Truth Serum – Mike’s rage against the publishers part III
Ready for the final stab against publishers in Mike’s Rage? The attack continues with part 3 in the series. Get some lemon juice ready for your throats because you’ll want to respond to this one. And some of you have taken the liberty to do just that so stay tuned for a community response to Mike’s Rage.
Mike’s Rage – Publishers teach an old dog old tricks?
Hello my fellow gamers. Welcome to this third & final edition of “Mike’s Rage against the publishers.” In this section of the trilogy, I delve deeper into the inner psyche of a publisher’s mind, uh well not really. Who knows what they are thinking when it comes to making the proper decisions…I sure in Hell don’t.
What I do know is my (hopefully our side of the coin) that publishers get all wrong. That wrong in this last section is bringing out GOLD/GotY editions sometimes less than a year after the original version releases and many times cheaper than the content-starved version we paid $60+ for. Publishers usually offer all previous DLC content for free in these new editions and possibly include some other incentive (future priced DLC for original version buyers) that isn’t yet available to play.
As an old mid 30’s gamer, I think back to a time when the version of a game we got was the final version. It was a much simpler time then when you looked for reviews to clue you in on the quality and to see if there were any game breaking bugs. I guess that was a time when publishers gave developers more time to get it right and maybe they cared a little more. There were no such things as an update, patches or DLC for a console game. So the easiest way for them to add things into their game at a later time was to bring out another copy of the same game (something Capcom is notorious for) but improved.
However, this practice was few and far between. So as a gamer in the 80’s/90’s you didn’t know for sure such an improved version was going to come out unless it was Street Fighter or Resident Evil. Boy o’ boy have times changed. Now it’s common practice that a well received game will get a GOLD/GotY version no later than a year after release. Not only does this content rich version usually cost less, it can even come with content that will later cost (by way of DLC) original game buyers. We also live in a time where storing such content by way of a Hard Drive costs you money just for the storage (especially on Microsoft’s 360 with their proprietary Hard Drive) and how that irks you when that Gold edition comes along after you bought DLC content (that fills up your Hard Drive) for that original version. It would only be worse if the future of Digital Distribution Only comes along without any changes in storage/prices but time moving forward has the known ability of changing things and possibly fixing issues.
Through this common practice, I’ve learned to hold back in getting every great new game (unless I find a very good deal) so that I don’t pay twice as much as the bloke who doesn’t have the patience. Like the saying goes, patience is a virtue. That’s a quality we all should have in order to get the quality we deserve for our money. Those who are willing to buy no matter what ruin it for themselves and us. But are they the ones to blame? See, it’s common in our society to give people what they want then draw the reins in a little each time. That way they get use to having less and less quality for more and more money.
Did we ask for it? Did we deserve it? Do we cause it? No, no no. The publishers take advantage of the fact that people want to play NEW games and the past has shown that gamers give in due to not having much of a choice. It’s either game or no game, play or not play, have or not have. Most of us allow it because we feel there isn’t much of an option. We give in to our own wants and desires no matter how we get treated (hell look at the U.S. Government). So no, I don’t blame the gamer for wanting to GAME but I do blame the publishers who take advantage.
Now what can we do about it? Well there’s nothing we really can do. It’s the publishers who have trained us to accept it, support it and even defend it. I see gamers all the time say “Your loss, have fun not gaming anymore!” See we really are our own worst enemy when it comes to this sort of thing. We may have the power to change things but if you don’t know how to use that power or don’t have the backbone to do so, then it’s totally useless.
The perfect world scenario would be to allow gamers to register their newly purchased game (either Online/XBL/PSN) by sending a CODE from the key card in each new game to show they bought it new. So once that GOLD/GotY edition comes out with all the past DLC content and anything new included, it would allow them to get all DLC FREE if they haven’t bought it already. The key is, at least give those who support you from the beginning the option of getting support back from you instead of gouging them for more cash.
