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Comments: 358 +- Games: The Nickel & Dime Generation on Tuesday September 29, @06:01AM
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Phaethon360 sends in a piece that looks at how quickly game costs can add up these days, now that DLC, microtransactions and standalone expansions are commonplace, writing, "If you were trying to the think of the most expensive games to play, Rock Band or a monthly-fee MMORPG would come to mind. But Halo 3 is right up there, too." It's reminiscent of a recent post at IncGamers where the author tallied up how much he'd spent on World of Warcraft over the past several years, and was astonished to realize it numbered in the thousands of dollars.
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DLC (Score:5, Interesting)
That's a total of 4 years and 8 months as of right now. That means that I've paid $14.95 a month for 56 months. That's $837.20.
Considering that's almost 5 years of entertainment and actually a good game, is that really so much. Like he notes, it comes down to $14.95 a month - pretty much every other hobby costs a lot more per month, while still providing less in back in terms of time spent.
Microtransactions and DLC's is a good way. If you like the game, you get more of what you like. It's not like you *have to* buy them. Patches in my opinion should be for game balancing or bug fixes - DLC's and expansions for things that add content to the game. However some companies, like Valve, release DLC's (TF2, Left4dead) for free on PC too.
Re:DLC (Score:5, Funny)
it comes down to $14.95 a month - pretty much every other hobby costs a lot more per month, while still providing less in back in terms of time spent.
Considering 3 games per month, $40 avg price, you're saving 105 right there. Then consider the cost of tuition, gf, wife upgrade, and possibly kids. The savings are astronomical!
Parent
Re:DLC (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:DLC (Score:5, Funny)
There's no way to get it to work in the long run, trust me. Reformatting's just plain prohibitively expensive and time consuming which only leaves dual-bootying which is almost impossible to start up properly and usually ends in a complete system failure if they ever interact in the slightest way.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
The right parts being a token ring, right?
Re:DLC (Score:4, Funny)
I find it more interesting if the gf doesn't herself play that much, so your whole life doesn't start to be just one thing. Of course it sometimes sucks to be sucked in to "boring" sounding places, but its a good change.
And when she does play something then, its more fun. I can take a beer and watch while she plays GTA Vice City. Or when she comes get me to bed at 4am after a long hours of Left4Dead, while watching me finishing the game all sleepy.
For that matter my father plays a lot too (and used to play when we we're kids too). Even so that calling to come to eat was sometimes done in WoW whispers :)
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Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Re:DLC (Score:4, Funny)
After child process was spawned, wife started getting add-on packs. Have almost twice as much wife now as before. At least add-on packs are evenly distributed. We might need to try running an exercise process. In our copious free time, of course.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
>>>>>I've paid $14.95 a month for 56 months. That's $837.20.
>>
>>pretty much every other hobby costs a lot more per month
Yes but it's not necessary to spend all that cash on just ONE game. I bought DDR for just $20 and it still entertains me all these years later. Why spend hundreds of dollars when a single twenty will give just as much fun?
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
This is asinine. The reason a gamer won't be moving to Linux is because wine is a pitiful implementation (as good as it is right now) and doesn't support most games that are forced upon by microsoft and nvidia in collusion to be DX11, etc.
Lets leave that shit out of it, eh?
The point is, buying a couple *PC* games is cheaper than buying into MMO's.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
10 people that I know in real life? I play WoW man!
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Considering that's almost 5 years of entertainment and actually a good game, is that really so much. Like he notes, it comes down to $14.95 a month - pretty much every other hobby costs a lot more per month
Hmm... that depends. It's easy to find cheap hobbies: knitting, painting (some kinds), writing, many sports (football, running, swimming), gardening, reading, walking.
There are also plenty of expensive hobbies: flying/gliding, skiing, motor racing.
Then there are ones where you spend as much as you like: watching sport or live music are the most obvious -- see a big band/team for £60, or a smaller one for £12 or one that's not very good yet (almost free, or free).
