Reuters EXPOSES the *real* price of 360 games. Oh SNAP!

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.Dreams-Visions

PC says otherwise.  If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :? 

Well the price of PC games has gone up a bit over the last few years I have noticed, but not that much. Oblivion I think was the most expensive PC game I have ever seen, cashing in at 80 dolllars CAD at release time (it is now 70 for the PC I think), and then another 40 or something for the Nights of Nine expansion. Most other PC games though are 50 or 60 dollars here in Canada, which is compareable to console games. I dont think companies should have the right to be charging gamers for extra content on consoles, since most of those things are free. I swear to god if Microsoft makes me pay money to play Unreal Tournament 3 online against other PC gamers I am going to be really really annoyed to the point of doing something radical about it. Sorry but what do developers expect out of games when the hardware takes much more time to create them due to their complexity. If companies want to make up for their losses, then they should make games for the Wii since they wont break the bank developing good games so long as they put in the effort to make Wii titles look good and play well (I am looking at you Ubisoft).

Whilst I would like free downloadable content as much as the next guy the statement "Such add-ons used to be free most of the time" is entirely false. Such addons simply didn't use to exist for console games. 

 Unless you feel you are somehow being offered less content in games than in previous consoles then this really doesn't represent a rise in cost of games but an entirely new market on top.

cakeorrdeath

Think about it this way though, if the PS3, 360 and PC all have the same game, say Unreal Tournament 3 since its on all 3 platforms. All the maps and mods that get released on the PC version will be free. Any maps made for the 360 version will no doubt cost money because M$ is forcing Epic to charge for their maps. If the maps are free on the PS3 and PC versions, who is getting ripped off the most for extra content? Obviously it would be the 360 players and that is probably what will happen. Besides, the PC version of UT3 will no doubt come with a map editing program that allows you to design your own maps, as to whether they would be playable on the console versions is unknown right now, however if I were making maps I certainly would not be charging for them. Yes its my time to design them if I was doing so and everyone knows time is money, however I think in the gaming world its about the players more then it is about the money, too bad companies like M$ dont seem to understand that.

I like free downloadable content, and even stuff you pay for extends the life of a game. For instance, Crackdown's downloadable content got me to pick up the game and play it again, which was cool.

What's annoying about the free Crackdown content is that it makes all the stuff from the not-free DLC show up in your game, kinda, except you can't use it without paying. That's just annoying.  

I thought that unlike PCs, console developers FINISHED a product and shipped it (not so much in the case of Bethesda...), and then if you want to download extra content, keyword: extra, you might have to pay more for it?

Unless that extra content is packaged with the game down the road, there is no milkage.

SemiMaster

PC devs do finish their products. Patches only make the game better. You can't always see all the problems in a game until it ships and the public get their hands on it. That's just the way it is. Have fun paying for your microtransactions while I get everything for FREE! (also I get more content and BETTER content). 

What I think gets to a lot of Xbox gamers is that we're already paying $50 a year and still get overpriced content. What happens when download content for a multiplatform game (Guitar Hero III) is available on the PS3 or Wii for the same prices, except you know, the online service is actually free?-Despacio-

Well, you don't need to subscribe to Xbox Live Gold to use any of Microsoft's downloads. XBL Silver works just fine.

[QUOTE="Dreams-Visions"][QUOTE="AfterShafter"][QUOTE="Dreams-Visions"]

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.11Marcel

PC says otherwise. If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :?

fair enough. so do you think the $80-$100 price tags for console (360....maybe PS3) games is reasonable? I guess if everyone think it's fair, then there's no point even discussing it?

The only games that charge subscriptions are MMORPG's..... 

I guess pc games cost $85 because they also have expansion packs. And I guess WoW is $225 if you factor in 11 months of playing and the Burning Crusade. When the bonus content is optional and not mandatory to buy, I don't think many people would have problems over it.

I love being a PC Gamer, thank god that not one company can dictate content, although MS is trying their hardest to get their paws on it.

Next-gen gaming without the corporate BS.... 

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.Dreams-Visions

PC says otherwise.  If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :? 

not entirely true, pc has been doing this for years. there are, for instance, dlc for multiplat 360 / PC titles that cost just as much as marketplace. games have always had 'expansion packs' too, often including things that should have been part of the original game.

this all comes down to one thing - is it worth it to you?

I guess pc games cost $85 because they also have expansion packs. And I guess WoW is $225 if you factor in 11 months of playing and the Burning Crusade. When the bonus content is optional and not mandatory to buy, I don't think many people would have problems over it.

