350°

Ubisoft explains how digital prices are set on PlayStation Store and Xbox Games Store

Ubisoft has explained how digital prices are set on both PlayStation Store and Xbox Games Store, revealing that the cost of digital titles may not be identical across the two networks because of individual "pricing matrices" set by Sony and Microsoft.

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forcefullpower3796d ago

What a loads of bolloxs. You want to charge the same price as a physical disc. DD should be at least 5 or 10 quid cheaper than going to the shop.

colonel1793796d ago

Exactly! They save production costos, distribution costs, packaging costs, etc and they still want to charge the same.

When the Vita was announced, they confirmed that Digital Games will be cheaper. It never happened.

MasterChief36243796d ago

Actually it did happen. A majority of first-party digital Vita titles are $5 cheaper than their physical counterparts

bradfh3796d ago

Also you can resell your game dvd and get some money back, you cant do this with a digital download.

admiralvic3796d ago

@ Masterchief3624

Actually, a good percent of all physical games are cheaper than their physical counterparts, not just first-party titles.

nukeitall3796d ago

If MS vision of digital future would have gone through, buying a physical disc would have given you all the benefits of digital download for the lowered physical disc price!

@colonel179:

"When the Vita was announced, they confirmed that Digital Games will be cheaper. It never happened. "

There has been a lot of promises on PSP and PS Vita. Remember how Sony promised day and date release on PSP Go (digital) and PSP?

Never happened. Instead, you were treated to an early demise of PSP Go in favor of the older system PSP!

forcefullpower3796d ago

@nukeitall

But you wouldn't be able to buy the physical disc cheaper if Microsoft had there way as they were going to destroyed the used game market. i.e. end of cheap games.

dcj05243796d ago

$5 cheaper my man. You can buy a sub with that.

_FantasmA_3796d ago

How do you have more agrees than disagrees? Digital is actually cheaper on the Vita. I actually bought Zero Escape, PS All Stars, and Killzone Mercenary digitally because they were cheaper by about $7-10.

SilentNegotiator3796d ago (Edited 3796d ago )

They're only shooting themselves in the foot by not doing that. If my choice is "Disc with resale value and neat case to put on shelf" and "same priced DL", the choice is obvious.

"How do you have more agrees than disagrees? Digital is actually cheaper on the Vita"

Because no one has a Vita due to the fact that there isn't a lot worth playing on the most expensive handheld.

+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 3796d ago
Mikelarry3796d ago

there is no explanation other than greed nothing, nada you cannot charge more than physical copy it does not make sense to anybody but these greedy companies. as much as they tout this digital future i fear they are the biggest road blocks to that future.

Onehandband1t3796d ago

I can only assume its something that Sony and Microsoft have discussed with retail shops to keep them in business,

Just think, if all digital games were significantly cheaper than retail counterparts, shops like GAME and Gamestop would soon disappear.

I don't agree with the pricing for digital games, but we will have to wait and see what the future holds

forcefullpower3796d ago

Steam seems to able to achieve it very easily. Even if you go to blizzard or origin I always seem to find there prices never change either.

I am keeping fingers crossed that Steam will come through as an alternative.

MizTv3796d ago

I agree
Why can I get games on steam for $10 and it's like $40 on the other networks?
If these company's want to push digital then they need to make it worth it
It should be like half of disc price

admiralvic3796d ago

@ Onehandband1t

I doubt it. A lot of retail stores do sales and deals, which typically makes them cheaper than any digital game. Like, BestBuy was doing $20 dollar credit vouchers for some games (like BioShock Infinite) with preorder, which is probably more of a discount than you would see digitally on day 1. We also had Targets B2G1 free sale, which also brought day 1 games down to $40 dollars.

Not to mention, the ability to sell the games and store discounts will always make them appealing. Sure digital would affect it, but I wouldn't rush to the PSN to download a 30+ gb game to save $10 dollars when I can buy a physical version, save the download and sell it for $10 (in most cases) with ease.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3796d ago
Death3796d ago

They save costs and they don't save costs. It depends on what both Sony and Microsoft charge to distribute it. Both companies offer tiered pricing, in this case Microsoft had a lower price teir that Ubi was able to use and still make what they projected. Sony didn't have a price teir as close so they had to charge more for the digital copy on PSN. Alot is determined by what Sony or Microsoft charge. Judging by the article it looks like Sony is charging more to the publishers to distribute their games.

