Saucycarpdog
Member
That day already came true over a decade ago.
But hey, alternative facts and all.
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The sad truth about Steam Sales...
- Thread starter MRORANGE
- Start date
But hey, alternative facts and all.
RiccochetJ
Gold Member
I admit that I do miss flash sales. It was part of the fun.
I think they could re-introduce flash sales, but also do something fun where at the end of the day (the 24 hour mark of when the sale started) release a list games that are currently on sale that will not be a part of future flash sales. Do that every 24 hours. That way they wouldn't get their servers slammed on the last day/hour.
Never was a fan of waiting for the dailies other than Salsa giving GAF a stern warning in the OP.
I think they could re-introduce flash sales, but also do something fun where at the end of the day (the 24 hour mark of when the sale started) release a list games that are currently on sale that will not be a part of future flash sales. Do that every 24 hours. That way they wouldn't get their servers slammed on the last day/hour.
Never was a fan of waiting for the dailies other than Salsa giving GAF a stern warning in the OP.
I really want to clue myself up about Steam. Everyone from sales, peak periods, typical drop offs, the major shovalware issues, what valve planning, complexities for great sales, all that jazz to better myself at forecasting. Are there any reports and sites I should definitely start reading and following? PDF presentations? Love to know the works.
BattleMonkey
Member
I stopped caring about steam sales. The super deals are mostly gone unless it's an ancient game. Most stuff isn't all that amazing of a price it feels and they go on sale for similar prices on a regular basis anyways. I used to buy so much crap that I never would play, but now I just don't see much value being offered anymore.
tearsintherain
Member
You can look up how much your steam library is "worth' here
https://steamdb.info/calculator/
I buy a lot of bundle fodder, idle the games, and sell the cards to make up like 50% of the bundle cost and so have a huge library
steam summer/winter sales have been a joke for a while now, because the sales run the entire two weeks publishers are too afraid to do DEEP discounts. I guess steam is happy too, since they have kept the same formula now for a few years. I really do miss the 24 hour flash sales, getting a great game at 90% off was fantastic. Now most things are at 40-50%, at best, and you can sometimes get a better deal just in a regular sale.
and yeah, I find console discounts now better than steam sales, especially when you factor in physical sales like best buy / gamestop / amazon, etc. Steam used to be really fun and amazing for sales but that died off sometime in 2014.
https://steamdb.info/calculator/
I buy a lot of bundle fodder, idle the games, and sell the cards to make up like 50% of the bundle cost and so have a huge library
steam summer/winter sales have been a joke for a while now, because the sales run the entire two weeks publishers are too afraid to do DEEP discounts. I guess steam is happy too, since they have kept the same formula now for a few years. I really do miss the 24 hour flash sales, getting a great game at 90% off was fantastic. Now most things are at 40-50%, at best, and you can sometimes get a better deal just in a regular sale.
and yeah, I find console discounts now better than steam sales, especially when you factor in physical sales like best buy / gamestop / amazon, etc. Steam used to be really fun and amazing for sales but that died off sometime in 2014.
Unknown Soldier
Member
The analogy that applies here is that people who remember the early years of Black Friday know how amazing it once was.
Now it's a bunch of crap designed to lure in suckers who have nothing better to do the day after Thanksgiving or worse Thanksgiving night.
Now it's a bunch of crap designed to lure in suckers who have nothing better to do the day after Thanksgiving or worse Thanksgiving night.
tensuke
Member
Man, I remember about 3-4 years ago I was buying games all the damn time on Steam/Amazon/GMG because the deals were so good. The last couple of years the sales have been so bad I've barely bought anything.
Random Human
They were trying to grab your prize. They work for the mercenary. The masked man.
.
And who's fault is that? You probably already know
Try focusing on a small selection of games and having fun with that instead.
zombieshavebrains
I have not used cocaine
Agree with OP. I've got more money these days but less time and less desire to play as many games as possible. Plus if something doesn't really stand out in price then I really don't need it.
ViolentP
Member
Genuinely got a laugh out of me.
