Volition Dev Vs. Pre-Owned Games

[xxBucdieselxx]

This has to be the most ignorant thing I have heard of. I am with a lot of people on here. If the next generation of consoles do this, they will loose a customer, and a long time one at that. I have been playing games on consoles since the Atari 2600, and friends bringing over games, or buying used games is the only way I have played some great titles. At $60 a pop, we are long gone from the days of Xbox and PS2 $40 games new, which was much more managable. I think this analogy works best. When you go and buy a used car, whether it be from a small business, or a dealership, does the manufacturer of that car get a cut of what it was sold for used? No they don't, because they already got their money from when it was sold new. It would essentially be double dipping. All these developers seem to be bitching about used games, but last time I checked for a game to sell used, it must've sold new at one point. Money had to be given to the developer for the original sale. So this is where the double dipping comes in, they want the money for the original sale, and any other sale of that specific disc. Now I maybe wrong in this, but I can't think of another industry that does this. The whole idea of developers thinking 'we are loosing sales!' from the used game industry is just stupid. They are not loosing sales, considering that if someone couldn't buy it used, what make them think they would pick the game up at all. I can think of quite a few titles that I have played that if I hadn't gotten them used, I never would have paid full price for them. Also a dev may very well have gotten my future business on a new game, because I was able to pick up an older game of theirs used. This is just bad joo joo for the whole industry. If consoles want to do this fine, go ahead, and I can just move to PC gaming. Sure the whole used games becomes moot at that point, but hey, at least with Steam I know I won't be paying $60 for every single game I buy.

 

[spartan231490]

I will never buy a console that doesn't allow for used games, and I will never buy a game from volition studios except used. Further, if the next xbox has this feature, I might even cancel my xbox live subscription

 

[Chairman Miaow]

The only real response is GO FUCK YOURSELF, GO FUCK YOURSELF, GO FUCK YOURSELF!

 

[Sandytimeman]

And this is why I rarely buy AAA titles anymore. This attitude right here. Too be honest I just finished playing Bastion, a 16 dollar indie game via Steam. IT WAS AMAZING, better then any of the triple A titles I've played in years.

 

[Flailing Escapist]

Dude, really if I have to purchase every game for $60 I'm probably done. I buy maybe 4 brand new games a year. Why? Because games are freaking expensive. Because of all that goddamn dlc I'm not surprized if I spend upwards of $90 for a brand new game and all the goodies (which some would call the whole game). I don't mind for games I think are worth it (SR3 isn't). Games like FO:NV, Oblivion, Mass Effect 2 were worth it from the last 5 years, thats about it.

Fuck this I hear a book calling my name.
Books are maybe $30 new and I encourage all of you to switch to books in the event of used-game locking MADNESS.

Edit: This is such short term planning. If you want your games to sell consistantly with each new release you need life long fans. You get life long fans by being a consistantly good dev. I'm pretty sure you guys at Volition already have plenty of fans. I, personally, give heavy consideration to companies like Bioware, Bethesda, Obsidian, Valve, Remedy and even Capcom because they keep wowing me with their games (maybe not Capcom, but they used to).

 

[Quakester]

I understand why they are doing this but I don't agree with it. They are penalizing the consumer for the used game market when they should be going after the used game market itself. The software and console developers need to find a way to cut out the used game retailers. It's GameStop and stores like it that are screwing over the developers. Extra Credits had a great idea about how to cut them out of the loop without screwing over the consumers.

 

[Frostbite3789]

Right...... volition i may love your early work but this sounds pretty awful to me. The companies that get my full price money are the ones that have made great games I love in the past. Quite frankly a lot of games aren't worth 60$ to me and by the time they are available for something I might pay then tend to only be found used.

Or you know. On sale. Which stores have every week.

 

[burningdragoon]

" Maybe something as simple as educating them could help solve the problem..."

Yeah that's a good idea, do that. Or just make the industry anti-consumer and horribly inconvenient, that'll work.

I don't even buy used, but I do lend my games to my one friend who leaves near me that has the same interest in games as I do. And going from "here you go" to well, anything else is just terrible.

 

[Fudj]

....So all sony would need to do is not have the same Anti-used games hardware and every single xbox player in the world would get a PS3.....including me, it would kill the xbox completely.

Guys like this Dev really need to stop underestimating consumers. the other thing that got my ire was "these huge experiences for only 60 bucks" only?????????? the games industry will flat out collapse leaving only indie developers left standing, if this moronic mindset continues, used games exist get over it, make better games, and dont try to strip mine every gamers pocket.

 

[Dastardly]

Jameson Durall says things

...YOU MONSTER

Well, that's just my opinion. I'm sure that all of the Escapist will rise up against me to support Durall and his hatred of used games.

I have no problem with a company trying to make new games more valuable than used games (with the inclusion of single-use codes, for instance), to encourage people to buy new -- while still allowing them to buy used for the lower price. This is entirely different.

Even as someone who understands the "used game problem," I think this is a ridiculous measure. And, thankfully, I think it's going to end up costing them more than they find acceptable.