Death3796d ago

For the disagrees, read the article. Both Ubi and EA had to reduce their prices on the PS4 to match Xbox One online prices. The article is very clear on how the price tiers work. To make the same profit on each console the PS4 price was higher. Both Ubi and EA lowered their prices to match the Xbox price. This would not have been necessary if Sony was charging the same or offered the same tiered pricing as Microsoft.

aquamala3796d ago

Do you know how much it costs to sell a game on psn/xbl compared to physical copies? Yeah I don't either, that's all under NDA. What if they are more expensive than physical copies because of sony/ms fees? "Greedy" Game publishers may not be the ones to blame here

denero13796d ago

Welllllll >.> wouldn't that kind of go against what some sony/ms reps have said about digital being cheaper?

AnotherProGamer3796d ago

I remember reading somewhere if Sony/MS put the prices of the games less than the physical prices than Gamestop will not stock/sell there games.

dragon823796d ago

This seems to be the case across the board. Most retail stores would not be happy about it and would threaten to not sell their products. This might not be a problem for software but it would be a huge problem if they stopped stocking hardware and accessories.

Kaze883796d ago

The problem is that currently around 70-80% games are sold by Walmart, Gamestop and Amazon....they say to MS and Sony or 3rd party publisher "sell these games on same price or we wont sell your game in our store" so you will likely loose 70-80% off the sales...none wants to oppose that. On pc its the other way around, most of the games are sold digitally so thats why games are dirty cheap on pc in steam etc.

_FantasmA_3796d ago

But if there are no knew games in stores then GS fails. They would only have used games and considering the online passes, maps, etc that come with new copies, I don't think GS would last that long. I think digital should be cheaper to offset the physical disk costs. It creates competion. PSN against GS, Digital against physical, driving against waiting for a download.

Kaze883793d ago

@Fantasma yeah they couldnt make it without new games but also publishers cant make without them either. They are kinda like necessary evil to each other.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 3793d ago
Chrono3796d ago

Instead of finding ways to improve digital sales, they're making them worse.

NicSage3796d ago

There is no reason to buy digital games when the physical is so competitive.

PC digital is a different story everything is dirt cheap & changes daily if needed, the digital market on PC is like the Physical market for consoles.

Onehandband1t3796d ago

So Microsoft and Sony feel its fair to charge these prices for digital download games. I understand there is a royalty inc in the price but it's digital. No resale value or shiny box to put on you shelf and yet it's fine to charge the same price.

Also don't forget that you are not only paying the same price for a digital game but then you have to add your bandwidth costs on top.
I am on unlimited so its not an issue really but with the size of next gen games, some people will be charged further for exceeding there total broadband usage. Pretty much a lose lose situation for some.

And yet Steams digital service you can pick up most brand new games for an average of £35 compared to Sony and Microsoft's £54.99, not to mention if you pre purchase games on steam you tend to get a further reduction. And with steam game trading in the works, there is resale value on digital purchases.

I can understand to an extent that gamers respective to there consoles get to use a premium service to purchase digital content for convenience, but it is a bit of a joke.

Looks as though the digital only future for consoles is pretty distant

monkey nuts3796d ago

Games will never sell at £55. Prices have always been in the £35 to £45 range here in the uk. If they think they can get away with charging more for games when the ps4 and xbone are easier to develop for due to their x86 architecture then they are in for one hell of a shock. Granted, the hardcore may pay those prices, but hardly anyone else will. Greed will imprison us all............

Show all comments (52)
60°

Ubisoft's Recent Antics Have Me Fearful For The Sands of Time Remake

Hanzala from eXputer: "With Ubisoft's practices becoming increasingly anti-consumer lately, the destruction of The Sands of Time Remake looks almost inevitable."

thorstein2d ago (Edited 2d ago )

Hey Ubi, here's a gun, don't shoot yourself in the foot.

*Ubi takes gun, aims at foot, empties clip*

Chocoburger1d 19h ago

At this point, only dummies have any hope left for Ubi-junk games.

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1016d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref5d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde5d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19725d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville5d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21835d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos4d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
isarai6d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref5d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan5d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19726d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

5d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

5d ago
5d ago
Zeref5d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde5d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19725d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier5d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto5d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21835d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto4d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Hofstaderman5d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts5d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts4d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic4d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

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50°

Disney adds Blizzard and Ubisoft veterans to its games leadership team

Top executives including games boss Sean Shoptaw have also been promoted…

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