Altus responds to ‘Dragon’s Crown’ pricing complaint

Atlus’ John Hardin has responded to a pricing complaint in regards to the upcoming Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita role-playing video game, “Dragon’s Crown.”

[Godmars290]

That's the trouble with PSN/XBL and iPhone titles: despite looks as far as gameplay is concerned generally they're lower quality than PS1 games. This by shown mechanics is much on there level of a PS2 title. it should be $40-$50.

[Mounce]

Journey - PSN?....

[Godmars290]

Gen-er-al-ly...

Besides, that game is multi-contridiction: a single player title which relies on its online, multiplayer element. Its gameplay though inspiring is limited to move, jump and float, and its graphics though beautiful are minimalist.

Its not a game where your big-boobed sorceresses turns enemies into frogs!

Unless its a PS1/PS2 re-release, nothing offered on PSN has the complexity and content Dragon Crown has shown in its trailers. And that's the real problem: with PS1/PS2 games being on PSN people think that anything more recent of equal quality and content should be priced around $10-$20. And a few years from now DC may very likely show up on the PS4's version of PSN, but for now it has to make its money.

@Minato-Namikaze:
My point is that when those games were being first offered they weren't being offered at $9 and less.

[Larry L]

I was one of the people questioning the price a bit, though I'm not one of the rude ones that are on the blog all the time.

I think $40 COULD be reasonable with proper depth. Like if it's 25-30 hours long to cover branching story lines and side-quests. But I personally want more of a revolution in the genre....especially for $50!! Equipment pieces (head,chest, gaunts, and legs) that actually change your character's appearance just like in a Diablo or Champions of Norrath, weapons too. Even slotted weapons for elemental effects (with particles).

Maybe I'm expecting too much out of the genre, but between Castle Crashers and newer games in Dragon Crown's genre, I think it's totally possible. It's all just cut'n'paste 2-D art pieces, how hard could it be? (yes, I do watch Top Gear). Who knows, maybe this game does have equipment.....very little info outside of character models have been released so far. I do notice that every time they actually talk about this game on the blog, they always mention grinding for loot. That makes me think equipment.

Has anyone even noticed weapon changes in any trailers?

I also HATE the price difference for the PS3 version. I would prefer to buy this on PS3 to play it on a huge screen, but unless it has extra content, I may just have to go with the Vita version if I end up thinking the game is worth $40.

My fingers are crossed while I wait for more actual info. Because I DO want this game.

[Kevin ButIer]

50 dollars price doesn't make sense when you compare it to 60 dollars games...

[Minato-Namikaze]

Dont think any iphone title is in the same league as FF7, FF9, chrono cross, crash bandicoot, warhawk, g-police, colony wars, or vagrant story.

[Inception]

The game isn't out but you already equalize Dragon's Crown with those crap iphone games? -_-

[majiebeast]

DO NOT COMPARE CRAPPY IPHONE TRASH TO A VANILLAWARE GAME!

Thats like comparing a good t bone steak to a a hamburger at mcdonalds.

[Qrphe]

This

This game looks miles away better than any $15 dollar game.

[Godmars290]

You're in an article were people are complaining about paying $50 for a game like this because they're use to paying for iPhone level games.

[despair]

Clearly you've been playing the wrong PSN/XBL games, quite a few are higher quality than many current gen retail games, and even more are much better than PS2 titles and usually they cost 10-20 bucks range which is a steal. Just like retail releases, there will always be quality games and garbage games released.

[zerocrossing]

If vanillaware's Dragons Crown, Odin's Sphere and Muramasa: Demons Blade, prove anything it shows that 2D/3D side-scrollers are still a sustainable genre, if only more devs were willing to dabble in them I think they'd do quite well.

[Godmars290]

American devs were never really fond of pixel/sprite games, and the first thing that told me this gen was in trouble was that the graphic style had become cost prohibitive on consoles. Look at how long its taken to get this game out from its announcement. How Legend of Heroes has been changed from its PSP to PS3 versions.

