjoy the limited time I get to game. Of course this is not perfect for everyone, and as I said, if I had the time I'd love to be able to grind my way through and have a result that is self-satisfying in that way, but I appreciate the possibility to still get some enjoyment from the game. I agree that this should certainly not be the ideal way to get the shiny cars or the super-punch-kick (and definitely NOT the ONLY way to progress), I think they should make it expensive enough that for most, the grind is the way to go. Hell, make it less of a grind, surely the makers of these games WANT people to be playing them to their potential? So, leave in the micro-transactions as an option, just make it costly, and less grind for non-payers (who have already paid for the game in the first place). Yeah.

[Torolol]

let wait until somebody bragged how much $$$ they spent on the game's 'micro'transaction.

[GotBored]

let wait until somebody bragged how much $$$ they spent on the game's 'micro'transaction.

 

They already do this on IOS games, some have spent $1000's on free IOS game with micro-transactions. 

 

Most games which have these basically are pay-to-win games, they come, they are popular, people pay to win, non-payers get tired of getting owned by someone with a bigger wallet and leave, paying players then leave cause they have no easy targets to hit and only other paying players, game dies, new game begins. Welcome to the micro-transaction age.

[Dinggus]

I didn't guess tokens.

 

What do you consider map packs? Is that nickel and diming?

[francescob]

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[Anibal P]

I didn't guess tokens.

 

What do you consider map packs? Is that nickel and diming?

 

To a lot of cheapskates, yes, but I don't mind them, and I don't mind microtransactions since I just refuse to spend the extra money. I won't throw a hissy fit over it being an option or being asked in game, I can easily bypass it and keep playing 

[SierraSonic]

I didn't guess tokens.

 

What do you consider map packs? Is that nickel and diming?

I much prefer Valve's treatment of games.

 

I believe all content should be available to everyone, I don't care if people who paid more get TIMED exclusives, but never permanent ones.

[neoadorable]

freemium can be obnoxious but I believe things will settle down on a model that's comfortable for most people. look, a lot of folks complained about shareware back in the day, and that hasn't done any harm. I don't think freemium is going to take over, that would be crazy. if it's annoying, delete the game and send a message. if it's in a full priced game, play what you can, don't pay for anything extra if you don't want to, then trade the disc in or delete if digital version.

 

some games do in app purchases very well. Uno and Friends is super addictive but can be played entirely for free if you're a little patient. perfect model for its genre. i agree it's unsightly to have IAP's in a $60 game, but just don't give them the money. it didn't really affect titles like Dead Space 3, which was excellent and didn't force you to buy anything.