And ones with a large upfront cos
Re:DLC (Score:5, Insightful)
I play soccer. I spend more playing that in a recreational league (the cheapest one in the state that I know of) than on a WoW subscription. I enjoy reading. I admit that I don't work at keeping reading costs down (I'm often buying books and then giving them away to others), but I spend more on books than a WoW subscription. Swimming? Where do you swim? Swim once a week at a pool and you pay more than WoW, own your own pool and you are way way above that. Every gardener I know pays more than a WoW subscription for their hobby. If you like popcorn, WoW is cheaper than one movie a month. Wow, as hobbies go, is cheap. You have to work hard to find hobbies that cost less. 5 years of WoW is still less than what my coworker paid for his PS3, and he pays 3-5 times WoW's subsctiption on top of that in games.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Why? Because reading literature is inherently respectable, while video games are inherently a waste of time? What are you getting out of either activity besides enjoyment?
You're sitting in a room by yourself, consuming the creative output of somebody else. I'm sure you think it makes you more interesting and better than someone doing the same while also interacting
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Knitting isn't cheap. My wife's been knitting for only a few months now and she goes through enough material to cost way more than WoW would.
Because, you know, once you invest hours into knitting socks or a sweater, it suddenly makes sense to buy quality material. Like alpaca or merino wool. You don't get those for free.
AFAIR, a pair of socks already costs more than a WoW subscription and it will definitely not take her a whole month to finish the socks.
This does not mean I don't see knitting as the superio
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Just as a bit of advice, if your wife really gets the knitting bug, you might want to look at online yarn suppliers. You can usually get superior prices for nice, high quality stuff.
Oh, and if she's not already a member, send her over to Ravelry [ravelry.com]. Best knitting resource *ever*.
Re:DLC (Score:4, Funny)
/., for all your knitting kneeds.
Parent
Re:DLC (Score:4, Funny)
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Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
My wife and I have a policy about our hobbies:
I don't ask about how much her yarn stash cost and she doesn't ask how much the dive gear costs.
Separate bank accounts -- the key to happiness.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Her clothes == My computer stuff
Her shoes == My tools
It worked quite well until she decided she needed the child add on... I still think it is much too expensive.
A fool and his money are soon parted. (Score:2, Funny)
It is immoral and unethical... (Score:5, Funny)
This is taught in business ethics 101, and reiterated in all subsequent business ethics classes.
Parent
Re: (Score:2)
It's not foolish to pay for something you like and enjoy. Even less so because with DLC's and micropayments you've played the game already, know you like it and then pay for more content for your favorite game.
If you can't afford it. then... (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't play the game. It is only a game.
I can see whining and bitching about prices for things that we need to function in modern society. Homes, Transportation, energy, food etc... But video games just let the market decide what will happen if it is too expensive and you don't want to pay that amount then don't buy the game. It is only a game you don't need it. If you think you do then you are a shill to marketing.
Re:If you can't afford it. then... (Score:4, Insightful)
I agree. The only problem with the entertainment industry is that unlike the housing, transportation, energy industries, if a mass of people vote with their wallet then some companies will write it off as piracy increasing as opposed to people being turned off by gouging and making a monetary vote.
As it is right now, I don't buy any new blockbuster game not only due to its price, but due to the fact that if I wait two years I can get a "gold edition" or a "game of the year edition" with all the content people were nickel and dimed for at 40% of the price of the standalone game.
Parent
Re:If you can't afford it. then... (Score:5, Informative)
You're not wrong, but the OP didn't say anything at all about copying the game you don't want to pay for - he merely pointed out that if people (silently) stop paying for games, it'll be written off as being due to piracy, whether it is or not.
Parent
My New MMORPG ... (Score:3, Funny)
is called The Road to Serfdom. I think you would make an excellent beta tester. Are you interested?
Nickel and diming is everywhere (Score:2, Insightful)
Be ready for nickel and diming across the board. I see strategic war games on Steam selling sprite packs for $2.50.
