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[Kiyamon]

According to EBgames... all the next generation games are priced at $59.99. Probably early to say what the prices are going to be... but everywhere I read that development costs are going down this coming generation. Both MS and Sony stated that with their system it will be cheaper for devs to make games... so why the price hike?

 

[C- Warrior]

ebgames says a lot of shit that's not going to be reality.

They priced DS games at 50-55 dollars, yet they retail for 29-39


Also, according to ebgames.com

Devil May Cry 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, Tekken 6, Vision Grand Turismo, and Killzone 2 all come out 5/1/2006.

what the fuck does that tell you

 

[Pedigree Chum]

No matter how much MS/Xony help devs to keep development costs down, they're still going to go up.

 

[Joe]

portable game prices went up...i think that should tell you something.

 

[quetz67]

but everywhere I read that development costs are going down this coming generation.

I think that is complete BS

It will probably be easier programming wise, but think of the increase in model detail, animation quality, physics, AI and the resulting difficulties in playtesting and balancing.

 

[FitzOfRage]

but everywhere I read that development costs are going down this coming generation.

I think it's a little bit of an overstatement to say "everywhere." I've seen a couple statements recently, but I think the bulk of the expectations have gone the other way.

Really, I think at most what MS and Sony are going to do in making their systems accessible to developers is to slow down the rate of insrease. I don't think there's anything they can do to keep costs from rising, but I think they're trying to soften the blow as much as possible, rather than throwing them to the wolves like what happened with the PS2 at first.

 

[kamikaze]

... but everywhere I read that development costs are going down this coming generation.

so...where exactly is everywhere?

 

[Tempy]

Development costs are not going down.

With good middleware you might ease the coding process, but the scope of many games is going to increase. People want to see huge, detailed GTA cities, huge Dynasty Warriors battles, The Sims in SimCity.

All that detail brings with it many design issues which need to be resolved, plus you're gonna need people modelling all those extra assets to dress up environments.

Gamers are not going to be satisfied with bare, empty rooms in a FPS anymore. If you're fighting in a library you want indivdual books to get knocked out from the shelves.

Sure there will be plenty of games which will just be slightly upgraded PS2/XBOX games, but then you'll get complaints - "XBOX 1.5 AMIRITE?"

 

[Odnetnin]

because game assets (art+engine+3d+audio) will all be more expensive next gen. The more elaborate the game, the bigger the team. The more costly


No one's point this out yet in this thread. You think its click a button and out pops a game?

 

[madara]

Uhmm from 15million to estimated 45 million. I say they are skyrocketing.

 

[Drek]

Most statements regarding reducing cost of game development is more applied to reduction in the rate at which costs will go up.

However, there still isn't a real need for the industry to price games above $50 outside of wanting to fatten their own profits. Preliminary claims that titles will cost between $60 to $80 are just panic if you ask me. We'll see games stay around $50 because thats the market sweet spot. I actually think we might see more budget games this generation than any before (games that launch at <$40) because middleware is becoming a crucial part of the industry. It'll be a lot easier to license quality middleware for a reasonable price when there is real competition in the field (Epic and EA look to square off with UE3 and Renderware respectively, Id would be wise to move into the console middleware market as well as several others such as Valve).

My guess is that the average game stays at $50, but we see a lot more games that deviate away from the average to either side of the spectrum. Big name sequels will charge as much as $60-$65 and only launch in special edition/collectors edition version with extras, while we'll also see an increase in <$40 bargain software, as well as an increase in bargain software quality.

 

[mrklaw]

MS and Nintendo has explicitly stated they want to expand the market (MS to the point of saying they need to fund experimental game styles to see what works). That helps you recoup your developer costs.

If game prices go too high next gen, it will simply shrink the userbase which hurts everyone.

 

[pestul]

Even if dev costs were down, which I highly doubt that they are, you still have to factor in the increased R&D and loss that will be taken on each system when they launch at $300-350.

 

[ToyMachine228]

I am willing to bet...That the only company that will attempt to raise prices, without any special discs, or limited edtion stuff is EA. ESPECIALLY with Madden.

 

[acidviper]

Even if they are easier to create, they are harder to market. I mean Nintendo is paying IGN/Gamespy off who is next? Also the game companies want to make more money since they have lost so much on the console.

 

[Odnetnin]

I mean Nintendo is paying IGN/Gamespy off who is next?

Did you pull that out of your ass or what? I'll like to see you justify it.