I swear, it seems that every time EA talks to the press about Origin, it's only to switch feet.
Origin Boss Says Steam Sales "Cheapen Intellectual Property"
- Thread starter Andy Chalk
- Start date
Know what else cheapens IP? making it so loaded with frustrating DRM and EULA terms that you just say "fuck it" and steal the game off the net. Becomes real cheap, then
Any game that I really want to play I will buy full price on day one. Heck, a lot of the time I will pre-order it off Steam. However, I have bought games that I never would have even considered just because they were on really cheap through Steam. A few examples off the top of my head are Hearts of Iron III, Hitman: Blood Money and Metro 2033. All of those games are now in my list of favourites and as a result I have sunk tons more money into Hearts of Iron III via all of its DLC. I'm also considering buying Hitman: Absolution and Metro Last Light for full price on day one. In short, if it wasn't for a Steam sale all of those games would never have been on my radar.
"He also suggested that despite giving exposure and huge sales boosts to indie developers and major studios alike, Valve's approach could actually be doing the industry more harm than good. "What Steam does might be teaching the customer that, 'I might not want it in the first month, but if I look at it in four or five months, I'll get one of those weekend sales and I'll buy it at that time at 75 percent off'"
Pft! We already learned that if you wait half a year, you can get the GOTY edition of games in stores for about $20.
Pft! We already learned that if you wait half a year, you can get the GOTY edition of games in stores for about $20.
This is pretty much what I was going to say. I have at LEAST 10 games that I bought on Steam and never played just because I wanted to try them out and they were on sale. The ONLY reason I have origin on my system is because of ME3.WarpPhoenix said:
Sad thing is I'm sure they know that's the reason half the people with an Origin account have it in the 1st place.
I mean, he's so wrong its almost not even worth discussing. But the best counter-argument is this: Amnesia Dark Descent wouldn't exist without Steam sales, as shown in this article (http://dft.ba/-amnesia). So Steam sales make new IPs possible, allow independent developers to stay employed, and ultimately help everyone. But keep telling yourself otherwise, EA. You're really convincing everyone.
Correction: If everybody buys games because they're cheap, then that reveals their value. If the dev needs the money now and isn't getting it until the game goes on sale, that would be considered a sign that the game is too damned expensive.rolfwesselius said:
It doesn't matter what the dev (or more likely, the publisher) wants, rule #1 of economics is that nothing is worth more than what people will pay for it. If it's only worth full price to 1% of the market, then tough noogies, EA. Drop the price or GTFO.
Playing at devils advocate is hobby of mine sooo... He thinks it undervalues his stock, making his IP worth less than he set it at. It also tells users that they don't have to buy at full price, thus consistently undervaluing his stock and leading to a constant cycle of cheaper and cheaper games. If he said it's bad for indie games, then the only justification I can come up with would be that people would be unwilling to pay $20 for Frozen Synapse since they just spent $5 on Oblivion, thus hurting indie developers.
Or something. He's probably the type who sees regional pricing as necessary too. Or he might not be evil, just of a different economic mindset, the "10 units at 100" versus "100 units at 10". 'shrugs' I don't have the economic background to continue this line of reasoning, any finance majors on here want to try seeing his POV?
Or something. He's probably the type who sees regional pricing as necessary too. Or he might not be evil, just of a different economic mindset, the "10 units at 100" versus "100 units at 10". 'shrugs' I don't have the economic background to continue this line of reasoning, any finance majors on here want to try seeing his POV?
That's just lack of people, Steam sales pull in millions of people at the same time and few have the capacity to cope with that. Not saying it's a good thing, just saying that Origin is like Green Man Gaming. They're good until they have millions of users logging it at the same time at which point they turn into Blizzard/Ubisoft while Steam trundles along. This coming from someone who thinks Steam is kinda sucky btw.rolfwesselius said:
Mirrors Edge is on Steam, and a fair few other digital distribution sites for that matter. No Origin in site since it wasn't even around when the game was released. If you want to play the game, do so. I highly recommend it.shiajun said:
They don't know how to run a business yet they are still publishing games and.... whoa! they are still in business.
seriously, i could not disagree any more ....
I now own some games on steam i WOULD NEVER EVER EVER have paid full price.
but thanks 2 steam sales i now paid 10 bucks for them they would not have gotten from me
i even own some games on Xbox/ps3 i now have on steam because of the sales so thats a double cash flow for the makers of the games.
People who want it day 1 will pay day 1 money ... that simple
I now own some games on steam i WOULD NEVER EVER EVER have paid full price.
but thanks 2 steam sales i now paid 10 bucks for them they would not have gotten from me
i even own some games on Xbox/ps3 i now have on steam because of the sales so thats a double cash flow for the makers of the games.
People who want it day 1 will pay day 1 money ... that simple
OK, EA. You keep on keeping on with the whole "We'll charge full price for everything and maybe do an occasional minor sale on Origin," thing. Meanwhile, those few EA titles I can manage to get over my disgust with your business practices long enough to buy? I'll keep buying them in real stores where I get a real disc, a real piece of paper that passes for an instruction manual and a box with pretty art on it for paying full price. Or even better, buy those games in real stores when they're put ON SALE.
Meanwhile, my Steam library will continue to grow when they put the games I'd like to play - but not quite enough to pay full price for - on those deep, "intellectual property cheapening" sales. I don't have to spend money on your horrible online distribution service, EA. And you're making the decision not to buy my games through Origin easier and easier every time someone on your end opens their mouth.
Meanwhile, my Steam library will continue to grow when they put the games I'd like to play - but not quite enough to pay full price for - on those deep, "intellectual property cheapening" sales. I don't have to spend money on your horrible online distribution service, EA. And you're making the decision not to buy my games through Origin easier and easier every time someone on your end opens their mouth.
I have no problem paying less for something that has a fixed price despite quality, guarantee of functionality or any method of returning it in case of dissatisfaction.
You should be thanking me. On your knees for buying this game I didn't plan on buying at all now that it had a massive sale. Because of that sale you got 10$ you would otherwise never have gotten.
Instead you whine about cheapening intellectual property whilst you yourself have a long proud tradition of rushing titles and sucking studios dry.
Who is the real one cheapening the industry? The store that offers sales to attract customers that would otherwise not come. Or the industry giant that specializes in sports titles and purchasing studios to burn up any talent that is in it.
You should be thanking me. On your knees for buying this game I didn't plan on buying at all now that it had a massive sale. Because of that sale you got 10$ you would otherwise never have gotten.
Instead you whine about cheapening intellectual property whilst you yourself have a long proud tradition of rushing titles and sucking studios dry.
Who is the real one cheapening the industry? The store that offers sales to attract customers that would otherwise not come. Or the industry giant that specializes in sports titles and purchasing studios to burn up any talent that is in it.
I think the point more is that some games arent worth 60 bucks TO YOU. There are tons of games that every one of us wont pay 60 bucks for if they are put out at that price, but with a discount during a sale...thats potentially a sale they may never of made otherwise.thebobmaster said:
