Buying Video Games at Launch Has Become a Punishing Waste of Money

COG writes: Games have risen in price with the new generation of consoles. But as games continue to re-release with additional content and upgraded presentation, are they still worth the price of admission at first launch?

[phoenixwing]

I disagree. Getting a game day one is relegated to good games that you want to support by paying full price. Everything else is a sale. Also I game on pc so remasters aren't a problem anymore.

[Yi-Long]

Sadly, the number of Developers/games I 'want to support on Day 1' has severely diminished these last few years.
The 3 I can think of, this past gen, have been No Man's Sky (Day 1, 50-60 bucks), The Witcher 3, and Red Dead Redemption 2.

To begin with The Witcher 3, these are devs I absolutely trust to do us consumers right, when it comes to value-for-money, post-launch support, and not nickel & diming us. I consider them the example of how those in this industry SHOULD be.

Red Dead Redemption 2: I knew it would be a stand-alone big SP adventure. I also knew there would be the Online part of it, which IS nickel & dime stuff, but I've never really been interested in that portion of the game. I bought it Day 1, knowing what I'd get from the SP Campaign, which was amazing and absolutely worth the full price.

No Man's Sky I also bought Day 1, because I knew what I was getting, and although developers truly did receive a whole lot of flack, I did feel I got what I expected on Day 1. I always knew there was a risk of boredom setting in after a few days and visiting a few planets, but when it was announced I loved the art style and respected the ambition, and I wanted to support that, and I did. No regrets.

However, like I said, I can't think of many other games I went out and bought full price on Day 1, and that's usually because they're already flaunting with post-release content and nickel & dime stuff. They announce Season Passes before the game is even out, and especially with fighting games you see them leave out popular characters with the sole purpose of selling them as DLC because they know they can easily earn a few extra bucks that way. That's not how that should work. It's lazy and exploitative. Hardcore fans of the game/genre will shrug and accept it, but everyone else will simply ignore the game completely and spend their money on something else. Perhaps they'll jump back in after a few years when there's finally a complete edition, but at that point, the online will be dead of course.

It's pretty simple: If devs want customers to pay full price, then they need to stop nickel & diming us.

I bought a lot of games at launch for full price with the original Xbox and the early days of 360, but once DLC became the norm instead of the exception, I became far more hesitant about picking up these games.

At some point, it also becomes a matter of principle: For example, Tales of Berseria reviewed well. Never picked it up because they were selling a truckload of minor DLC on the side. Even when it was 3-4 bucks in a great sale 1-2 months orso ago, it was that reason that kept me from buying it.

[Christopher]

It really depends. Ghost of Tsushima Day One wasn't a waste at all, IMHO. And there are plenty of other games each year that are good for Day One if that's what you want.

Making generalizing comments on games that have evolved to have communities that embrace this stuff doesn't mean it's "video games."

[neutralgamer1992]

Yes but what you are referring to are the exceptions not the rules. Let's look at facts ubi just released few games and all went on sale within days and one being watch dogs was 50% off. Any game that is releasing in September or October why people full price when you know by Thanksgiving weekend those games will be at minimum 30 to 50% off and would have received few patches

I stopped buying day one due to the fact I have a huge back catalog of games. I think every year there are some games which deserve to be bought day one but recently more and more games are launching when they are truly not ready and they need another six to 12 months of constant patches

[CrimsonWing69]

Man, I’ll tell you this: they’re making it real easy for me to want to wait on day 1 purchases by raising the price of these games.

[Christopher]

***Yes but what you are referring to are the exceptions not the rules. ***

What I'm doing is not generalizing. Which is what this article is doing. Generalizing doesn't help to promote the good, it just criticizes the whole.

Furthermore, most games aren't like this. Most games aren't AAA annual IP that are purchased in the millions each year.

[neutralgamer1992]

Christopher

That's true I wasn't also trying to generalize. But many of these big publishers are making it easy not to buy day one by releasing games which are clearly not finished. Hopefully price raise means better quality but it doesn't look very likely

[JimBeans]

Yup, we get the "definitive edition" a year later with better content and patches.

[Double_O_Revan]

Control is a perfect example of that for me. I got it for $20 on sale earlier this year. Then a few weeks later they announced the Complete Edition, that not only has not only both DLCs but is the only way to get the next gen upgrades. Yes that version is $40 VS the $20 I paid, but I still felt very cheated. Had I have known that was coming, I could've waited.

[Stanjara]

Yeah the Ultimate edition was 20$ and on generation sale now that is on psn, regular version and dlc are on sale.
I refuse to buy.
I'm not supporting this.
And the game is like an 8 max.
No where near GOTY that was pushed last year.

[DaGR8JIBRALTAR]

The complete edition was on sale for 20 a couple of weeks ago, I snagged it for the ps5 and I won't touch it until the upgrade is released.

[strifeblade]

and now its on gamepass. oh boy did you get screwed

[neutralgamer1992]

I wish more publishers would do complete editions with all the content on disk. Assassin's Creed origins and Odyssey in my opinion was a huge missed opportunity by Ubisoft. They could have released both games in one package with all the DLC and charge full price for it and people would have paid. Because most of their DLC content or expansions rarely go on sale

[Kavorklestein]

True. But both of those games have PHENOMENAL DLC so I'm okay with them.

[Yi-Long]

I think Origins and Odyssey actually handled DLC okay, in that these are worthy expansions, both in terms of content and quality. Plus the full priced main games are already massive. So when we're talking about DLC and nickel & diming this past generation, I'd argue those two games didn't skimp out on content just to sell it later as DLC.