Really have nothing against 3D, but that's all they were thinking of when they 360 and Ps3 were made. Wish they had been looking of a balance.

[FamilyGuy]

People think this is some indie psn title yet this is a full fledged game that's been in development for YEARS. $50 is at most $10 over what the price should be and that $10 is because of a new publisher having to take control over this title just so it would see the light of day. They need their cut or we would get nothing.

This isn't a short budget title
All characters and backgrounds are hand drawn and extremely detailed.

If the game was a short budget title it wouldn't be taking till Aug to release as since this game was originally shown almost 2 years ago. It'd be done already.

http://n4g.com/news/781154/...

Note the "687d ago" and they're still months from completion.

Also I hope this reanimated corpse thing stays in the final build http://n4g.com/news/789371/...

Would you guys have expected Castlevania Symphony of the Night to be $20 when it originally released on the ps1? Just because it's a side-scroller doesn't mean it's not a full game.

I personally can't wait to co-op dungeon crawl the hell outta this game.

[TongkatAli]

Vanillaware, nuff said.

[Inception]

Sadly, gamer in this new generation don't have a clue who's Vanillaware.

[majiebeast]

Yeah they only know COD. Odin SPhere started my love for Vanillaware games.

[Dark_Overlord]

Don't forget Grim Grimoire too, damn that was a great strategy game :)

[The Great Melon]

All of these are such good games. My money is in my hand already.

[gano]

Geezus.
40 bang, whats the problem.

[N4GCB]

I would easily pay $250 for Odin Sphere, despite hating it's guts for being a pain in the ass.

[N4GCB]

Actually I wish we could've gotten Princess Crown, I think that was my favorite.

[gano]

Did you say spiritual successor to princess crown,
for vita!?

[DivineAssault]

If only Princess crown would get remastered for vita.. Who knows? If this sells well, we might see it.. Or a port at least

[N4GCB]

It's a shame but I'm pretty sure all the assets were lost in a fire or something a long time ago, which is why we never got an English release, and why the PSP release in Japan is actually just running in the Sega Saturn PSP emulator that Sony made.

[fermcr]

50$ (in Europe probably 50€). At that price, no thanks. You can keep the game.

[Heavenly King]

It should be $20-$30 on the VITA and $40 at most on the PS3.

It will flop just like Rayman origins at $60

[Minato-Namikaze]

these companies are gonna learn to give me cross buy or suffer, lol

[Qrphe]

It sold over 2 million copies, hardly a flop.

[jetlian]

selling 2 million at what price is whats important. Originally this was listed at 30 dollars.

They need to come down. I will get it but its not a day one at that price. And for people acting like there isnt games like this look at dust,shank, mark of the ninja.

All have better looking visuals and all are 15 dollars or less.at 50 dollars thats near full blown ps3 games even 40 on vita is uncharted level

[swansong]

Day one purchase for me,but if you don't like the price don't buy it or wait for a price drop.

[Neckbear]

This whole "2D games should be cheap as fuck!" thing is ridiculous, you have no idea how much effort goes into making a 2D game that looks this good. It takes even more work than 3D in most cases.

[Natso]

I disagree.

2D Games generally take less work than 3D games. Especially on the technical side.

I do agree, however, that just because a game is 2D, that it should not automatically be set at a lower price point. I can see why this is what most assume, though.

[crazysammy]

@Natso you are incorrect. Hand drawing and animating 2D takes much longer than modeling and animating in 3D. Its why now even 2D games are done with 3D models.

[Natso]

If 2D games are now using 3D models, then you just admitted that the main concern for workload involved in the production of a 2D game is nullified in many cases.

On top of that, art assets created for a game such as Limbo or The Binding of Isaac have undoubtedly taken less effort to produce, than a game such as Uncharted or Beyond: Two Souls. And since we're talking about "most cases" here (check the OP), look at the majority of 2D games and tell me that more work goes into them than "most" 3D games. That's entirely wrong. If "most" 2D games looked like Dragon's Crown, then I'd agree with you (at least in regards to the art team), but most of them don't look anywhere close to that level of detail.

