A price increase?! I am OUTRAGED! You should be too!

tareq

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Why the hell Blizzard/Activision is charging $10 more for their PC games (starcraft 2/diablo 3) all the sudden after MW2?? Is this becoming the norms? I refused to buy MW2 because of this reason. I am not complaining about the extra $10 as the tangible value of it as much as I am complaining and protesting the violation of a principle. This is not fair or justifiable. I can't believe they can get away with it while eveyone else is not protesting the price increase and just busy hyping their games! They are not paying royalties to MS or Sony, therefore, why are we paying the same price as console gamers?? Is it not enough that they are cutting all sorts of PC exclusive features (server support, mods, etc) or the fact that we have to put up with all kinds of DRM crap that they bundle with their products?! If we don't stand up to Blizzard/Activision now and vote with our wallets, other publishers will follow suit soon. I am OUTRAGED! i'm outraged as to why this is not bothering anyone. Why it's not being brought up in podcasts and blog posts.

Tareq
 

purplerat

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Assassin's Creed II is also $10 more. I pretty much share your sentiments that I don't care too much about the actual cost but more the principle of having to pay the same as the consoles. As I initially think about it I'm almost willing to give into the idea that PC games cost more to make up for increased piracy whereas console games have royalties to pay. But when I think about it a little more it irks me that console gamers still get the option of buying a used game now for less than the PC version.

Honestly I don't see myself running out to buy too many $60 PC games even if they are quality PC exclusives. PC game prices drop quickly so I'll be likely to wait until these games have dropped even below the $50 I would have payed. With the competitive market of digital distributors these games can always be had for 25% off or more within a few weeks plus there are numerous older titles with ever plunging prices to occupy my time while I wait for even the best of games to come down to a more reasonable price.
 

isamuelson

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I always wait for sales. Eventually, especially if they are on Steam, you can get a great deal. Or, check out Target. That's how I got Bioshock 1 for $20 over two years ago. I have no need to get a game just because it just came out.

Same with Dragon Age. I waited until Steam had a sale and then I purchased it for less than the retail price.
 

tareq

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Yes, you are absolutely right. However, if the prices start at $60 then they will take longer time than usual to drop specially for titles like Starcraft and Diablo. I don’t buy games at full price too most of the time and I love games from independent developers such as sins of solar empire and I am willing to pay for price for such games. Never the less, I feel that big publishers are bullying us over with these prices and are hindering the pc games industry as whole. The argument that games cost too much is countered by the fact that they are cutting pc exclusive features that might cost them to support. Piracy, on the other hand, is being countered by draconian DRM measures.
 

purplerat

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We'll have to see about how the prices drop. They could drop just as quickly and just as low as if they started at $50 especially if they lose pre-order or release day sales to people balking at the $60 price tag which PC gamers are not used to. Really the only PC game to try out this higher price is MW2 which is not a great example because COD games tend to carry a high price point much longer than most PC games (MW didn't really drop until MW2 came out and barely then).

One thing about PC games is that because of digital distribution they can react to the market quicker than console games in terms of pricing. That said I have a feeling Blizzard will keep the price high for a while. Not only will those particular games sell well but Blizzard is pretty protective of it's IPs so they won't be slashing prices too quickly just to get a few extra sales (why do they even bother charging for WoW now?).

BTW - Gamestop has Starcraft II listed at $50 and Diablo III at $60, so as of now it seems Diablo is the only one getting a price bump. Of course there is the whole issue of who they are releasing Starcraft in parts so it's not like much is being saved overall.
 

purplerat

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What's sad is that the extra cost will probably deter a lot of people from buying these games at release and those lost sales will be blamed on piracy and/or PC gaming not being a viable platform.
 

tareq

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I do not think petition works. I am more interested in creating a collective sentiment that disapprove such price hikes and discourages further advancements by other publishers. I would want PC game/hardware sites to write about it and voice the opinion of their readers.
 

purplerat

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Yup, that's what I'd like to see. Hey maybe there's a good reason why these prices are going up or maybe it's something else. Either way what we have is something (the price of PC games) which has essentially been the same for some 10 years or more and now a one time virtual cap on prices seems to have been lifted. If it hadn't been so constant for so long it might be easily brushed off as a normal price increase. But that's not the case so we should ask for a more detailed analysis and/or response.
 

whipaura

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Blizzard is now a part of Activision so I wouldn't be too surprised that they upped the price of their upcoming games. Also, they know the games going to sell like hotcakes and they know adding $10 to the price won't put people off. I do agree that it sucks though.
 

JDV28

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How will you know if its good BEFORE it comes out, hm?
 

number13

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I have quit buying games until it's been out for a while, usually I wait until it's on sale somewhere, so the game companies can try to charge the same as consoles, I ain't buying it
BTW, I just got Oblivion, glad I waited, after playing Divinity2, I think it(Oblivion) sucks, the only game I eaver played that I got put in jail for doing what the game says to do, I took a dead mans horse that one of the NPC's said to take, then I got put in jail for stripping corpses, STUPID GAME
 

purplerat

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I was at Gamestop yesterday and noticed Assassin's Creed 2 was only $39.99 for the 360. When I got home I checked both Steam on Gamestops site and both have the PC listed as $59.99. Now maybe this is an error, seeing how it has yet to be released, but then again both are taking orders so people are paying $60 for a game that is $40 on the consoles. Is there something special about the PC version that I'm missing?
 

Dekasav

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I think the PC version has some $10 DLC, but I'm *definitely* not sure. Also, just due to the nature of things, the console version has lost value, I suppose they're hoping PC gamers won't notice.
 

purplerat

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Is the $40 console price a reduction? I never really paid attention to it's pricing. I would guess the PC would also drop pretty quickly as well. If so it sucks to be somebody who pre-ordered. But I don't feel too bad for them. Unless there is some phenomenal offer pre ordering is utterly pointless in today's gaming market.
 

BeCoolBro

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This may seem stupid but I think it's better paying extra for game companys that release our favorite pc games which are sometimes masterpieces than paying 70 euros for the ps3 games and the other console ones.If it supports the release of new better games I'm paying for blizzard and other guys.But because mw2 is so popular I'm not going to pay that much to play it.It isn't good enough to deserve more money than better games.
 

purplerat

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I could be convinced on a game like Starcraft or Diablo to pay a premium. Assassin's Creed 2 is hardly a game worth even the usual PC max price (USD) of $50 never mind $10 more and $20 more than the consoles to boot. MW2 could have been worth the extra $ but they took away from PC gamers so it comes off as a pure money grab. Which is really unnecessary considering how much they'll make off the console versions, $10 for the PC is not going to mean much to them in terms of profits but does make the average PC gamer think twice especially considering the game is nothing special for the PC.