In direct comparison, Far Cry 5's Season Pass content was terrible, with 3 very lazy and mediocre separate new chapters, instantly forgettable according to most reviews. However, they did also pack in a remaster of the excellent Far Cry 3, so to be fair, while the DLC never lived up to potential/expectation, I'd argue that at least they tried to offer substantial amounts of value for money.

The only reason I bought Far Cry 5 and AC Origins on Day 1, was BECAUSE the shop offered the Gold editions for the regular price, so that made me go for these games, without hesitation, on Day 1, for 'full price'. If it wouldn't have been the complete editions (Gold), I obviously would have waited for sales, if I would have even still be interested in these games by the time the sales would come around.

Odyssey I picked up for 15 bucks orso when a local store went bust. Nice game, but I won't be buying any DLC for it.

[CrimsonWing69]

I was seriously just thinking this.

I picked up Devil May Cry V Special Edition today and I was just thinking this thing is going to be on sale in a few months. There’s nothing special about this release and it’s not like I need to have it now. I just finished Demon’s Souls and Miles and wanted a new game to play. If this were a $70 release, hell no, but it was $40 and I had $10 reward from Bestbuy so it didn’t piss me off.

Control would be the biggest example to this where I paid $70 for the Steelbook edition and bought all the DLC only for the Ultimate Edition to come out and include not only all the DLC for free, but it’s also upgradable for next-gen and it’s only $40.

[phoenixwing]

Whoever is the exec in charge of that decision isnt getting my money for their next game.

[NeoGamer232]

The reality is that there is absolutely no advantage to buying a game on day one any more.

Usually the games have bugs on day one that don't make them very fun to play. Also, they don't have all the content yet.

So, you pay $60-150 on day one to get a buggy mess and incomplete content. Wait a year, the definitive edition comes out usually from $30-60 and the game experience is complete.

To me, it seems like companies are encouraging gamers to leave day one purchasing. I used to day one purchase a lot. Now it is very rare.

[Destiny1080]

the start of a generation is probably not the best time for bargain hunters

gamers will ultimately decide what there willing to pay

[Fist4achin]

I hate when I buy a game and then a complete edition comes out with more. It feels better to wait on a lot of games now because it is bound to happen that way now.

[BlaqMagiq1]

I've been doing this with games for years now. Trust me when I say I've saved hundreds of dollars over the years because of this practice. Well that and GCU when I had it.

[46player]

YES! Wait 6-12 months and buy the Complete/Ultimate Edition for $15-$25 versus $100 at launch. Who doesn’t have a massive backlog to play anyway?

[glennhkboy]

Can't agree more!!! Especially for single-player games. I haven't bought a new release or pre-order a SP game for years now. All SP games will be in discount in a year time, sometime even with the complete DLC included.

[Rimeskeem]

I have been waiting a bit more. I got a PS5 and will likely be getting more games for it in the future but right now I don't really need anything. No point spending more money now when I can just play my backlog and such.

[autobotdan]

Just pay up the money! Think you are a fan? Purchase three copies of Control to prove you are a hard-core fan. Pay up the money. Support all loot boxes and season passes

[northpaws]

ya, keep convincing people to not buy at launch and all games price will keep on increasing to compensate that.

[cartman313]

I don't think that is how that works...

[Outlawzz]

Double post

[antikbaka]

never buy Persona game until they have second release

[northpaws]

fixed... "never buy Persona game and there won't be a second release"

[Outlawzz]

If you bought a new game at launch and fully enjoyed it, how could that possibly be a waste of money.

Now if you bought a game at launch, didn't play it much, and then see it a few months down the line at half price and think to yourself "man I could have waited and spent less money" then the issue is with you and an obsession to have something "new".

You buy a new game at full price because you want to play it and have fun. The cost of admission is definitely worth it compared to a night out at the theater for example. If the money is an issue then you should not be buying said game. You can always wait for it if money is an issue. If everyone views a full retail price as "punishment" then the whole industry would crumble.

Please don't spread this mentality. There's a place for those who can purchase right from the get go and those who can wait. There's nothing wrong with either of them.

[Sonyslave3]

I agree starting to go back to my old ways of waiting a 1 year or 2 to get the game very cheap.

I brought mk 11 premiuem the 100 dollar verison on sale for 50 at the time on psn , now im turn between a rock i want afrermath but im not paying 40$ n ultimate edition is 60 🤨.

[sizeofyou]

Depends on the release. Most first party releases on either platform, I'll get them early. Sony are generally reliable and I like Forzas. Every now and again, I'll get hype too (previews and gameplay attract attention).
But most of the series releases from 3rd parties are a no-no. Open world generics, sports annuals and licensed rubbish. Sales - or often, not at all...

[Stanjara]

Yeap, I'm buying Ni no kuni Remastered for 10 euros on Psn. Never buy new! Oh and never preorder, especially digital stores...why?

[UltimateOwnage]

I’m going to disagree with that. I like to see great game developers get fair margins for their work and retailers continue to have incentives to stock their games. Sure, if it’s an EA game or something it’s bound to drop in price within the first month, so maybe avoid those or feel ripped off before you finish the fame. This is why I prefer Nintendo maintaining the price and value of their titles. They rarely go on sale, and why should they. A game being older doesn’t change how it plays the first time someone buys it or how great it will be. I have often wondered why the prices plummet so quickly on some games that sold and continue to sell well.

[QuePasa87]

I don't buy day one mostly because I'd rather not pay full price, but yeah also all the other reasons. The exception is if it's an outstanding title that gets my attention enough.