If publishers keep up with this GOLD/GotY release only a year after the original game’s release (without any kickbacks for their early adopters) will only sour their feelings towards such a bad practice. I know it has for me. On top of that, Day 1 supporters might hold off buying any new IP that interests them due to that GOLD/GotY trend teaching them that it would be smarter and cheaper to hold off.
So here I am irked about thinking the way gaming is heading and talking about the wrongs publishers are getting away with and may get away with. I gave you the Present in Part 1 about publishers trying to kill off used game sales, and giving exclusive DLC by way of pre-Orders/new purchases. I gave you the possible future in Part II with Digital Distribution Only and how that relates to Part II. And now I’ve given you the Past/Present/Future in Part III as in the same games resold with added content/improvements.
Well thanks everyone for reading Mike’s Rage against the publishers. Just remember, if we are not part of the solution, we are apart of the problem. Things will only get worse for the gamer if most of us allow it. We deserve what we tolerate.
*this article was written by Mikewarrior
February 5th, 2010 at 9:17 am
I really agree with the notion that publishers need to reward the first time buyers.
I doubt they will be able to include all the DLCs for FREE to firt time buyers. That’s just too much money given up to the publishers. What if instead of all free DLC, the first time buyers get some of the DLCs for free, assuming more than 1 DLC item exists for that game?
They will argue the first buyers are paying the premium to play it FIRST. It’s a lousy argument IMO.
I do hope they start to realize the first time buyers are an important market and they should reward them.
February 5th, 2010 at 3:39 pm
Can I be part of the problem?
February 5th, 2010 at 5:23 pm
I agree Boston, if it wasn’t a year down the road, or whenever that Gold/GotY edition comes along… See, most of those early adopters that buy new games will most likely buy the DLC as soon as it’s available because the game is HOT at that time. While those who wait for it to go down in price, more often than not don’t buy it at all due to moving on to other newer games. I really don’t think it would lose the developers much money.
February 5th, 2010 at 8:01 pm
yeah, this is getting kinda boring.. same rants and ripped off quotes…
February 5th, 2010 at 8:35 pm
I did not ripoff any quotes, & this is definitely not the same rant.
February 5th, 2010 at 11:17 pm
oh, i guess i didn’t know stuff like “if we are not part of the solution, we are apart of the problem” and “We deserve what we tolerate” were your original words, my apologies…
February 5th, 2010 at 11:18 pm
and i think the article was entitled “rage against the publishers part III” not very repetitive at all…
February 6th, 2010 at 4:51 am
from one side your story is totally true mike.
but from the other side it’s not all that bad that when a game like oblivion or something is out for some time and doesn’t sell good anymore that they try and spice those sales again.
when the GOTY of Oblivion came out, my friend got the game. and shared the goty material with me. and THATS also something you can’t do with dlc atm. so thats a little bright spot on the whole down side of it.
February 6th, 2010 at 6:33 pm
x352x – It’s one thing to say I used OLD TERMS at the end of my article, (lol, like no articles do that) However, you are completely wrong in saying I ripped off quotes like it’s the only thing in my article. Oh & about the title being repetitive, I guess every Star Wars is repetitive also, right? lol, don’t be so clueless.
February 6th, 2010 at 6:36 pm
Law… I agree if every Gold/GotY edition did that, but sadly that isn’t the case. Also, why wouldn’t the sales of the Gold/GotY editions still sell well with my suggestion?
February 7th, 2010 at 12:56 pm
this entire post can be summed up by saying something thats pretty much true in every facet of life … early adopters always get screwed … period …
February 7th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
Irish… Not always with everything, so wrong again. If Publishers keep biting the hands that feed them, they will only hurt gaming. It’s definitely not improving.
February 8th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyPFQKpRnd0
February 9th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
I’ve never understood the whole “early adopters get screwed” mentality. We got to play it a year or two longer than anyone else. Big deal if the company feels like they have to drop the price or add content later to pick up more sales. Not hurting me any.