You underestimate the amount of effort put into 3D art. There's a reason that it takes multiple people to create a single asset(modeling, texturing, animation, often times mo-cap), whereas hand-drawing a whole spritesheet is done by a single person.

Even then, we're only talking about art. When it comes to programming, 2D games require 2 fields of depth, whereas 3D games add the Z-axis. If the team is developing their own engine, you can almost guarantee that this is a huge factor in workload.

[crazysammy]

@natso Obviously I meant projects on the same scale. Of course games like Binding of Isaac have 2D models that don't take as long as characters from Uncharted. Those games have different scopes and different budgets.

When I say 3D models in 2D I mean perspective. Why do many of the remakes of games like Double Dragon, Bionic Commando (rearmed), and TMNT reshelled have 3D models on the 2D plane? Because it is cheaper to make them on that scale. These models are also done by one person and much faster since most modeling programs have presets for animations. have you seen the new Photoshop? You just drag in 3d models and paint on them. No need to unwrap the model and go through all the work that used to be needed in early 3D.

Lastly I am talking about the art side not about a company that is making its own engine. The amount of "engine construction" is hardly any different for 2D and 3D. Again this is considering that the scope of the projects are the same.

[Natso]

Yes, but we aren't talking about projects of the "same scale". We're talking about "most cases", as Neckbear stated.

[MestreRothN4G]

"Dragon’s Crown has a price tag of $49.99 on the Playstation 3 in addition to $39.99 on the Playstation Vita."

LOL What a joke!

Auto-off the radar. Congratulations, Atlus. Don't complain when people pirate the hell out of it.

[InTheLab]

Yeah...that's ridiculous. I was so looking forward to this game. This thing should cost no more than $40 on PS3 with cross buy.

[memots]

yup same here. Vita game to me MAX should be $30 as a download , Like 24.99 might be the sweet spot.

But for PS3 and Vita if they do not do cross buy then they should at least offer a bundle price like they did with Assassin creed 3 but without the over $100 price tag lol

[Knushwood Butt]

It's well pricey in Japan too.

6,699 JPY on Amazon, which is 67 USD!! You've got it cheap in the US...

[SolidDuck]

How does anyone know what the game is worth till it comes out. I mean dragons crown looks awesome, and Altus and vanillaware have damn fine track records in my opinion.

[NukeDaHippies]

Atlus tends to poop gold. 40 or 50 dollors is a cheap price to clean their toilet out. If u fellas are too scared to touch smelly gold for that much it's ur loss.

i'll mess their floor up for when u guys come crawling back.

[tarbis]

$40 for this game on PSV??? DOA5+ is only $40 w/ free dlcs. I'm expecting this to be $20 - $25 on PSV. I'll wait for the price to come down. Atlus, I'm disappoint.

[PurpHerbison]

Game looks great.

[Brucis]

Are people complaining about a $50 price tag? Because it's 2D it's 'too pricey' despite the fact that it's usually more difficult to do everything in 2D, especially at Vanillaware's level of detail? Bunch of whiners here. You guys want Atlus to give you gold for the price of copper.

[TronEOL]

I personally believe $40 is a perfectly fine price for this game. Compare the quality to ANY other game of it's type available and you'll see why it's worth it's dollar. Depth, Animations, quality of art, etc.

[VampHuntD]

I'm one of the folks that ordered the game on amazon when it was $30. I emailed them after they canned orders and got them to add a credit after the game ships. My copy is still $30. (And wasn't it going to have Cross-buy?)

[kupomogli]

Mine also. I preordered the PS3 version though so I'm getting it for $40. I'll eventually get the Vita version once it hits $20.

[VampHuntD]

Mine is PS3 too. I got them to offer the credit because they canceled orders from when it was $30 and the price bumped to $50. Since it was available on amazon, I got a rep to give me he original price. Pre-order price guarantee :)

[gokuking]

It was never going to be Cross Buy. Ignition simply had priced both versions of the game at $30.