Browsing around yesterday, I knew that when I saw a "Buy today and get four landmarks free" advertisement for CitiesXL [citiesxl.com] (MMO SimCity) that if I were look into its pricing scheme a bit more, I'd be in for a doozy: $9 a month to play with "free" content each month, followed by add-on packs called GEMs. Right now people are in an uproar over it because the general impression is that people will nee
Well, duh (Score:2)
It's reminiscent of a recent post at IncGamers where the author tallied up how much he'd spent on World of Warcraft over the past several years, and was astonished to realize it numbered in the thousands of dollars.
Don't forget to include the cost of Cheetos and HoHos.
But seriously, it's entertainment, and, compared to a lot of other things one could be doing (going to the movies, fly fishing, buying new hardcover books, restoring classic cars, etc.) it's relatively inexpensive. Yeah, sure, the cost adds up
DLC is great (Score:5, Funny)
for the developers:
CEO: "Are we going to meet the release date?"
Project Manager: "Most of the game is done, but not all the bonus maps have been completed or tested yet"
CEO: "You'll just have to pull all nighters until it's done"
Project Manager: "Well I was thinking that we could just release that stuff as (paid) DLC when the game launches"
CEO: "Kind of like how you'd release a patch to fix a hideous software bug you only noticed just before game went live?"
Project Manager: "Exactly, and that leads me to my next point..."
Why single out games? (Score:5, Insightful)
It's reminiscent of a recent post at IncGamers where the author tallied up how much he'd spent on World of Warcraft over the past several years, and was astonished to realize it numbered in the thousands of dollars
TV services will add up to thousands of dollars in ONE year, not several.
If your hobby is auto tuning or off-roading that souped up sports car or SUV will gobble through even more money a year in parts and gas than the afore mentioned TV bills.
Is your hobby reading? Only a fraction of titles are available in the libraries of most municipalities, this means at least as much as WoW a month if not more.
The point is this is nothing new. Every generation has had its "nickel and dime", it's the nature of all hobbies.
Re:Why single out games? (Score:5, Insightful)
Because companies intentionally cripple games and then charge you extra to get the full game. THAT is why. When you pay for HBO, HBO doesn't leave out certain shows that you have to pay extra for or only show you 3/4 of an episode and you have to pay extra for the rest of the episode. When you buy a car, they don't sell you the car and then say "oh, well you have to pay another $5,000 if you want a FUEL tank. What? You want to be able to turn it on? Well that's another $4,500 for the ignition!" That kind of garbage is the problem with DLC.
When you pay for cable though you don't get all the channels. You have to pay for HBO, Showtime, ESPN sports packages, then there's pay-per-view, on demand fees, and lets not forget a separate category for HD feeds.
When you buy a car you don't get all the features either. You might say "oh those aren't necessary", but I hear stories from my mother about cars and HOMES without air conditioning a few decades ago.
Do I think the practice is abusive? hell yeah! It should be fought tooth and nail too!, but this article makes it seem unique, which is far from the case.
Parent
Re:Why single out games? (Score:4, Insightful)
And just like air conditioning, DLC is extra. You don't need an extra map or 2 to enjoy the game. Your purchased copy will run perfectly 100% fine and you could always go through the complete campaign which is still usually around 15 - 30 hours of gameplay. DLC adds a little more to that if you're finished with the game and don't want to wait till the sequel to have new content. This content isn't free to produce, and is an added value on top of what you've already paid. Saying that without the DLC, the game is broken in any way or missing features is being very disingenuous.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
As somebody who played through the entirety of Far Cry 2 without having the DLC, I don't see how the GP's analogy fails at any point.
Pretty much the only DLC that effectively "crippled" the main game was that of Fallout 3, the one that allowed you to live through the final mission and extended the level cap up to 30. Though it could be considered a short expansion due to the amount of content in it, so even then it's debatable if it's the concept of DLCs' fault.
