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The Rise Of Limited Edition Games
John Callaham wrote to mention a piece on Gamecloud discussing the emphasis on 'special' editions of new game titles. From the article: "Games that have some extras in limited releases have been a part of the industry for a few years now. Just last year limited collector's versions of the MMORPGs Everquest 2 and World of Warcraft were released that were packed with extra stuff, from art books to extra DVDs and more. Electronic Arts released a special edition of Medal of Honor Pacific Assault last fall with lots of behind-the-scenes material and an extra weapon not in the regular edition. Midway released a special edition of Mortal Kombat: Deception last fall with extra content as well as the full version of the first Mortal Kombat game. This fall, however, game publishers are releasing more special editions of games than ever before alongside the 'regular' versions of games and they typically cost at least $10 more and in a couple of cases even more than that."
DVD "special editions" have always raked in the cash, so it's not surprising the game industry is copying this formula. Every industry copies things from another. I'm just worried that special editions may start containing too much extra stuff and the regular editions of games may end up being half-assed.
I would be more willing to pay extra for additional game content. For example the extra multi-player maps for Halo 2. That was nice.
And then big wigs in the game industry are talking about serializing games. Think of Eternal Darkness where a new scenario comes out every month, each one costs $10.
Why not? I've bought a few of these "limited" type games in the last few years, the first being the "Collector's Edition" of Diablo 2. The most recent was the afformentioned Mortal Kombat Deceptions. The Diablo box set was well worth the extra $12. It contained enough junk that I later sold and recouped 80% of the original purchase price via eBay and kept the actual game cds/keys.
I think the extra stuff is a nice premium IF its not just cheesy extras and cut-scenes on the same media as the game install. Physical trinkets make the $10 or so worth spending if you are really in to the game you are purchasing. Then again, I'd gladly pay $10 or so less for JUST the game for two thirds of the titles I consider purchasing.
I know what you're thinking. Did I forward 65,535 packets or 65,536 packets?
This brings up the lovely issue of piracy. Let's say you buy the "crippled" version, like it, and want to see what more is to be had from the special edition. You can either pay for the same game AGAIN with the "special" extras, or fire up a P2P app and download a cracked copy "for evaluation purposes only". You like the new stuff, and burn the cracked special edition to disc for safe keeping. At least you paid for the original game, so you're not 100% evil, right ?
Six months later, another game comes out with the same crippled/premium edition distinction. Rememorating your experience with the previous title, you decide to leech the premium edition from Kazaa right away, because you know the standard edition is a rip-off. Game company makes zero, and you're a dirty rotten foul-smelling groggy pirate from hell. Boo hoo.
If the game companies insist on charging for the additional content, then maybe they could release a single version of the game in stores, and then offer an add-on as a downloadable purchase. Black & White 2, for 50$, and buy the extra creatures for 10$ from the company's web site. The irony is that they would probably make as much profit from the add-on as they do from the retail game, as they are cutting out the middle-men.
I will never cease to be shocked at the ridiculous costs of gaming. I remember many years ago when I was a young overpaid techie, I popped $500 on a PS2, and happily forked over another $50-60 for each game, until I realized I had invested well over two thousand dollars into something that provides merely a few hours of entertainment per week. That same money could have afforded me hundreds of nights at the cinema, many many music albums, or a healthy serving of any other conventional form of entertainment. The music industry is certainly healthy enough to heavy-hand every other artist on the planet. The film industry is happily giving billions away to Scientology year after year. Why is the game industry collapsing ?
I think the game industry is failing because it is trying to mimic its older siblings in the entertainment business. You can't sell a game like you would a movie or new artist. You can't just flash T&A, throw in a dash of racism and gang violence and make it into a blockbuster hit. You can't follow the same marketing principles and practices and expect to make money.
Let's make it simple: if games cost half what they cost today, I would buy more than double, in part because I would feel less monetary guilt for every purchase. Look at what goes into the retail price, trim off the fat and restrategize. Do I really need to walk into EBGames to see the pretty boxes ? Does the experience add to the game itself ? Not at all. Do the cinematic frame grabs on the back of the box give me any idea how much fun I will be having ? Often the contrary. Does the flashy embossed T&A on the cover make it a better product ? Sorry, I don't get off on triangle-boobed high-elf priestesses. Now stop laundering the publisher's money and give me what I want for a change.
-Billco, Fnarg.com