[worldwidegaming]

I will just wait until the final reviews before dropping that kind of cash. Is it worth it? Do let me know.

[porkChop]

Woah, what? $40?! No way. I thought this was a $15 PSN game. No way am I paying that much. I'll wait for a sale.

[Losyak]

Did seriously NOBODY catch Altus instead of Atlus?

[Veneno]

I think the disdain of Dragon's Crown's price superseded any spelling errors.

[DivineAssault]

Whats wrong with the price?? Vanilla ware games are fantastic! Ill be going with the vita version as long as there isnt any compromises.. But if i didnt have a vita, i wouldnt have a problem with a $50 price tag.. Its not an indie psn title

[LoaMcLoa]

Indeed, they're making art here!

The attention to detail is unbelievable.. Which obviously takes a lot of effort and time to make. But apparently these casuals complaining wouldn't know about that.. It's not some cheap indie-game done in Flash.

Shouldn't you all complain about games like Call of Duty and LA Noire that uses MO-cap in just about every aspect, in other words: Not having to put any effort in animation, AT ALL?

I'll be buying this game day one, so I'll atleast support the developers. Funny how people always complain about that developers these days never do something original and when they finally do, the consumers never buy them (AKA Brutal Legend, Pshyconauts, Rayman Origins, Mirrors Edge)

[kupomogli]

The people complaining about the price, I'd like you to just look at every single trailer released and read up on the interviews.

Graphically the game is absolutely amazing, and one of the best looking 2D games on any console. When looking at the gameplay, it's a much faster and fluid 2D beat em up. Think back to every 2D beat em up title you've ever played and do any really look as good as this one with the few gameplay segments you can see in the trailers?

I really don't think this game warrants your complaints. If it does, then other games that warrant just as much complaining is every single CoD released starting with Modern Warfare, Dead Island, any fighting game, etc. All these games rip graphics and/or gameplay from a prequel title, so why should they sell for $40-$60.

You people have no idea what the length of the game is, how many unique areas are in the game, what the alternate gameplay mechanics are, etc. Nothing. Even if the fact that it's 2D did matter, does a games value no longer matter as well?

[dorron]

Dropped to 20$ in two months...

[Veneno]

Can anyon3 tell me if the game will have a ps3 disc or vita cartdrige release or is this PSN only?

[Inception]

BD & vita cartridge. No words for PSN.

[Heavenly King]

The VITA has always PSN versions.

[fsfsxii]

People love to whine about the prices, while they buy the same rehashed titles every year. I'll buy the game if i like it, from the trailers, i think i do like it.

[gokuking]

They should be responding as to why there's no Cross-Play support for PSVita and PS3 multiplayer.

[o-Sunny-o]

I would pay 100$ for Persona 4 easy! This ^ game is about 30$ max.

[MoreRPG]

honestly i think 50 dollars for the ps3 version is a bit too much ill wait till it drop to $30

[jc48573]

I have this game preordered for 29.99 plus tax.

[Arai]

This "article" is based on what an Atlus rep on the PSBlog said in reply to someone, leave it to examiner to blow things out of proportion.
As for the pricing, I don't see anything wrong with 40 USD.

For me personally Vanillaware's games are like collectables.
Simply because their artwork is amazing as well as the games they make.

[Enigma_2099]

If the size and content justifies the price, then the whining will be for nothing. But if it doesn't, grab the pitchforks...

[smashcrashbash]

The stupidity of people is mind boggling. First of all it is a Vanillaware game made by Atlus. So you know it is most likely more then worth the price. Secondly the stupid claim that it looks like a phone game or should be cheaper because it is 2D is a stupid complaint.Thirdly if you are using the PlayStation Blog as an example of complaining just know that play has the most whiners per square inch on any gaming site. They cry and b***h and moan about EVERYTHING and are rude to all developers and don't listen to reason even if it makes perfect sense.Thirdly it is VERY rude to tell the developers that their game is not worth the price before you even play it or know how long the game is or how much depth it has.