Re:Why single out games? (Score:4, Insightful)
Because companies intentionally cripple games and then charge you extra to get the full game. THAT is why. When you pay for HBO, HBO doesn't leave out certain shows that you have to pay extra for or only show you 3/4 of an episode and you have to pay extra for the rest of the episode. When you buy a car, they don't sell you the car and then say "oh, well you have to pay another $5,000 if you want a FUEL tank. What? You want to be able to turn it on? Well that's another $4,500 for the ignition!" That kind of garbage is the problem with DLC.
No but they might offer alloy wheels, metalic paint, a sun roof, cruise control, built in GPS, a Carlos Fandango trim kit, and an upgraded stereo at extra cost. Is that so different?
Parent
Cost per hour (Score:3, Insightful)
wonder what his /played totals? I can't look at mine. The money is nothing compared to the time wasted. Generally I think of WoW as saving my entertainment dollar. What other entertainment could you possible find for $15 a month. Heck Netflix costs more. Of course if you want to go crazy add in the net connection, the new PC every couple of years, the junkfood for raiding, and the gym membership that you got to take off the raiding pounds (but have never used)
Three Words (Score:5, Interesting)
Magic The Gathering
Re:Three Words (Score:4, Informative)
Magic The Gathering
Indeed. That was (is) the highest money sink I've ever played. And the Online version is ludicrous (you pay MSRP for DIGITAL cards !!! ) yet many people (myself included) play it (the "trick" is that the game is subsidized by heavy prize support, which you don't get if you just play casually).
And they added even more ridiculous stuff recently.
That said, it's only insanely expensive if you play competitively, or the "limited" formats (which are basically where you pay for a tournament where they give you the cards, as opposed to "bring your own cards", and you get to keep the cards afterwards, but they do charge almost retail for them).
Parent
Re:Three Words (Score:4, Funny)
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Sneaking in everywhere (Score:3, Interesting)
As a big hockey fan I picked up NHL 10, to play with friends on their online league, the EASHL. In past years the game just featured "real" equipment that the players in the league wore, and you could chose any of that for your character.
This year they featured customized "cool" equipment with boost slots. So a piece of equipment could be unlocked with 3 boost slots, and then up to 3 boosts could also be unlocked and added to it. So suddenly if you decided you wanted your character to look like he rides the short bus, you could actually increase your character up to 60 points, which is a major increase, considering leveling up your character fully only gets you about a 75 point increase.
EA set most of these "unlockables" to some really impossible tasks. Play 4 seasons, manually playing at least 40 games each season and score X number of goals each season. If somebody has a month, they could probably achieve this, but because these would be used in a competitive league, people wanted them now and EA allowed people to purchase them. $3 per equipment, $2 per boost. Maxing out the boost equipment on your guy comes to roughly $40, yet if you don't you're at a disadvantage from those who either have too much time and can unlock, or too much money and can just buy it all.
I bought one or two pieces to try and keep up, and would probably have bought more but my 360 RROD'd and its given me time to think. I doubt I'll buy a $60 game in the future where the part of the game I'm most likely to play will cost me a full $100, then I'll be fully expected to do it again next year.
Second life: did someone say... (Score:4, Interesting)
Did someone say microtransactions? You can easily blow $20 a month on buying Linden Dollars to buy clothes and skins and hair and animations and gadgets. Then if you want to buy land that's another $10 a month for a premium account, $20 to actually get some land, plus now you're buying houses and trees and furniture. And that just puts you into "lower middle class". The real status symbol is owning a whole island.
Private island: $1000 down + $295 / month.
That's US dollars, not Linden dollars...
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
People prefer small upfront fees, better TCO (Score:4, Interesting)
I've noticed that people in general seem to greatly prefer lower upfront fees compared to total cost of ownership (TCO).
