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The 360's Towering Pricetag Explored
Last week Gamasutra had up a call for commentary on the revelations about the Xbox 360's pricing structure. This week, comments are available on the groaning pricetags gamers will have to endure if they want to jump on the next-gen bandwagon. This commentary is especially well seen, given that Gamestop has just come out with a 360 Bundle that clocks in at a whopping $1,199.83. From the article: "I don't think the prices for the $300 or the $400 bundles are unreasonable, but anyone who buys the $300 bundle is going to end up paying more on expensive accessories. $99 for a 20 gig hard disk? You can get a 250 gig hard disk for less than that! If you don't want to get the hard disk, you have to pay $39.99 to save your game."
The 360's HDDs are 2.5", aka laptop drives. 250GB $100 laptop drives? Sign me up!
Synergy is your friend
It used to be that consoles outsold PCs because PCs were so expensive that their cost outweighed their upgradability.
Well, the 360 is both more expensive *and* isn't as upgradable. I can get a pretty sweet gaming rig (that I can use for other things, too) for less than $1,000.
-EvilMagnus
...there's over 500 dollars worth of games there.
The eternal struggle of good vs. evil begins within one's self.
This is just moronic. Are we trying to make things sound worse, by citing some ridiculous package put together by some retailer? Please.
The $399.99 bundle that Microsoft announced is expensive. We freakin' get it, already. Considering what you get, many of us feel that its not that bad. Mentioning that $1,200 package is just flamebait.
That bundle includes every possible launch title for the Xbox 360, including those that haven't even been confirmed! Bethedsa has never confirmed that Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion will launch. The closest we get is "Holidays, 2005".
You know what's even worse? When Sony comes out with the pricing for the PS3, this is going to start all over again. Ken Kutagari has already warned us that its going to be ridiculously expensive. *sigh*
$40 for a memory card? That's ridiculous. I know most XBox 360 buyers will be interested in the HD, but what happened to the reasoning people bought consoles in the first place?
They used to work straight out of the box. Need to hook it to your TV? There's a cord in the box. Need a controller? There's one in the box. Need to save? Either it came with a memory card or the games saved to the cart.
I'll be waiting to buy any new console until I can buy it the way I bought my GameCube (I got the cube, a controller, a game (choice of 5 I think), and a memory card) at a reasonable price.
e2 | LJ
maybe if they had a package and let you pick 2 games from that list instead of forcing specific titles on you. I am sure i aiwll get the 399 package, and then a game or 2, so i would love a package, i would just want to pick the games...
You can fool some of the people all of the time
Yeah, I second that. They should give you options if you're spending $600 to $700.
Soon part.
I have been saying this all along, way before the official numbers were released and I was met with countless flames.
The simple fact is that the Xbox 360 and PS3 are going to be very large busts. Sure the dedicated fanboy will spring for a $1000+ system but the average person is not. The Revolution's position keeps looking better all the time.
On top of these massive costs, the games are going to be more expensive and long gone are the days of $20 older popular titles. The other MAJOR problem will be the number of titles released over the consoles lifespan. With astonishingly high production costs and timetables almost double that of other consoles, developers are simply not going to be pumping out many titles... and those that do get made will be the "safe" titles and licensed games. So except for FPS, Sports, and safe RPG's/MMO's and crap movie/TV/whatever licensed games there will be little else. I don't even believe many puzzle games or niche titles will be seen.
It is going to be very frustrating for gamers, look how the comparatively cheap (while still way expensive) to produce for PSP is doing... If the Revolution can come in at $199-$249 and have some solid titles on top of classics/GC backwards compat. and a simplified innovative controller, there truly will be a revolution in gaming.
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maybe if they had a package and let you pick 2 games from that list instead of forcing specific titles on you. I am sure i aiwll get the 399 package, and then a game or 2, so i would love a package, i would just want to pick the games...
But then nobody would buy the crappy games, which is one of the major reasons for bundling them.
I'm no Nintendo fanboy, but I cannot help but wonder if Xbox 360 and PS3 are going to price themselves right out of the market and give Nintendo a big win in the next console round. It's not just the cost of the console and the games themselves. As others have mentioned, the next gen offerings from MS and Sony are going to be relatively difficult and expensive to develop for. This could leave the door wide open for Nintendo to become the console of choice for the great middle swath of developers that don't have the resources to develop on the other machines, whose high prices may result in smaller market penetration.
If Nintendo plays the price game right, wooing consumers with a capable low cost and easy to understand (no multiple models here) console, and wooing developers with an easy and cheaper to develop for console, they could win the round.
I know that the new generation of consoles usually have more expensive launch prices, but it seems that something is different about this launch. It's taking place against the backdrop of a relatively sluggish economy in the major console markets, high energy prices, and each major console manufacturer facing financial difficulties or at least reduced profits. That makes me believe that we won't see a fast drop off in prices after launch as has been the case in the past. And some major publishers have invested a lot of money in either securing exclusive sports licenses and/or buying out the competition. In short, no one will be in a hurry to lower prices.
If Nintendo plays this right, they could win. And I can think of no company more desperate to get back to the top of the gaming heap than the big N.
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Thank you for your informative response. I wasn't aware that I was a fool, but thanks to you I now know the truth and can live a better life.
If graphics are all that matter to you then you should buy a PC. After all, a PC will always have better looking games than any console? Or maybe you forgot?
Do you need exclusive games? Ok, then let me suggest that you buy any of the consoles, or a PC. I am certain that these options will also provide you with a plethora of exclusive games as well.
You are correct, low prices do not mean better games. But neither do high prices. Remember, excellent games existed before the XBox 360.
As for being uninformed, I should let you know that I actually built the XBox 360. That's right. I work for Microsoft and still, even I wouldn't buy one. Yeah, yeah, that's it. See I am not a consumer at all. I work for the company that makes this system. You shouldn't buy our system. How's that for uninformed?
Of course, I can not end this post without thanking you first. This post was actually an experiment. I was trying to see if I could get someone, much like you, to reply and say something nasty. So think about it. I actually controlled your mind by presenting my post. How does it feel to know that your emotions have been manipulated by someone smarter than you?
So, thank you and have a nice day!