What you need flash/daily sales then for? I don't get it.
KingNoLife
Banned
I think the new system is more sane.
The old one was too exploitative on the users and only the few featured flash/daily games would get the meat of the profits from the sale.
Now I simply set up my waitlist on isthereanydeal and I get the games whenever it's under my thresold on any store. No more dumb impulse buys.
The old one was too exploitative on the users and only the few featured flash/daily games would get the meat of the profits from the sale.
Now I simply set up my waitlist on isthereanydeal and I get the games whenever it's under my thresold on any store. No more dumb impulse buys.
StrategyFan
Member
i haven't really bought anything off my wishlist recently because stuff seems to never get as low as $5
i like to pretend that anything more expensive that is for games that i'm actually going to play soon
i like to pretend that anything more expensive that is for games that i'm actually going to play soon
I've certainly stopped buying games on these sales now. The discounts simply aren't as steep. If it's something I really want, I'm probably going to buy it on release. That leaves my wishlist filled with things I'm interested in trying but not enough to drop lots of money on them.
For instance, I've got Dying Light kicking around on my wishlist as I'm always looking for multiplayer games to play with a friend of mine. It came out two years ago. It's on for 60% off.
Yeah, it's not happening.
The longer I wait for some of those older deals, the more my interest wanes. I'll probably prune Dying Light right off it come this winter sale and then forget about it altogether. I used to go through friends' wishlists and grab them things they wanted that were on steep discounts but haven't done that since 50% is the new norm either.
I guess good for me in saving money. Not sure how helpful that is for the industry that I'm not experiencing more developers and products to bump them into "must buys." But whatever, it's clearly working for them otherwise they would discount their games more.
I'm going to add I've bought more games from other sources than Steam in the last two years.
Alas, times change I suppose.
For instance, I've got Dying Light kicking around on my wishlist as I'm always looking for multiplayer games to play with a friend of mine. It came out two years ago. It's on for 60% off.
Yeah, it's not happening.
The longer I wait for some of those older deals, the more my interest wanes. I'll probably prune Dying Light right off it come this winter sale and then forget about it altogether. I used to go through friends' wishlists and grab them things they wanted that were on steep discounts but haven't done that since 50% is the new norm either.
I guess good for me in saving money. Not sure how helpful that is for the industry that I'm not experiencing more developers and products to bump them into "must buys." But whatever, it's clearly working for them otherwise they would discount their games more.
I'm going to add I've bought more games from other sources than Steam in the last two years.
Alas, times change I suppose.
Mohonky
Member
The main thing for me is the pricing of the titles in general has gone up and its still in USD for someone who is in Australia.
Its actually cheaper for me to get a nunber of games on sale at retail sales at EB. Now thats a new one lol.
I have Wolfenstein the Old Blood, but it was Aus $9AUS on sale in store, its on sale for $9USD in Steam.
Its actually cheaper for me to get a nunber of games on sale at retail sales at EB. Now thats a new one lol.
I have Wolfenstein the Old Blood, but it was Aus $9AUS on sale in store, its on sale for $9USD in Steam.
I mean, it has the game, all additional dlc and meaty expansion that released in 2016 for the price of that expansion only. Doesn't sound like a bad deal.
What are other sources btw? Not really fair to compare something completely legit to anything even slightly shady/gray.
Peak Steam Sales for me was when they did that thing where they split everyone up into teams. That was a lot of fun.
#teampurple
PleaseDontBanMe
Banned
PSN sales are better than steam sales these days
I checked current deals on PSN. Those are marked first and Steam second, Witcher 3 GOTY 25%-50%, Torment 20%-50%, NBA 2K17 50%-75%, Hitman season 1 30%-66%, Layers of Fear, 30%-65% Dreamfall Chapters 15%-33%.
Phantom Pain was cheaper on PSN though, but that doesn't seem to be the norm.
GhostTrick
Banned
Depends. If you add the PS+ additionnal one, maybe in some cases. But that means paying for a better sale so...