For instance, when AT&T halved the price of the iPhone and almost doubled the cost of the text+dataplan (raising TCO, but lowering the upfront fees), this made consumers happy and there was a bump in sales. We see this in other industries - to many car buyers, they only really consider the monthly payment amount, rather than the total cost of the vehicle, which is why car companies are now pushing 72 month leases. Even in the game industry, many people criticize the Playstation 3 as "too expensive", preferring the XBox's prices. Well, once you add in the cost of XBox Live ($50/year) compared to the Playstation Network (free) the difference is less significant.
Companies are just getting smarter and more efficient at extracting money from consumers. In a capitalist society, this is really an inevitable consequence. The only solution to this is for consumers to get smarter, and start making better and more informed choices. I am sure this will never happen.
Subscription services, paid add-on content and endless nickel & diming are the future.
*Disclaimer: I'm not sure if these observations are specific to Americans, or this is how most people around the world behave.
Gamestop caused this. (Score:5, Insightful)
With more and more "casual" gamers buying more and more "awful but severely marketed" titles that offer no lasting replay value, the idea of a "long-term rental" utilizing GameStop as a middle-man, means EA can sell the downloadable content to 5 or 10 different people per disc instead of just 1! Burn-out Paradise is a prime example of this. Sure you can snag the disc for $15-$20 at your local used disc dealer, but after you install and update the game, you'll discover huge sections of the world closed to you (and cars unattainable) until you fork over $20 here and there for download-able expansions!
Even better, if you buy all these trinkets and ever lose the disc/sell the game then EA still has a bunch of your money for bits you can no longer use, and the chance to sell them all over again to someone else!
Ridiculous FA (Score:5, Insightful)
This article is ridiculous
The guy has 2 * 2 accounts with his wife, buys WoW normal AND collector editions, goes to BlizzCon and then finds out it costs quite a bit of money?
There are many articles worth nothing and this is one of them.
I dunno about this dude, WoW saved me thousands (Score:3, Informative)
Seriously, WoW saved me thousands of dollars over the 2 years I was addicted to it. I stopped going out. I stopped taking my lady out. I stopped seeing friends. Of course all those things are bad, but I've never had such a tremendous rise in my savings.
I was a pretty social guy before WoW, I probably went out 4 times a week. Let's say that each night was $20-40 dollars.
So WoW equaled about $15 a month. Going out was probably closer to $500 a month. So that's about $485 dollars in savings.
Or course I had no real life except the PVP ladder grind. I'm lucky my lady friend didn't abandon me. Luckily I was able to recover from my addiction.
Re:Gold account (Score:4, Insightful)
Any XBox 360 game is expensive if microsoft continue to charge users to play online...
Well it's all because of those damn pirates. I mean if people would stop copying games, usually kids and others who don't have the financial means to do otherwise, or even those who wouldn't pay for it anyway, then money would magically appear in their pockets and they would be willing to spend this magical money on games. Then all the games in the world would be cheap! Because that's how unfairly treated EA and Blizzard and Microsoft are, struggling in this harsh and cruel world to barely make ends meet.
Not following? Me neither.
Disclaimer: I'm not for or against piracy, I keep my worthless morals to myself, and you keep your worthless morals to yourself. I'm just exposing bullshit.
Parent
Re:GranTurismo 5 (Score:5, Informative)
The microtransaction-focused game, Gran Turismo HD: Classic will be the online-focused entrant into the GT-series
That's not Gran Turismo 5 tho, but Gran Turismo HD (which is cancelled already - the news is from 2006)
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
This is not rocket science, it's basic arithmetic. Unfortunately, the average American failed basic arithmetic so it might as well be rocket science.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Subscription based payment makes a lot more sense for MMOs because you're constantly using their server whenever you're playing. At an abstract level, separate from the question as to whether or not I'm getting good value for my money, just the basic concept makes some sense to me. I'm continually using their resources, and so I give them a few bucks each month.
At my job we use AutoCAD and Autodesk basically forced us into a subscription the last time we upgraded. So now instead of paying a big chunk of cha