Gamers Spend Less Money on Video Games Than They Did 5 Years Ago

New research from a money saving website in the UK has revealed that gamers are spending less money now on video games than they did five years ago.

[JsonHenry]

It is true for me. Thank you Steam sales!!!!

[kwyjibo]

Humble Bundle too, and all sorts of other crazy sales.

Last game I bought, just a few weeks ago, was Spec Ops: The Line and Darksiders 2, both for PC, on sale at GameFly as a bundle for £2.66.

You can't even buy a pint for that.

[Skate-AK]

Spec Ope: The Line was very underrated IMO. Got it for PS Plus and got the Platinum for it.

[Psn800]

I think it has to do with no new innovation in games today and developers are to afraid to try anything else that is why there are to many clones and sequals like Cod 1 to 100 there all the same and the economic situation around the world is not getting better unfortunately .

[avengers1978]

Not me I'm still buying plenty of games maybe even more... With psn games and major retail releases I am probably buying more than I did 5 years ago.
That could be in part to making more money and being in a pretty good place financially to spend the money on luxury items.

[DwightOwen]

$60 isn't too much, it's just that most releases aren't worth that amount without including all the withheld content (aka DLC) that is later used to gouge gamers.

[Moncole]

I hate when people complain 60$ is a lot for a game when in other countries its more expensive.

[MidnytRain]

So what? It's still a good amount of money.

[CptFalcon]

Here in the Netherlands a game costs €60,- like in most other European Countries. €60,- however is way more expensive as $60,- is. In Euros an average american would pay €45,-
In dollars the average european would pay $78,- for a game.

No equality here.
The prices of old games on games on demand on xbox are sick too.
Pure thievery that is.

[Tyre]

It has nothing to do with Steam, it's because of the economy and it's the end of a console cycle. PC retail games have always been cheaper than console games so leave Steam/PC out of the equation. Besides PC Gamers pirate most games so they have nothing significant to add to the total equation of AAA sales anyway. Used games on PC? Nowhere near used games sales on consoles. Disagree all you want PC fans, the truth hurts doesn't it. LOL

[kwyjibo]

Used games on PC? Nowhere near used games sales on consoles.

There are no used games on PC. It's why PC games are cheaper.

I mean, if you'd preordered Bioshock Infinite on Steam or GreenManGaming, you got 3 AAA games for free - one of them being XCOM. How awesome was that?

It's OK though Tyre, you'll be able to upgrade to a PC soon too - only you'll call it "next generation", and have to pay for online.

[Tyre]

Oh funny you say that...but this article is about the used games sales & gamers avoiding launch purchase, blind nerd. oh and about Used games on PC? There are used games, but the retail price is so low for PC that there isn't even too much of a difference between retail & steam price, let alone the need to wait to buy it when it has been used. Again steam sales do not affect this story THEY HAVE NOTHING SIGNIFICANT to contribute to the equation in this article's story.It is about consoles sales for the most part and gamers avoiding to buy at launch and go for used games instead after launch. LEAVE STEAM OUT OF THE EQUATION.

[kwyjibo]

avoiding to buy at launch = waiting for a sale

And let's not avoid showing how flawed the survey is, when you don't have the option of "games are cheaper now/free to play exists".

[CptFalcon]

Somebody has stepped on Tyres nerdy dick.
Seriously how can you worry about this so much, stupid fanboyism.
I am a console gamer. I have a 360.
But i hate the whole game culture because everyone is whining about which system is better blablabla.

PC is definetly king of the hill. End of story.
PC games are obviously cheaper. The only reason I don't game on my PC is because upgrading is rather expensive. If i had the money then i would definetly go to PC.

How is that, a console gamer that adores PC?

[MilkMan]

NO SH!T

I wonder why?
Established game company's are going bankrupt, excellent games are not selling and industry insiders are retiring ring and doing a wait and see approach. Cause they aren't sure where ball is landing.

When games like God of war Ascension and Gears of War Judgment sales are waning, its time to reexamine the biz.

[Larry L]

You go ahead and blame all the things you or anyone else wants. I know the real reason, at least in America is our d-bag socialist president whose policies have either gotten people laid off as in my case, or had their hours cut to no more than 30 per week because businesses cant afford to give employees over 30 hours thanks to obamacare which dictates any employee over 30 hrs a week has to get health insurance provided.