The only way it'll work is if the game is registered online. Fine. You'll see a lot of people stop going online, especially in single-player games. I'd wager most multiplayer die-hards buy new anyway, because buying used runs the risk of getting a game that now has "ghost town" servers. You want to be in the initial wave. So no gain or loss with those folks. But others? Fewer people using the console online means that everyone has fewer allies or opponents in any multiplayer mode. People aren't going to buy those games for long.

Then someone creates the magical key-generator. Suddenly, you buy a game, go to enter the code, and you find it's already registered online. Sure, they can work out who actually has the game... after several weeks. Not worth it, for most customers, who will not be returning. (This story can be re-told using the hack of your choice.)

Customer service nightmares, as someone has to deal with a dead machine. Buy a new machine, link it to the old account... and hope that everything works okay so that you can still play your old games on a new machine. Speaking of which -- you bring a game over to a friend's house, it's not re-sale. But suddenly you have to bring the whole console, too? Or do the account juggle?

Basically, it'll be a nightmare on all fronts for the publishers and/or console companies. Very little return on dollars spent, so they'll abandon the idea once that sinks in.

If they want to stop used sales, they need look no further than Steam. Digital distribution, when it works, means there is no disk to re-sell. If you tie that to the convenience of a system like Steam, you win twice.

 

[Epona]

I am ready for this industry to crash and to start again. This generation has brought some amazing games but it has also brought out the worst in developers, publishers and console manufacturers. Should have seen it coming when they announced $60 games and DLC but how could we know it would get this bad?

This industry is in a downward spiral so sooner or later they will crash and burn, they won't change course because they are too big for that now.

 

[Ziggy the wolf]

...okay you know what, fuck you guy. you know how used games are great for the industry? without lowered used games, no one and i mean NO ONE would noticed the damned saints row series because no one wanted to try another GTA clone. i only bought it because it was incredibly cheap due to being a used copy and it was a pretty good game. people are willing to try something new when its cheaper and you can find an under appreciated gem in the bargain bin. if the xbox 720 or whatever its called stops used copies of the game from being played then hey guess what? the Next gen consoles will die faster then atari jaguar CD

 

[Quellist]

Durall admits that such a system would have its faults. Game rental companies, for example, would be rendered moot, but that could be solved by Microsoft implementing its own rental service.

Yeah because killing competition is always a good thing.

Seriously these guys have their heads so far up their asses (Talking about Volition btw, not Grey Carter) everything they do or say is Shit.

 

[Negatempest]

So um...anyone else see the Wii-U (hopefully a name change too) in a whole new light now?

 

[Tanis]

"I dont like you so I am going to give gamestop all of my money by buying your game used for 5 dollars less! I am still going to play your game, but I am making sure you dont get any money for it and someone else does!"
And people wonder why developers think used gamers are as bad or worse than pirates...

A good game is a good game, doesn't mean I have to support the company that made it if they're doing things that piss me off.
They STILL loose a sale from me, and I get to play the game I want - with a few bucks off the top.
It's a win-win from my view and a lose-lose from theirs (I don't buy Ubisoft DLC either).

ANY dev/pub who thinks used game sales are as bad, or worse, than piracy are pants on retarded.
Period.

 

[Frost27]

Someone's butthurt over Saints 3 resales it seems.

"Personally I think this would be a fantastic change for our business and even though the consumers would be up in arms about it at first...they will grow to understand why and that it won't kill them."

Translation: We see a pile of money we have absolutely no right to, but we wont rest until someone finds a way for us to get a hand in it since the $10 we make per resale on online passes isn't enough.


That guy is an arrogant fuck.

If they try and develop anti used game consoles. They had better start letting me return my games for a full refund if I'm dissatisfied.

 

[Something Amyss]

Aaaaand they lost me as a customer.

I remember people talking about how the online pass is THQ's idea, and Volition was not complicit.

Now we've got one of them saying that it doesn't go far enough.

Screw that. I'm not buying any of your games anymore, guys.

 

[Signa]

If the devs start clamoring for it, it might happen. If it happens, then I foresee the whole console industry collapsing in on itself. As it is now, the next generation only promises to look slightly better and be far more expensive for it. Losing used games will kill it for sure.

 

[Something Amyss]

Out of curiosity, where did the rumor of the next Xbox not playing used games come from? Unless they are building it to be a pc then you would be able to play used games.

The rumour started for the Playsation 3, and I'm assuming it's just a rehash of that one.

 

[Otaku World Order]

Dear Mr. Durrall,

I don't know if you realize this, but gamers are not fond of being bullied. So when you tell us all to shut up and fork over a "mere" $60 for your "huge experiences", like Saints Row The Third, a game that was much smaller then it's predecessor so you could milk more out of DLC, we don't like it.

True, buying games new won't kill us, but buying no games won't kill us either. But buying no games might kill you.

To put it in a more direct way, I turn to my good friend, Shizune:

Thank you, Shizune.