Odin's Sphere and Muramasa: Demons Blade had surprising amount of depth to them and if the idiots who are complaining have actually played any of their games they would know that.This is not going to be a simple game and if anyone had read anything about the game before now you would know that it is as deep as any Vanillaware game and to give it to you free for VITA for a single price or for much less would cut deep into their profits.I can't understand gamers at all these days.It's like all the smart people who used to love gaming are replaced by nothing but whiny children who don't even care what they are complaining about even if it makes no sense. You expect a fifty dollar game to go for fifteen dollars on VITA or be free? I mean when did Sony get all the @$$holes?

[Xer0_SiN]

i actually dont mind the price. i was expecting a full 60 dollars. i thought it was a typo when the original publisher said it was going to be 30 dollars. had this on my radar for a while, so a few dollar price difference is not going to shy me away from this game. cross game buy would definately be an added bonus for those buying the ps3 version.

[MuhammadJA]

The game doesn't look interesting anyway.

inb4butboobs!

[FinalomegaS]

boobs.. boobs boobs...

what were we talking about again?

Oh nice game, coop action.

[TheoreticalParticle]

Who's "Altus"?

/slowclap for submitter

[ado908]

Should be 30 dollars ps3 and 20 dollars ps vita. But its dumb to be buying it on the vjta alone when u get it free with the ps3 copy

[smashcrashbash]

Yeah because as the producer of the game you know exactly what they put into it and how much it should cost.All the shoulda done that and shoulda done that is annoying.Everyone already set there minds that it wasn't a full fledged Atlus game and just some cheap knock off when the people who were paying attention could easily see it was a obviously as full a game as Odin Sphere and Muramasa: Demons Blade.That right,just keep complaining and b***hing and insulting them and saying their game is cheap @$$ and isn't worth the price.And when Atlus gets sick and tired of listening to us and never gives the PlayStation another game ever you will see how much it is worth then.You never miss the water until the well runs dry.

[ado908]

1. I didnt say it was a cheap knock I love and enjoy demon and dark souls. 2) from todays standard it should be cheaper. It looks to be an amazing game but a psn game looks like this. 3) I highly doubt they will stop selling games for the playstation because they need money. Majority of their profits come from ps fans. 4) if they did, there are hundreds of thousands of games to choose from.

[Relientk77]

How can you complain about an Atlus game? Atlus is easily one of the most talented developers on the planet and know what a great RPG is

[smashcrashbash]

@ ado908. Nope that still doesn't make any sense.People where playing Muramasa: Demons Blade just the other day for the Wii and they didn't complain about the price or claimed it looked like a PSN game.This doesn't look or play any different then that game and Nintendo or Atlus didn't sell it as a downloadable title price. That is dumb.Stop making stupid excuses.No one thought about today's standards when they were playing games that looked like they belonged in a bygone era on the Wii for $40.00. Only PlayStation people complain about everything.You can't expect them to make a game with $50.00 of content and tell them it is worth thirty dollars less. I mean there is a limit to idiocy in gamers.You didn't make the game so stop telling the developers what to sell it for.They have profits to make for their effort not to facilitate your cheapness. Also you have no idea how long or deep the game is and already you assume it should be cheaper. If any of you were paying attention or listening to anything they said about the game for the several months it was being shown you would know it was never meant to be a PSN title but a full fledged game.

But in the usual concrete headed gamer fashion you pretend you are surprised about the price when you were never listening in the first place about how it was NOT a PSN game but a FULL fledged game like Odin Sphere was.And I am sure we will have this same conversion again after The Puppeteer comes out and people will be saying 'I thought it was a PSN game' when the developer said many times 'It is NOT a PSN game it is a full game'.You don't listen and have the boldness to tell the developer what they should and can't do when you don't have a clue what content the game has.And in the usual ignorant fashion you attack the developers who you ignored all the time and want them to facilitate your assumptions and pretend to be outraged.And now another game will be lost not because of the developers but the idiots we have on our side always ready to boycott and ignore something for some simplistic reason.