If either Sony or Microsoft do this then the competing console will support used games and use that as a selling point.
Poll: The End of the Used Game Resale is Nigh! (bring out your dead .. Ding)
- Thread starter GamerPhate
- Start date
I support the idea of cracking down on used game sales, here's why:
Look at other medias like movies, books and music.
Movies - the film-makers get a fat sack of cash from a studio to make their film, and when it's done it's licensed to theaters and makes money there. It's then licensed to DVD/Blu-Ray and makes money there, also rental stores. It's THEN licensed to pay-per-view blockbuster TV channels, and online services such as NetFlix. It's THEN licensed to free TV.
So effectively the movie has been sold five times to five different mediums - used DVD sales are rampant but that doesn't matter because the movie is still producing cash all across the entire world.
Books - cheap to write, cheap to produce, sell for a huge markup from that production cost. If the writer is successful, they can then cash in on merchandise, signings, even movie deals if they do well enough (Harry Potter), and the process goes up to my first point.
Music - a little more complicated because the RIAA can fuck off, but some artists make ridiculous amounts of money off their music in more ways than album sales. Merchandise and shows are huge, plus endorsements and advertisements - how a musician makes their money is limited by their imagination and personality. Taylor Swift made $80,000,000 in the past two years, plus $100,000,000 revenue (not all hers) from her recent world tour - and almost none of that was from album sales.
Games - developer has capital, makes game, sends to stores and online services like Steam.
That's it. End of profit.
They don't get their money anywhere else except in a few rare exceptions. There aren't shows, there's very few merchandising options, and they need that profit to be able to have jobs next month and to create new content.
This is why games are made over and over, like CoD and EA Sports, and why publishers ruin games. They want it guaranteed to sell as much as possible because new copies are all the income they get, while used game sales and piracy hurt their bottom line and thus jack up prices.
As a gamer and also retail businessman, I say I don't care about stores. The evolution of technology is making stores and physical copies obsolete, when you can download games directly to your PC and Xbox through services like Steam and the Live Marketplace.
Who wants to go out and give a store a cut of the price of a game when you can have it ready to play by leaving your PC on overnight downloading as many titles as you want? Plus doing that, you get automatic updates, instant DLC, tech support and instant access to that game's fan community.
The only situation in which I'd support buying a used game is if there literally are no new copies on the shelves or anywhere else to buy because they simply don't stock it anymore. You shouldn't be entitled to a cheaper product just because you can't afford a new one.
tl;dr - used game sales hurt game developers that are irrelevant to other medias, down with stores and up with Steam.
Look at other medias like movies, books and music.
Movies - the film-makers get a fat sack of cash from a studio to make their film, and when it's done it's licensed to theaters and makes money there. It's then licensed to DVD/Blu-Ray and makes money there, also rental stores. It's THEN licensed to pay-per-view blockbuster TV channels, and online services such as NetFlix. It's THEN licensed to free TV.
So effectively the movie has been sold five times to five different mediums - used DVD sales are rampant but that doesn't matter because the movie is still producing cash all across the entire world.
Books - cheap to write, cheap to produce, sell for a huge markup from that production cost. If the writer is successful, they can then cash in on merchandise, signings, even movie deals if they do well enough (Harry Potter), and the process goes up to my first point.
Music - a little more complicated because the RIAA can fuck off, but some artists make ridiculous amounts of money off their music in more ways than album sales. Merchandise and shows are huge, plus endorsements and advertisements - how a musician makes their money is limited by their imagination and personality. Taylor Swift made $80,000,000 in the past two years, plus $100,000,000 revenue (not all hers) from her recent world tour - and almost none of that was from album sales.
Games - developer has capital, makes game, sends to stores and online services like Steam.
That's it. End of profit.
They don't get their money anywhere else except in a few rare exceptions. There aren't shows, there's very few merchandising options, and they need that profit to be able to have jobs next month and to create new content.
This is why games are made over and over, like CoD and EA Sports, and why publishers ruin games. They want it guaranteed to sell as much as possible because new copies are all the income they get, while used game sales and piracy hurt their bottom line and thus jack up prices.
As a gamer and also retail businessman, I say I don't care about stores. The evolution of technology is making stores and physical copies obsolete, when you can download games directly to your PC and Xbox through services like Steam and the Live Marketplace.
