I just kind of swung at that one, I knew some might disagree on AW haha.
I was pumped when they first announced Alan Wake. Waited patiently for it. Super disappointed playing it.
Regardless, more of my point is that after so many years, you'd think a great, flawless game would come out of the production. It's never the case. Some of the games are good, but they've always got definite flaws, and after 8 years that's pretty much just unacceptable.
Is it worth waiting 8 years for a decent, albeit flawed game?
It's funny that only $10 creates a bit of a hesitation for consumers (myself included), especially if you breakdown the entertainment value you get for the money. A standard 20-30 hour adventure game breaks down to less than $3/hour. When you look at what's available out there for entertainment at less than $3/hour, the pickings are mighty slim. If the game was $60, at that rate you'd only save $0.40/hour.
Look at games like NHL or epic RPGs and that 20-30 hour figure gets blown out of the water. It takes 24 hours to finish an entire season in NHL, and I've had years where I've played 4 seasons.
I don't feel like just because a game is longer that it's better value though. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't.
And yes, there's the demand side of things, but consumers also understand that on the supply side of things the cost of delivery for an individual copy is near zero, so we expect that low prices and high volumes could deliver profits similar to high prices and low volumes.
If you just look at $/time, the best thing you can spend your money on is an infinite grind.
Amazon's E3 sale is even better than Best Buy and Futureshop. The sale is still up to 30% off but the base price of the games are between $45-59 before the discount.
Here's NHL 15, Destiny, and Sunset Overdrive...
Order Summary
Items (3): CDN$ 164.69
Shipping & Handling: CDN$ 5.97
Extra 15% applied: -CDN$ 24.70
Promotion applied: -CDN$ 24.70
Total before tax: CDN$ 121.26
Estimated GST/HST: CDN$ 6.06
Estimated PST/RST/QST: CDN$ 0.00
Order Total: CDN$ 127.32
So $40 a game before tax. Or you can save even more with switching to Super Saver shipping.
The Following User Says Thank You to Meelapo For This Useful Post:
There used to be a purpose in pre-ordering a game. In the past there wasn't a guarantee that you'd be able to get a copy of a game on launch, even a big name release. It's different now especially with digital sales.
Unless you're getting a special edition I'd say that pre-ordering is for suckers. There is no benefit to the consumer to throw their money at an unreleased game. Ya, you might save $10 or $20 but you may also have just thrown $40 or $50 away. I'd rather pay full price on a game that I know I am going to enjoy than risk getting burned by a mediocre title.
Just look at that new Thief game. Released at the end of February and could have been had for $15 on PC over the weekend.
There used to be a purpose in pre-ordering a game. In the past there wasn't a guarantee that you'd be able to get a copy of a game on launch, even a big name release. It's different now especially with digital sales.
Unless you're getting a special edition I'd say that pre-ordering is for suckers. There is no benefit to the consumer to throw their money at an unreleased game. Ya, you might save $10 or $20 but you may also have just thrown $40 or $50 away. I'd rather pay full price on a game that I know I am going to enjoy than risk getting burned by a mediocre title.
Just look at that new Thief game. Released at the end of February and could have been had for $15 on PC over the weekend.
Most stores offer a return policy. Just wait for a review before you open the game.
Most stores offer a return policy. Just wait for a review before you open the game.
I mainly buy games on PC these days. It's all digital so the chances of getting a refund are slim. Frankly, I have so many games and deep sales happen so often that I don't feel the need to rush out and pre-order a title.
only reason i'm pre-ordering from the sale for e3 - they are on sale, if you don't preorder now, you will be paying the $70+ tax unless you wait a year or two after release... or hope for some weird sale that rarely happens
I'm thinking I will pre-order Arkham Knight, The Division, and The Phantom Pain.
Loved Arkham Asylum and Arkham City, love the Metal Gear series so I don't think I will go wrong with either of those. The Division is a wild card, but I think the idea is neat so it could be a great game if done right.
I mainly buy games on PC these days. It's all digital so the chances of getting a refund are slim. Frankly, I have so many games and deep sales happen so often that I don't feel the need to rush out and pre-order a title.
If you're a pure console gamer then these deals are worth it. If you're a PC gamer then pre-ordering is probably the worst thing you can do just because all those digital distributors have 20-50% sales before and shortly after game releases.
Amazon's E3 sale is even better than Best Buy and Futureshop. The sale is still up to 30% off but the base price of the games are between $45-59 before the discount.
Microsoft starts it off in about 30 minutes. I don't see how they don't win E3 this year because they really don't have much of a choice. After last year they pretty much have to bring something impressive... don't they?