With how mu h it costs just to live and eat today, 30 hours a week worth of pay is just not enough to spend anything on luxuries like $60 video games.

I've had to skip all the games I've wanted this year so far. No GoW, no Injuztice, I may not even be able to get TLOU. I had to scrounge just to renew my Plus subscription, and thank the Gaming Gods for that small favor.

[refocusedman]

I dont buy 60 dollar games. I just wait for the games to go down in price. 60 is way too much to spend on videogames.

[mydyingparadiselost]

Employers can afford it, they just don't want to spend the money to do it.

[N4g_null]

Lol socialist president. Dude you lost and I made more money this last few years than any other. Please go and get a job.

The market has changed I guess Obama controls Europe too? Do you believe they are socialist too?

Anyway AAA is starting to suck and it's been five years of the industry lieing to us many franchises went down the drain. There was a huge smear campaign by lots of the gaming media that basically trickled down to the gamers.

Basically we lost a lot gamers this gen because of all the BS. Adults ruin lots of things it seems. I mean you can't even tackle QBs any more.

Oh and if you need a job go sign up for any thing dealing with oil. Oh and find some one else to blame ok you sounds so so silly.

[DwightOwen]

No kidding. I've never heard of a franchise having THREE prequels (God of War). We're tired of the same old shit.

[Minato-Namikaze]

then buy ni no kuni, tearaway, puppeteer, beyond, last of us, among others

[deadfrag]

No! Its time to build new quality IPs because people are oversaturated of the same sequels that dont bring nothing new to the table.I have seen that and done that why the hell should i spend my hard earning 69.99€ on that again.The milky way my be for you but its not for me i like new and fresh things.

[pr0t0typeknuckles]

well when your trying to sell incomplete games,for $60,with entire characters and levels left out on purpose and when studios that make great games,are getting shut down and great series are getting left behind for first person shooters(darksiders got left but homeland gets picked up BS),then you may wonder why,heck i grew up in the ps1,and ps2 era,and i never felt like oh man i wasted alll this money an an incomplete game,sure games werent perfect,they still arent and never will be but at least they were great experiences that gave you your moneies worth.

[ZeekQuattro]

I can believe it. I only need to look at the growing list of under performing AAA titles and the number of studios and publishers going under. Add the L.A. Noire developer to the latest list of studio casualties.

[TXIDarkAvenger]

Yeah ever since I joined the PC Master Race with Steam n all.

[Om3ga370]

It's because games five years ago were actually worth my time and money. Games today are just DLC, DLC, and more DLC (with a few exceptions). But seriously, I want it to be like it was in the past, where I could actually unlock things in-game (secret levels, characters, guns, etc) without dishing out a dime. The "flair" is gone now, only to be replaced by graphics...

[delboy]

I feel the same way, but gamers have spoken.
They bought DLC crap, and now I expect that we will get even more DLCs in the future.
I'm a old school gamer, never bought a DLC and never will, and I'm proud of it.
Same goes for online passes, never bought a new game with online pass, only used.

[deadfrag]

Me either never brought dlc or anyking of online passes i dont support that shit;but hey i game for more than 30 years,young people this days like the way this shit is heading,not to mention that the game journalism and reviewers dont stand against it an also support this crap.All this payed DLC 8 YEARS AGO didnt exist it come with the games to be unlocked by playing them.

[Peanuts110]

I agree. Unless the game is great. I really don't care for DLC. The problem is years ago they came out with tons of different games (on PCs). Now a days there is hardly any differences between games made now. Maybe the story line is a little different. How ever its mostly run and gun type games. Once the current generation of gamers get burned out playing COD, Halo, etc 24/7. They are going to need to come up with newer IPs. Maybe base a game around life rather than death all the time. Shoot this, beat that, stab this... it's getting too old for me. I've kind of miss the innocence and variety in earlier games. I was a PC gamer before I got into consoles. PCs had a lot more variety. Then consoles came in with the promise of more games. However I think over time the goal became to make a quick buck and the free thinking developers went out the window. The MS/Sony consoles ate up pc game developers. Sucking the soul right out of them. I'm starting to feel they need to return to their roots and stop trying to mega corporate everything.
I miss the days when DLC was just downloading a free mod to your pc. Corporate suits take the fun out of everything.