February 9th, 2010 at 4:43 pm
Spacy… The added content they give away free in Gold/GotY editions (To buyers who waited a year) should also be free for early adopters once that Gold/GotY edition comes out.
To not think so is asinine.
February 10th, 2010 at 1:07 am
To think it could be done is asinine.
From their end, they can’t tell an early adopter from any schmuck who bought the game used, rented it, borrowed it or stole it. Why should they give a free copy of the DLC to all of those people? They didn’t pay anything for it. The publisher didn’t make a dime from them, and now they should throw in some free content to go with it? You think when it comes out on the GOTY edition, that they should also throw it up on Xbox LIVE for free. Why? Because early adopters would get butthurt?
The early adopters that give a damn BOUGHT IT already. What the hell would they want another copy free for? And the early adopters that DIDN’T buy it, didn’t care then and don’t care now.
Should the guys who buy the game a year late for a third of the price get the cool stuff I got at the game’s release, like the stuff in the LE, or the shirts or codes or soundtracks or whatever?
The buyers at launch, and the buyers a year later who pay $20 are entirely different people. You don’t need to cater to them in exactly the same manner. The launch buyers have enjoyed the game for a whole year. THAT’S their perk. THAT’S why they bought it Day One – because the game means more to them.
Excuse me, this wall over here wants to get into the conversation.
I want you to imagine that you’re a writer. (lawl c wut I did there?) You just wrote a book, and you go to Barnes & Noble to see how it’s doing. There’s a large crowd of people there who bought the hardback version of your book. They even bought a Mikewarrior bookmark and a Mikewarrior Trapper Keeper binder to take to school.
And then there’s this guy. You see him looking at the shelf with your books on it. He picks one up… and while you’re there at the store, he stands there and READS THE ENTIRE BOOK. Then he calmly sets it back on the shelf, maybe even comes up to you and congratulates you on the great book, and walks out of the store.
According to you, I should chase him down and give him a binder and a bookmark.
Or, conversely, a year later when all of the stuff is on clearance because sales have dropped to zero with the release of the new Twilight novel, we should hunt down the people who bought your hardback and the binder and the bookmark… and give THEM a binder and a bookmark?
I SERIOUSLY don’t think you’ve thought this through.
February 10th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
Spacy, you didn’t even READ the article… If you would have, you would have known I talked about the CODE on a KEY CARD that comes in thee NEW game BOX that people can use to register their NEW game as something not USED.
Next time get a clue!
February 10th, 2010 at 6:13 pm
No, I didn’t see it. Mainly because it was lost in a bunch of incoherent rambling.
I don’t think it’s a terribly bad idea, but it certainly has flaws.
I actually sent a suggestion to the Halo people that Halo Reach come with a code you have to enter in order to unlock multiplayer. In other words, if you buy the game new, don’t have LIVE or don’t plan on playing multiplayer, then you don’t need the code. But if you DO want to play multiplayer, which implies that you do have LIVE, then you enter the code and you get access.
So who couldn’t do it? People who bought used or rented the game. Only the people who bought new copies could play it. If you buy used, or if you’re borrowing a friend’s copy, or if you rented the game and you want to play Multiplayer, you could always purchase access for 800 MS Points.
If you don’t have LIVE, you’re not going to buy any additional content anyway, so Microsoft isn’t losing anything.
There are two problems with your suggestion that aren’t problems with mine.
First, your idea for entering a code for every new game means that only people with access to LIVE can play. And if that’s going to be the case, then they might as well make the game Direct Digital Download, which you are against.
Second, your idea would penalize people who bought used, borrowed, or rented, which is something that you say the market should allow. If your idea is to reward earl;y adopters, you can’t reward used buyers, renters and borrows just so you can stick it to people who buy the game new later on.
I addressed numerous points in your article (articles, actually), and yet the only one you responded to was the one where I DIDN’T address a point in your post. Does that mean the rest of my issues with your article are okay? Groovy.