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Next-Gen Gaming to be Uber Expensive
The CNN column Game Over is running an article discussing the costs associated with going Next-Gen. Using the Xbox 360 as an example, they calculate that to get the full next-generation experience would cost almost $2000. From the article: "The first test comes this fall, when Microsoft debuts the Xbox 360. The company hasn't announced a price for the machine, but several industry observers believe it could cost $399 -- $100 more than new consoles have traditionally cost."
Uh... that includes $1000 for a HD-TV and $250 for surround sound?
Plus, you'll want to gold plate your thumbs to get better reaction time and higher scores! That just drives the price up more!
SYS 64738 NO CARRIER
While most analysts keep saying the price will be up there, I think 360 will arrive at $299. Sony has already shown that it has superior hardware and MS knows that the slight gap of headstart they have on PS3 is their only real chance to seize hold of the console market. MS has shown with Xbox that it will take a hit to keep prices competitive and I believe 360s launch will be no different.
In the US, the PlayStation launched at $300 and the PS2 launched at $300. I don't recall what the N64 launched at, but I think it was higher than the GameCube ($200). These doomsayer articles show up for every new console launch, because it makes good theoretical press to run around screaming "OMG PS3 WILL COST $600!" Ignore it.
Who wants to bet the Revolution will be cheaper than both of them... again.
I already know i'm going to hell, now i'm just trying to get cable down there.
What?! $2000 is LOW! I mean, come on! It only includes the cost of the system, TV and speakers!
They totally left out the price of extra controllers ($30 x 3), a router ($50), broadband access ($40/month), wires ($20), home theatre cabinet ($200), couch ($500), foot stool ($80), snacks ($5/day) and house ($100,000-$1,000,000).
I could cost you as much as $102,902.00 to play Xbox 360! And that's assuming that you get a relatively modest house and does not count your monthly expenses. Truly, we are at a crossroads were the gaming community will be divided into the haves and the havenots. It will be a crisis, my friends. A true crisis.
I have a lot of opinions about Cyborgs and Architects
Which in some cases could cost over $200 just to walk up to your new console.
"Several industry observers believe it could cost $399 -- $100 more than new consoles have traditionally cost."
That is about the ammount the dollar has devalued since the launch of the last generation , a little more perhaps , $399 is around 317 (about the price the last generation launched at in the EU) and around 218GBP so its a tiny 18 GBP and 17 (well i think they were a bit more expensive in the UK last time around compared to europe)above the previous launch prices if my memory serves me correctly
The only things certain in war are Propaganda and Death. You can never be sure which is which though
Language is what we make it.
No Comment.
Last time around the dollar was considerably stronger than it is now.
If you compare against Pounds Sterling, for instance, One US Dollar back in 2001 would get you around 72p. Nowadays it'll only get you about 54p, so versus the Pound it's lost about 25% of its value, which coincides remarkably well with the $300 -> $400 change.
Of course, the Xbox isn't manufactured in the UK, so the numbers will be rather different with respect to whatever countries it is manufactured in, but it is a trend. The Dollar just isn't worth as much any more and although you are to an extent buffered by your sheer size, if the Dollar doesn't increase soon you will find things getting more expensive.
Who are they marketing to? Not you.
Like Apple ( well, at least Apple before the Mac mini ), they're marketing to People With Money.
They're marketing to people who buy their _kids_ iPods and color-screen cell phones. People who buy their kids new cars the second they get their learner's permit. If you're worried about how much it'll cost... they're not marketing it to you, at least not for the first few years.
Here's the real test, IMHO. You don't have at least one High-Definition television in your house? They're not marketing to you.
Which is to say, they're marketing to gamers. They're marketing to people who are thinking really hard about spending that $800 on a graphics card that they know will cost $250 in 8 months. They know they'll pick up blokes like you and I a year to two down the road, when their costs have dipped a little. But first, it's time to fleece People With Money ( and early adopters and gaming fanatics with skewed priorities ).
Are we surprised that the latest batch will be more expensive yet?
Generally speaking, pricing at the launch of new systems has been lower than the generation previous, not higher, when adjusted for inflation. For the most part, absolute pricing has remained within the same general range.
Here are some launch prices of various systems and the cost in today's dollars:
Atari 2600 (1977)
Launch price: $199
Today's dollars: $645.75
Intellivision (1980)
Launch price: $299
Today's dollars: $759.36
Colecovision (1982)
Launch price: $199
Today's dollars: $403.70
NES (1985) (note that Nintendo has consistently been on the low end of console pricing)
Launch price: $159
Today's dollars: $282.17
Sega Genesis (1989)
Launch price: $189
Today's dollars: $294.60
PlayStation (1995)
Launch price: $299
Today's dollars: $372.01
Personally, my thinking is the next systems will be in the $300-$350 range, and that's not really out of line with previous launches. Nintendo will probably come in at $200 and undercut the competition, like they usually do (the one exception was the SNES, which came in at $199 compared to Sega's $149 at the time).
$400 might be a stretch and will limit the launch of these systems but it's still not totally out of the range people have paid for systems in the past, in terms of dollar purchasing power. Prices do go up over time, but then so do salaries. People may have a bit of sticker shock at $400 but they'll probably get over it.
One thing I was thinking to myself the other night, though, is that the focus on HDTV with these systems may actually hurt them - at the end of the day people do only have a limited amount of money, and a lot of people are now upgrading their TV's (not specifically for games, but just generally). Spend $1,000 or $2,000 on a TV - even for unrelated reasons - and that's $1,000 or $2,000 less that you have to spend on games or game consoles. It's sort of similar to what happened in 1983, when the industry crashed - people stopped buying consoles as they spent money on computers and other devices. People in general budget a certain amount for entertainment and games have to compete with TV, DVD's, PC's, whatever else... and we're at a point in the cycle now where a lot of people are spending a major chunk of money to upgrade one component in their entertainment system.
When you add in the fact that major game stores all seem to now have mountains of used games for $10 or less (whole shelves devoted to them at my local EB), I'm getting a little concerned that people may hold off on buying new systems for a little while in favor of just sticking with current systems no matter what the launch prices are. Some people have been arguing another crash is coming for a long time, and I've always argued against it - I still don't think a 1983-style near-complete stoppage of the industry is coming, but a slowdown leading to a medium-sized shakeout seems pretty possible at this point.