Codename33

Don't compare expansion packs to downloadable content.. cause you get a heck of a lot more out of an expansion pack than you do for paying £10 for 2 maps. and WoW is a MMO that justifies the price of it... it takes a developer about 2 seconds to make 2 small maps for gears with little thought.. and you say its optional but now I get kicked out of games because I dont have maps or cant even join games all together therefore forcing me to get these maps to rid me of this annoyance and for a small game like gears, I expect the maps to be free, I've already payed £40..  add to the fact that I have to pay for xbox live just to get access to any of the multiplayer content of a game.  Milkage.

[QUOTE="Dreams-Visions"]

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.3picuri3

PC says otherwise. If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :?

not entirely true, pc has been doing this for years. there are, for instance, dlc for multiplat 360 / PC titles that cost just as much as marketplace. games have always had 'expansion packs' too, often including things that should have been part of the original game.

this all comes down to one thing - is it worth it to you?

And many PC titles often inlcude map/mod making tools creating a huge pool of community made content that would be impossible to match by a signle development house - free of charge.

Claiming expansion packs (especially since they are release 1 year plus) as things that should have been included is like saying the extra maps in Halo/GeoW should have been included in the original game. I suppose you'd prefer it if they had spent several more months in development instead of release it now and adding on less critical things. 

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.Dreams-Visions

PC says otherwise. If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :?

[QUOTE="3picuri3"][QUOTE="Dreams-Visions"]

[QUOTE="iunderstand"]Well this is the price of the next gen of gaming. These multimillion dollar companies aren't just going to give their hardware away, but they don't mind giving the consumers the illusion that they are doing so.XaosII

PC says otherwise. If you hadn't noticed, their prices haven't moved an inch. :?

not entirely true, pc has been doing this for years. there are, for instance, dlc for multiplat 360 / PC titles that cost just as much as marketplace. games have always had 'expansion packs' too, often including things that should have been part of the original game.

this all comes down to one thing - is it worth it to you?

And many PC titles often inlcude map/mod making tools creating a huge pool of community made content that would be impossible to match by a signle development house - free of charge.

Claiming expansion packs (especially since they are release 1 year plus) as things that should have been included is like saying the extra maps in Halo/GeoW should have been included in the original game. I suppose you'd prefer it if they had spent several more months in development instead of release it now and adding on less critical things. 

lol. wow - you're an agressive one. i wasn't arguing the PC gaming doesn't have it's advantages, I was simply stating PC games have been doin this for years -- and my main point was a question: is it worth it to you? some PC expansions are not worth their money, and some microtransactions on 360 (most) are not worth the money.. it all comes down to you - the consumer, is it worth it / do you want it that bad?

at the same time i think that the gears maps should be included free of charge, i think sometime that games should spend more time in dev instead of releasing a half baked expansion that includes some things that are critical to gameplay (i.e. should have been there to start with).

the world isn't as black and white as you paint it buddy.

Yea, the crackdown content is ridiculous too, 10 bucks for 3 new weapons and vehicles, are you kidding?-Sora

solution don't buy it :) :P...that is almost as bad as the horse armor, but some DLC is worth it

[QUOTE="-Sora"]Yea, the crackdown content is ridiculous too, 10 bucks for 3 new weapons and vehicles, are you kidding?Medjai

solution don't buy it :) :P...that is almost as bad as the horse armor, but some DLC is worth it

if i dont buy it i cant get all the achievements, because some of the achievements require the new weapons and vehicles.

Apart from Shivering Isle for Oblivion, most downloads are extra multiplayer content. Someone in the dev team is spending their time making it, so I don't mind paying for it, especially since I will only buy it if I am still playing that game, I haven't bought extra content for Gears because I've stopped playing it, I have however bought the new Vegas maps because i'm still playing it religiously.

I guess they could just make a "new game" No6, featuring the same gameplay with just a little face lift and a few tweaks, but that to me is a rip off and servere milkage.

Yea, the crackdown content is ridiculous too, 10 bucks for 3 new weapons and vehicles, are you kidding?-Sora

It also adds a bunch of new rooftop races, as well as a few different new multiplayer modes, like Rocket Tag and Stockpile. I think it may also be required for street racing, but I'm not sure.

Whatever it is, it's more than what you said it was.  

As long as the content is 'extra' then it doesnt matter. If people have a problem with the pricing, then dont buy it. Its a simple as that. No need to whine about it.GazzaB

[QUOTE="GazzaB"]As long as the content is 'extra' then it doesnt matter. If people have a problem with the pricing, then dont buy it. Its a simple as that. No need to whine about it.GunSmith1_basic

:| That's not the same at all. No one pays for patches.

[QUOTE="GunSmith1_basic"][QUOTE="GazzaB"]As long as the content is 'extra' then it doesnt matter. If people have a problem with the pricing, then dont buy it. Its a simple as that. No need to whine about it.SgtWhiskeyjack

:| That's not the same at all. No one pays for patches.