Who wants to go out and give a store a cut of the price of a game when you can have it ready to play by leaving your PC on overnight downloading as many titles as you want? Plus doing that, you get automatic updates, instant DLC, tech support and instant access to that game's fan community.
The only situation in which I'd support buying a used game is if there literally are no new copies on the shelves or anywhere else to buy because they simply don't stock it anymore. You shouldn't be entitled to a cheaper product just because you can't afford a new one.
tl;dr - used game sales hurt game developers that are irrelevant to other medias, down with stores and up with Steam.
... I don't get it, you can't resell PC games/software so what does it matter if you can't sell your console games?
I'm of the mind that they should transition out the used game market naturally by going digital distribution. People understand that they can re-sell a digital copy.
I don't agree with a system where you buy DVD's / Blue Ray's that can't be resold or even borrowed by friends. It simply feels unnatural compared to what everyone has grown up with.
I don't agree with a system where you buy DVD's / Blue Ray's that can't be resold or even borrowed by friends. It simply feels unnatural compared to what everyone has grown up with.
While it's probably a little rarer than in the other mediums, games also have merchandise (action figures, guide books, trading card games, etc) and Movie deals (Hitman, Max Payne, Wing comander, Uwe Boll shit). Not to forget DLC and cash stores and monthly fees in MMOs and some other genres.Sansha said:
I chose the last option, but it should say, "I couldn't care less, I only buy new games."GamerPhate said:
You need to add an "n't" to the end of "could".
Because it's piracy. They've made a copy of the 40 hour experience on the storage medium of their brain, and now they're selling you their other copy.Don Savik said:
It's no different from burning copies of movies to give away (or sell). Or selling used movies.
Idiots saying that used cars didn't crash that market: Two people can't drive one car at the same time to two different locations. But two people can have had the entire 40 hour single player experience from one game CD. When you buy a car you pay for its utility. You buy video games for the experience (not for the physical CD and case). It's apples and oranges so STFU with that silly argument. Thanks.
Wasn't there a publisher who said the only reason game prices are as high as they are is because of used game sales? It explains why PC prices are a good £10 cheaper on release date for the same title, less lost sales for the publisher through used games.
Either way, I'm not actually too fussed. I don't buy lots of games, and those that I do I'm generally either willing to wait a year for the price to drop down, or willing to pay the full price on day of release for the privilege of playing it ASAP.
Either way, I'm not actually too fussed. I don't buy lots of games, and those that I do I'm generally either willing to wait a year for the price to drop down, or willing to pay the full price on day of release for the privilege of playing it ASAP.
To be fair, this only looks like the end of used games for new consoles. Nothing is stopping me from continuing to build collections of the old generations of consoles (other than the lack of mom-n-pop shops and other specialty shops but that's another issue). That being said, if this does turn out to be true they would only be shooting themselves in the foot. It's the games that sell consoles and if the games aren't readily available and at a reasonable price those consoles will fail. Isn't this one of the bigger reasons the 3DO, CD-I,, Sega CD, 32X and, Jaguar fail? I haven't heard anything about the Wii-U rejecting used/rental titles so that could be the last new console I buy since this gen seems anti-used games and the next gen could be 100% digital.
It's just a rumor. This rumor has been floating around the internet for a long time. It means nothing until it actually happens.
If Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, or whomever are going to kill of used game sales, they will do it through digital distribution and not through some bs lock out system. It would be a lot easier to do it that way than through some mythical lockout technology that may or may not exist.
If Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, or whomever are going to kill of used game sales, they will do it through digital distribution and not through some bs lock out system. It would be a lot easier to do it that way than through some mythical lockout technology that may or may not exist.
Fair point, but like I said - rare cases. Strategy guides are definitely there, but they're usually made by third-parties. And while games can indeed make good movie deals, movies can also be adapted to video games.lapan said:
I believe DLC is a strong pillar for gaming's financial future - almost every game has them and there's systems in place to ensure they can't be re-sold.
And yes, monthly fees. I think every online game should be free to play, but paid premium content and lots of optional micro-transactions.
I say 'optional' as in 'cosmetic and toys', not pay-to-win. World of Tanks does this system nicely.
The last 5 games I bought were payed for with store credit obtained by selling my used games and accessories; I'd say that for me, used games are still a large part if the gaming market (though not necessarily as large as before...).