If console gaming is cheaper, why are all the games so much more expensive?

[Doom-Slayer]

Simple enough question. Maybe its just here in New Zealand but console games(especially PS3) are ALWAYS a good 15-20 dollars more expensive brand new. I cant really understand why this is. I always hear people saying how much cheaper console gaming is from a platform point of view, but I have to say that 20 dollars or even 30 dollars is a bit of a blockade for me to want to get into it.

Then you take into account the stupidly cheap deals that Steam does, and that can add up to almost half price off games, and in some cases nearly 50-60(nzd, do the conversion yourself) dollars off store prices. If you game enough on a console, Im tempted to say that the cost may actually balance it out. What do you guys think?

For example(all in NZD and from EBgames)

PC - [Deus Ex: Human Revolution] - $55
PS3 - [Deus Ex: Human Revolution] - $69

PC - Skyrim - $108
PS3 and 360 - Skyrim - $128

PC - RAGE - $47
PS3 and 360 -RAGE - $69

PC - Oblivion - $37
PS3 and 360 - Oblivion $47

 

[Supernova1138]

Console games always have inflated prices because licensing fees have to be paid to Sony and Microsoft for using their system. It's how Sony and Microsoft make money off the console. PC games don't have to pay the licensing fees, so generally the new release price is cheaper, though some publishers have started charging the same as consoles for PC games and simply pocket the extra cash themselves. Steam sales make PC gaming even more attractive financially, if you buy lots of games, as one can get a lot of games for much less than buying their console counterparts.

 

[Ordinaryundone]

Because your average Xbox 360 runs you maybe 300 dollars, while a good gaming PC can and will run you over 1000, not including any hardware updates you may need to get.

Even if you are saving 15-20 bucks per game, you still need to buy a LOT of games to make up the difference. Plus, there is a huge used market for console games. I've found even relatively new games for 30-40 dollars on sale.

 

[Supernova1138]

Y

Because your average Xbox 360 runs you maybe 300 dollars, while a good gaming PC can and will run you over 1000, not including any hardware updates you may need to get.

Even if you are saving 15-20 bucks per game, you still need to buy a LOT of games to make up the difference. Plus, there is a huge used market for console games. I've found even relatively new games for 30-40 dollars on sale.

At this point you don't need to upgrade hardware anymore for PC, not unless your machine is ancient, or wasn't built for gaming in the first place. Very few developers want to push beyond the XBox 360's capabilities at this point. You only need to upgrade if you want to max out Crysis 2 or whatever the latest tech demo game is on a given day. Maybe 2 or 3 of these tech demo games come out a year, and they will run on older hardware, you just can't max them out on the older stuff.

Steam's sales offer way better deals than 30 or 40 dollars per game. There are plenty of games I have got off steam for 5 to 20 dollars. If you are patient for waiting for games to go on sale, that will add up very quickly.

 

[Doom-Slayer]

Because your average Xbox 360 runs you maybe 300 dollars, while a good gaming PC can and will run you over 1000, not including any hardware updates you may need to get.

Even if you are saving 15-20 bucks per game, you still need to buy a LOT of games to make up the difference. Plus, there is a huge used market for console games. I've found even relatively new games for 30-40 dollars on sale.

Not sure about you but from a quick check, an xbox360 is 338nzd, and a ps3 is 480nzd. Considering that right now we are all typing via computer, we are all going to have a computer for basic needs regardless of what platform we game on. Lets say thats a 300-400 dollar investment. Then that leaves you 600 bucks to upgrade it to a gaming computer.(And you can go faaaar lower than this, you can build a gaming comp for like 700)

That leaves a difference of about 300 bucks, and with consoles meant to have a lifespan of about 5 years. That means if you buy 15 games over 5 years, 3 games a year, then you break even.

And maybe its just me, but 3 games a year...is..not a lot. And considering that you can get PC games for even cheaper, I can see the "little" cost of that 20+ dollars adding up very very quickly.

 

[Ordinaryundone]

At this point you don't need to upgrade hardware anymore for PC, not unless your machine is ancient, or wasn't built for gaming in the first place. Very few developers want to push beyond the XBox 360's capabilities at this point. You only need to upgrade if you want to max out Crysis 2 or whatever the latest tech demo game is on a given day. Maybe 2 or 3 of these tech demo games come out a year, and they will run on older hardware, you just can't max them out on the older stuff.

Steam's sales offer way better deals than 30 or 40 dollars per game. There are plenty of games I have got off steam for 5 to 20 dollars. If you are patient for waiting for games to go on sale, that will add up very quickly.

Not sure about you but from a quick check, an xbox360 is 338nzd, and a ps3 is 480nzd. Considering that right now we are all typing via computer, we are all going to have a computer for basic needs regardless of what platform we game on. Lets say thats a 300-400 dollar investment. Then that leaves you 600 bucks to upgrade it to a gaming computer.(And you can go faaaar lower than this, you can build a gaming comp for like 700)

That leaves a difference of about 300 bucks, and with consoles meant to have a lifespan of about 5 years. That means if you buy 15 games over 5 years, 3 games a year, then you break even.

And maybe its just me, but 3 games a year...is..not a lot. And considering that you can get PC games for even cheaper, I can see the "little" cost of that 20+ dollars adding up very very quickly.

Most people can't build a gaming computer though. And it doesn't change the fact that a gaming quality PC is a much higher initial investment (at LEAST twice as much, likely more) than an Xbox or PS3. PC gaming is only cheaper if you are willing to wait years for it to even out, along with only buying games a long time after release and on sale.

