Interesting thing to consider: selling NMS for $60 might put it in direct comparison with Elite: Dangerous. Both games have essentially the same concept but each one has advantages over the other.
When NMS launches its surface-level exploration will be far beyond what you can do on surfaces in Elite. Elite has much higher production value and generally better graphics. NMS will probably be more accessible in terms of controls. Elite is much more MMO and multiplayer-focused. Elite is based more on hard science which is a plus or minus depending on who you are. NMS will be on PlayStation first. And so-on. I don't know how that's gonna affect the value proposition to people but it's an interesting comparison to make.
I mean if two different teams both made the exact same game (lets call it... Halo 5.) they were identical down to every single detail, but one team was 5 people that did it for 100k because they just covered their own living expenses and did it all in house, and the other team had 500 people and a 100 million budget getting backed by a publisher should the first team really have to charge less because it was made by a small indie team? (extreme example as halo 5 likely couldn't be made by merely 5 people but you get what I am saying).
Both would have the same value to the end consumer, but one would require a lot less revenue in sales to break even or turn a profit. Thus, it would have a lot more leeway in its pricing. It wouldn't "have" to charge less, but it
could charge less and still make a lot of money if it sells.
Its exactly this.
The is the appitome of a grind with nothing to work towards. If the planets got better and bigger with time then yes I see a point.
According to Sean Murray, the planets are supposed to get more and more dangerous the closer to the center you get: more toxic atmospheres requiring more expensive gear, more powerful ships you might have to fight requiring a stronger ship, etc.
If this exact same game had been revealed by a big publisher like EA or Ubisoft as their next big franchise during E3, no one would be questioning if it was going to be $60. The complaints would be about how Ubisoft is making another open world game (...in sppaaccee!!) or if EA would be adding microtransactions or something like that, but the price? $60 would be expected.
But replace EA or Ubisoft or Activation with Hello Games and now the game is probably going to be $30 or less, and $40 or $60 is too expensive.
That's because EA, Ubisoft, and the like have brand names attached to them that project a sense of perceived value in a lot of customers (I'm talking way outside of GAF here). Those companies also have the ability to push huge marketing campaigns that jack up the awareness of a game and thus the number of people likely to buy it, which increases the price they can get away with charging. One reason indies charge much lower is because there's lower awareness, so they have to find ways to entice customers, one being low prices.
Like I said, above I do wonder what the point of some of these things will be... As a pirate are we building a reputation in the world? As an explorer are we trying to claim the most planets? As a fighter pilot do we gain from siding with a faction-- and why are they fighting to begin with?
If these answers are out there somewhere, I'd like to be directed towards them.
In the case of Elite it's really just to interact with he community and the world -- the same reason people play most MMOs.
But if you're talking about playing the game in and of itself, it's really just the satisfaction of getting more "stuff." Usually that means getting more money which let's you upgrade your ship or buy nicer ships which, if designed right, elicit a sense of empowerment. It helps that space games aren't really common in the market right now, especially not on consoles, so NMS and Elite stand out just on that alone. Space games like these though won't be for everyone, they'll be a particular case to to speak.
Case-in-point: my own experience playing Elite. I'm just exploring, no combat or guns or any interaction with other players or characters. Really all I do is warp from system to system, scanning planets and occasionally returning to civilized space to sell the information. A lot of people don't think there's any reason to explore in the game but I just like the anticipation and surprise upon first surveying each new system. At first scanning was slow and part of the challenge was spotting planets in the sky with my naked eye, but eventually I was able to afford a better scanner that let me scan systems instantly and make more money more quickly. Recently I got shot down and in order to re-buy my ship I had go into dept with the shipyards, so now I'm playing to make that money back. Some people like to make long-ass journeys around the galaxy which take hours and can bring them to incredible new sights like massive black holes or nebulas. If you're kinda into astronomy it can be a really cool thing. Hell, I've spent a lot of hours playing Space Engine -- a game that isn't really a game. It's just an interactive planetarium where you do literally nothing but look at planets in 3D, but people who are into astronomy might still find it cool to look at this simulation based on plausible science. In NMS for me it's going to be all about finding out what kinds of animals are on the next planet or what I'll find past that mountain over there or in that ocean.
A lot of it is just about telling your own story, living your own personal Han Solo or Boba Fett fantasy. Elite an NMS are supposed to be the games where you finally get to chart a course to the Tauri system or whatever because you're trying to find the quickest way to smuggle spice to this particular station while avoiding the space cops. Or maybe you're trying to catch up to that guy who has a bounty on his head for smuggling that spice. Really, it's about the systems coming together to form emergent gameplay. It seems to work for a lot of people in the case of Elite. I've looked at Steam reviews from people who seem to have gotten bored after "only" 50 or 150 hours. Maybe most of the time it's just mundane grinding, but maybe every once in a while something cool can happen.
In games like this I've learned you kinda have to set your own goals. NMS has one kind of already set for you -- reach the center. Hello Games has already suggested that will require you to make more money so you can buy more expensive things to eventually reach the center and survive. But your goal could also be to afford this particular ship, reach a certain status with a certain faction, blow up space stations (they've said you can do this in NMS), or whatever.
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