Developer Says Used-Game Market a Bigger Problem than Piracy

[Darth_Fatso]

https://www.gamespy.com/articles/108/1089088p1.html

 

[EVILFACE]

How do they know when a game is "used"?

I can go to best buy and buy a game that is a year and half old, would that be considered used to them?

What about games that are rented?

Make games that have far more replay value and that will be start.

 

[ArmoredFoe]

totally agree...make a game worth me playing over and over again til the next title comes out and we wouldnt have this situation. Thats why I only buy the games I want. I do my research and only buy the games I know Im going to play.

 

[plasmid303]

There have been complaints that used games are defrauding the industry for years now, so I don't blame them for developers and producers for trying something like this.

I think the 'new game only' bonuses are really how they should go about this, and some games have already introduced this method. Players who bought Gears of War 2 new got access to 5 free maps (If I remember right) that were not available to those who bought the game used, and Mass Effect 2 gave buyers of new copies a code to access the Cerberus Network, which had free DLC and stuff.

I rarely buy games used, and when I do it's only if the game in question is really old and hard to find or if I'm getting a huge value from getting it used versus new. The latter part is infrequent, since buying used games nowadays at places like Gamestop barely saves you more than $5 for a recently released title.

 

[darthviper107]

Technically that's probably true--pirated games don't automatically mean lost sales, while used game sales do.

It'd be interesting if they could make it in the future where games aren't physically sold, you could only download them to your console. Then they'd get all the sales. And Gamestop would go out of business--but I wouldn't mind that

 

[Nuka Cola Kidd]

They already get a percentage when the game is sold new at $60+ now they want even more when their game is deemed unplayable /old news by the gaming community

hmmm seems like greed to me.

 

[Solidus]

Reading an article like that, makes me believe that we're one step closer to the day when all console games will be fully digital. PC games have already gone down that route for several years now, most noticeably, with "Steam".

However, the question that really lingers in my mind, is whether stores like Gamestop will be able to survive a "fully digitized" era of video games. After all, much of Gamestop's profit comes from the selling of used games.

 

[karamazov80]

A tricky issue. I can understand the developers' frustrations, but why not apply this to anything? "I don't like that the house I sold is getting re-sold later. I'm gonna demand that each subsequent owner owes me 10%!" It sounds ridiculous in other circumstances, but the logic is similar. The only difference is that people don't keep games long, and that the used market is so strong.

Ultimately, the new fee will probably play the role of clamping down on used game sales, by placing the burden on retailers. Market forces demand used game costs, and customers aren't gonna pay $10 more just because game developers want it. Used game sellers are gonna have to charge $10 less to off-set the cost. . .so they are the ones who are really going to suffer here. Which I guess is fine with the game manufacturers. But if they hurt their relationships with the EBGames's of the world, will that benefit manufacturers in the long run? Don't know. As Solidus says, those guys are gonna go the way of the dinosaurs soon anyway, so maybe it doesn't matter.

 

[Deckard]

Right when hard drives for xbox became popular, gamestop, knowing full well what they were doing, enacted a policy where you could buy a game, return it the same day for a new one and keep going and going without any question.

My friend with a modded xbox, made a dozen trips a day to burn games to his harddrive and then return them for a new one. He ended up with about 40 games for $50. And gamestop never asked one question, in fact the guy working htere would just laugh when he came in.

 

[ArmoredFoe]

They already get a percentage when the game is sold new at $60+ now they want even more when their game is deemed unplayable /old news by the gaming community

hmmm seems like greed to me.

yeah i kind of think the same thing. They just want to make sure that every dime goes to the developing company. I mean to me its like some people wouldnt have even played there game if it wasnt for the fact that they bought it used. So the companies should think of that...the person didnt want to buy it new so they bought it used, where as if it wasnt for the used, most likely the person wouldnt have even played the game in the first place. Plus to have those used games someones buying them new, so again I kinda think the whole greed thing comes in also.

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Lol...they're made because they're only getting once for every new game sale?? The day they go the PC game route where you no longer have a physical disc....I'm done with gaming. I already hate the fact that some anti-piracy allows you to only install a game "X" number of times as it is.

 

[darthviper107]

If they do go digital they should at least drop the price--there's no way I'm paying full price for a digital copy when I can get the game on disc for the same price.

Part of the issue is that games don't make anything outside of the sale of the game. For instance with movies, you go see it at the theater then you buy the DVD, maybe buy products for it. But games come out as they are--and that's the only way they make money. No one's interested enough to buy merchandise

 

[Starkiller]

Big companies will always complain about not making more money and taking advantage of gamers in different ways.

 

[Matt S]

You cant have a company like Gamestop, continue a business model that hurts the industry as a whole.......personally, I think the fee if not new thing is pretty fair. The games I really want I buy new, so getting the Cerebus network for free was fair. If I paid $15 for a used copy of Mass Effect 2, and another $15 for the service, I am still paying half of retail, and the devs made a profit. Its a win-win

 

[Kibishii]

I understand the developers frustration. They are butthurt because so many people don't want to drop $60 on a game that they will beat in a week, but this is really no different from game rentals; except that game rentals bounce the game around a hell of alot more times. Over the last four years, I have probably bought a total of five games new: Fallout 3, Dragon Age: Origins, Resident Evil 5, F.E.A.R. 2, and Street Fighter IV. There might be others, but I don't think so.

Yet, I have beaten darn near every game on Gamespot's top 360 game list (7.5 and above) and I would say most of those come from renting the game at Blockbuster. Any games that I want to play multiplayer on Live or I see me playing for longer than seven days, I just wait for a few weeks and buy it off eBay for 1/2 the price.

 

[Trustey]

They are working on it. Steam, PSN with full game downloads. Look at Dragon Age whch had DLC up for purchase right when it launched.

 

[darthviper107]

I understand the developers frustration. They are butthurt because so many people don't want to drop $60 on a game that they will beat in a week, but this is really no different from game rentals; except that game rentals bounce the game around a hell of alot more times. Over the last four years, I have probably bought a total of five games new: Fallout 3, Dragon Age: Origins, Resident Evil 5, F.E.A.R. 2, and Street Fighter IV. There might be others, but I don't think so.

Yet, I have beaten darn near every game on Gamespot's top 360 game list (7.5 and above) and I would say most of those come from renting the game at Blockbuster. Any games that I want to play multiplayer on Live or I see me playing for longer than seven days, I just wait for a few weeks and buy it off eBay for 1/2 the price.

Most people don't complete games--in fact, just about 5% of people who play a game complete it

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Most people don't complete games--in fact, just about 5% of people who play a game complete it

I don't consider a game complete unless I get all the trophies/achievements. Lol....I have so many incomplete games in my profile I seem to wonder why I even bothered playing many of them.

 

[jonny88]

just more rich people complaining.they want more money.the video game industry involves millions and millions of $.even game developers who make the games make damn good money and the people on top supervising the game developments make over a million a year.mabey if video games were not so expensive people would go buy these games new instead of used.

 

[ArmoredFoe]

Lol...they're made because they're only getting once for every new game sale?? The day they go the PC game route where you no longer have a physical disc....I'm done with gaming. I already hate the fact that some anti-piracy allows you to only install a game "X" number of times as it is.

Yep totally agree with this, if I dont have the physical game in my hand
im not paying for it. I just dont like the idea of digital media for games. Also like you said the whole "I bought this game, but can only install it a certain number of times" is total BS.