Although I agree OP. But I think it's also a publisher thing. Ubi for exemple never discounted Prince of Persia for 75% off since years.
Lucky Seven
Banned
Ehhh, Steam had it good FOR TOO LONG. You were too comfortable, now enjoy 20% off.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
For AAA stuff the Steam sales haven't been crazy good, they keep even with the rest of the industry now. We used to get pretty recent titles, on consoles running for $30 to 60, on Steam for $10 or less.
But the indies are keeping those fires hot. There's just so many games, and a lot of indies will drop price to $5 or less just to get noticed. (Seen a lot of them pull back the aggressive pricing the year after, when the word got out.)
Doesn't bug me though, Humble Bundles still fuel my value proposition excitement glands.
Is it the same dollar value though? Percentage doesn't mean much when publishers are hiking up and down the base value of the games before and after sales.
But the indies are keeping those fires hot. There's just so many games, and a lot of indies will drop price to $5 or less just to get noticed. (Seen a lot of them pull back the aggressive pricing the year after, when the word got out.)
Doesn't bug me though, Humble Bundles still fuel my value proposition excitement glands.
Is it the same dollar value though? Percentage doesn't mean much when publishers are hiking up and down the base value of the games before and after sales.
Just did probably my only batch of games for this Steam sale. It was pretty much just a bunch of indie stuff I'd had in my wishlist for ages that had dropped so low that I was like "well, it doesn't really matter if it drops any lower than this, might as well get it now."
I don't deliberately wait for super-low prices on these games anymore, it's just a matter of timing. I've reached a point where I just buy games when I'm ready to play them, no matter what their price. I also bought some Arma 3 DLC at much less significant sales because I needed it for some mods I'm playing right now.
I don't deliberately wait for super-low prices on these games anymore, it's just a matter of timing. I've reached a point where I just buy games when I'm ready to play them, no matter what their price. I also bought some Arma 3 DLC at much less significant sales because I needed it for some mods I'm playing right now.
RoninChaos
Member
Everybody is saying steam isn't the cheapest place for games. Where is that and is it legit?
Noisepurge
Member
Yeah. Steam really used to de-value games. Everyone would just wait for the 2$ sales and devs would suffer.
Buy the games you like and pay the asking price.
Valkerionseven
Member
I generally don't pay attention to indie games so my steam list and general steam purchases are on the low end simply because I have a good idea what I like and want, rarely buying things on recommendation alone.
I've run out of things I really need or want thanks to them being on sale before but there is usually one or two things each sale season that I have the (well I guess I should get to this now)
Not sure how people have 500+ games on steam lol. Sitting at like 40 max after having the service since it started more or less.
I've run out of things I really need or want thanks to them being on sale before but there is usually one or two things each sale season that I have the (well I guess I should get to this now)
Not sure how people have 500+ games on steam lol. Sitting at like 40 max after having the service since it started more or less.
exmachina64
Banned
There's no one place, you need to follow a variety of sites.
It's called the double discount sale because the discount is doubled if you have PS+. Which of course is another cost.
StereoVsn
Gold Member
If you do have Plus though then it is cheaper and a lot of people do for multiplayer, discounts and "free" games.
killatopak
Member
Boss Doggie
all my loli wolf companions are so moe
lately none of the new stuff interest me, just a bunch of dlcs for games I own
The only complaint I have is valve needs better events if they are going to run the same sale prices for two weeks. This summer sticker activity is dumb. I wonder how badly sales fall after the first couple days when people can comb through and get what they want.
This summer sale could be done with in three to five days.
This summer sale could be done with in three to five days.
whalleywhat
Member
Mr. Orange is on your ass, GabeN.
Fabtacular
Member
I think the main driver is Library Fatigue.