 

[Supernova1138]

Yes, and there are virtually no games worth paying top dollar for on day one anymore, especially with the recent spate of developers releasing incomplete and/or buggy games. If one plans to buy lots of games, it really adds up. In the past year I have got more than 100 games on Steam. Virtually none of these were bought at anywhere near full price, the vast majority were bought at a 50 to 75 percent discount. If I bought all of those games at full price, that eats into the extra cost of PC hardware vs. the console I didn't feel like replacing after its second RROD.

Granted, I have no life and play more games than most people, if you are only playing 5 or 6 games in a year, it probably doesn't make sense to sink too much money in a hobby you aren't that interested in, so go for the cheapest short term option.

 

[predatorpulse7]

It's simple, pc gaming has a higher initial investment but it evens out in the long run whereas consoles seems cheaper due to them being a third of what a good pc will cost but in this case it evens out with the games, which can be nearly twice as expensive as the pc equivalent in some areas.

It depends on what kind of a gamer you are. If you buy a xbox and buy many games, in a 3-4 year cycle you may get close to what a pc owner will spend on his tech and games in the same amount of time. I bought my pc in early 2009 for 850 bucks and the only investment I've made since then was a 200$ graphics card in November 2011(and games of course but not that many). My cousin has a xbox that he bought for about 350 dollars a couple years but he's already amassed quite a collection of games since he got it and tbh I don't think he is that far off from the sum I spent on my pc. If he buys 3 games per year(which is a very small number IMO), he is already looking at around 160 bucks spent. Hardly cheap.

 

[Fappy]

Because your average Xbox 360 runs you maybe 300 dollars, while a good gaming PC can and will run you over 1000, not including any hardware updates you may need to get.

*looks at his now 3y old gaming rig which I build for 400?*

Good to know... I think I need to invest more money to play Serious Sam 3 on more than ultra...

Sorry but when do people stop telling lies about the costs of PC gaming? As long as the consoles stay on their outdated hardware PC gaming will get cheaper and cheaper. A prebuild gaming rig doesn't even cost 1000$ with monitor and other equipment. Well, Alienware rigs cost over 1000$ but you must be rich or an idiot to actually buy those.

I built my PC on a 600$ budget and it can run most games at max settings no problem. Only thing not included in the budget is the TV I use as my monitor (which doesn't get rolled into Console costs either).

 

[GrandmaFunk]

...and a further ~$150-$250 every two years at least to keep it up to date.

This is just plain silly, if you built a gaming rig 2 years ago it's still perfectly capable of playing everything currently released with no upgrades needed.

what would even upgrade that frequently? even after 4-5 years the only things you might need to upgrade is your videocard.

 

[LilithSlave]

Because your average Xbox 360 runs you maybe 300 dollars, while a good gaming PC can and will run you over 1000, not including any hardware updates you may need to get.

My $400 laptop runs all my Steam games with no problem.

Eh, and anymore, I don't pay more than $10 for most games. Though the ones I do, all tend to be console titles(last one being $50 on Skyward Sword). Japanese developers hate the Windows platform. I'd never buy a console again if it weren't for the fact it was required to play most Japanese titles.

Heck, almost every single Megaman game was actually released for the PC. But I don't see them anywhere on Steam or Good old Games or anything like that!

And you can forget Nintendo, my favourite software developer of all time.

 

[Esotera]

If manufacturers are making a loss on consoles they sell, why are they making more of a profit on games they sell?

Pretty much. Although I'd say there isn't much difference in cost between console & PC games (excluding stuff on Steam)

 

[Orcus The Ultimate]

The BLU RAY discs have a bigger capacity, maybe that's why they're more expensive? although it does sound like it's some sort of economical fluctuation (like oil) hahaha. i mean if you wait 6 months to a year, or wait for some holiday, there's a huge difference in prices.

 

[Fishyash]

Due to bad porting, optimization & general lack of graphics settings when it comes to making games for PC you are garunteed more bang for your buck overall if you get a console, money wise and spec wise.

Also, the rate that you need to upgrade your PC is faster than that of upgrading a console generally.

The games being more expensive will effect how much cheaper console gaming is directly by how many games you buy.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Console companies sell the hardware at near zero profit (at startups even with losses) because the big bucks come in with their game sales percentage, and with MS also the subscriptions.

That is the theory anyway, now with Steam being everywhere developers aren't exactly getting away any cheaper on PC, I think the end price really only comes down to "because we can".
I have local shops that will quickly spike in prices when something gets popular and Ausies have that going on nonstop, 200% prices are really no rarity there even with the same game on different systems.
And if people continue to pay double why the heck wouldn't they charge that.

 

[Gindil]

Simple enough question. Maybe its just here in New Zealand but console games(especially PS3) are ALWAYS a good 15-20 dollars more expensive brand new. I cant really understand why this is. I always hear people saying how much cheaper console gaming is from a platform point of view, but I have to say that 20 dollars or even 30 dollars is a bit of a blockade for me to want to get into it.

Then you take into account the stupidly cheap deals that Steam does, and that can add up to almost half price off games, and in some cases nearly 50-60(nzd, do the conversion yourself) dollars off store prices. If you game enough on a console, Im tempted to say that the cost may actually balance it out. What do you guys think?

For example(all in NZD and from EBgames)

PC - [Deus Ex: Human Revolution] - $55
PS3 - [Deus Ex: Human Revolution] - $69

PC - Skyrim - $108
PS3 and 360 - Skyrim - $128

PC - RAGE - $47
PS3 and 360 -RAGE - $69

PC - Oblivion - $37
PS3 and 360 - Oblivion $47

Two things: Copyright laws and who gets control of distribution are the reasons NZ gets the high end of the pricing stick.