If you're old like me, and were in college during the age of Napster/Limewire/iPods, you'll remember the intense enthusiasm people had about building their music libraries. We went from a situation where one you paid $10-15 per CD just to be able to listen to a couple songs you liked, to having basically every song in the world available for free. It made us giddy and irrational. You'd hear a Jackson Browne song you kinda liked, and you'd go to Limewire to download it. Then you'd think, "I may as well get the greatest hits colllection in case I like something else of his." Fine. But then you'd think "Well I might REALLY end up liking his stuff" and next thing you know you're downloading his entire anthology including Japan-only releases and half a dozen concert recordings. We were crazy. Then, once the novelty wore off, we weren't.
Same thing happened with the Steam sales. The combination of the burgeoning indie scene, people discovering Steam, and developers discovering that they could make a ton of money by selling their games for peanuts (but more than making it up on scale), led to frenzied atmosphere that drove mass over-consumption. And it's not like people didn't know what they were doing. "I'll never be able to play all these games LOL!" and similar statements were common. But there was a novelty and pleasure merely in being able to acquire so many games. People would brag about how they were going to spend beyond their means to buy games they'd admittedly never have time to play...
Then, suddenly, it wasn't so cool. These days we've got more games than we have time, they're available at great prices, and all that shit is no longer novel.
We have so many great games in our backlogs already that it feels wasteful to buy another game you're not going to play, and especially if you're not going to play it *now.* And frankly, if there's a game that's out now and I have an urge to play it over the other highly-regarded games currently in my backlog, why am I waiting to save a few bucks on a Steam Sale? If I'm that excited I should just pull the trigger now. Lord knows I've saved enough money to pay full (or near full) price by no longer throwing $2 and $5 at random games to sit in my backlog.
If you're old like me, and were in college during the age of Napster/Limewire/iPods, you'll remember the intense enthusiasm people had about building their music libraries. We went from a situation where one you paid $10-15 per CD just to be able to listen to a couple songs you liked, to having basically every song in the world available for free. It made us giddy and irrational. You'd hear a Jackson Browne song you kinda liked, and you'd go to Limewire to download it. Then you'd think, "I may as well get the greatest hits colllection in case I like something else of his." Fine. But then you'd think "Well I might REALLY end up liking his stuff" and next thing you know you're downloading his entire anthology including Japan-only releases and half a dozen concert recordings. We were crazy. Then, once the novelty wore off, we weren't.
Same thing happened with the Steam sales. The combination of the burgeoning indie scene, people discovering Steam, and developers discovering that they could make a ton of money by selling their games for peanuts (but more than making it up on scale), led to frenzied atmosphere that drove mass over-consumption. And it's not like people didn't know what they were doing. "I'll never be able to play all these games LOL!" and similar statements were common. But there was a novelty and pleasure merely in being able to acquire so many games. People would brag about how they were going to spend beyond their means to buy games they'd admittedly never have time to play...
Then, suddenly, it wasn't so cool. These days we've got more games than we have time, they're available at great prices, and all that shit is no longer novel.
We have so many great games in our backlogs already that it feels wasteful to buy another game you're not going to play, and especially if you're not going to play it *now.* And frankly, if there's a game that's out now and I have an urge to play it over the other highly-regarded games currently in my backlog, why am I waiting to save a few bucks on a Steam Sale? If I'm that excited I should just pull the trigger now. Lord knows I've saved enough money to pay full (or near full) price by no longer throwing $2 and $5 at random games to sit in my backlog.
The downward trend is pretty telling. 200 games on my wish list, but only 3 reached 75% off, with the majority under 50%, with most at 30% off. Im interested in seeing the Steam spy statistics on the average sale off. Last time I checked it was in the 66% vicinity but I'm sure it's lower this time around.
graywolf323
Member
it used to be Id add a bunch of cheap games from flash sales and daily deals and what not, usually spend at least a couple hundred dollars on the big sales
last year I actually only bought a few games between both the summer and winter sales, I just dont buy stuff on Steam much anymore :-/
last year I actually only bought a few games between both the summer and winter sales, I just dont buy stuff on Steam much anymore :-/
water_wendi
Water is not wet!
Steam sales were engineered to be greater in the earlier years so people could expand their libraries and be further entangled in the service.