Are PS3, Xbox 360 & Wii games too expensive?
We’ve spoken a lot here on Blorge about the price of consoles and whether price cuts can help hardware sell in greater numbers, but what about the price of games? Are PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii games too expensive, or good value for money considering the hours of entertainment they provide?
The recent Xbox 360 price cuts, followed by statements by both Sony and Nintendo declaring the PS3 and Wii wouldn’t be following suit, have prompted a healthy debate over the price of consoles and whether we’re all being asked to pay too much to partake in our favorite hobby. But no one has mentioned the games and how much we’re being asked to pay for software.
Newsarama recently printed an interesting article asking why video games are so expensive but the more accurate question is whether they are actually that expensive in the first place.
The average new release in the U.S. is $60, and in the U.K. about £40, which is quite a whack of money for just one title. But this price has to be looked at in context of how many hours of enjoyment will be garnered from it. While some games offer only limited gameplay time, with as little as five hours from some titles, most will offer upwards of 20 and even as much as 100 hours in the case of RPGs.
This actually works out at good value, especially when compared to other forms of entertainment. Buy a new DVD for $15 and watch it twice, and you’ll have had about 4 hours of entertainment, and Blu-rays, currently retailing for about $30, are even worse value for money.
Then there is going out to dinner, or to a movie, or to a sporting event, all of which are likely to set you back more than the price of a video game and which will only give you one evening of enjoyment. Set in this context and games are actually brilliant value for money.
It’s not even as though video game developers are making a fast buck out of the high price, with only the top-selling or low-budget hits making back their development costs in the first place. And prices have stayed frozen or even reduced since the days of the cartridge, meaning being a gamer in this day and age is actually a more affordable hobby than ever before.
Gaming isn’t cheap but it is an affordable hobby and great value for money when looked at in context to other pastimes. Which is why it’s likely to survive in the current economic climate of recession. As always, the important thing is to operate quality control, only buying games which you know are highly rated and are going to last beyond an afternoon.
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22 Responses to “Are PS3, Xbox 360 & Wii games too expensive?”
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November 8th, 2008
I wouldn’t say they’re too expensive. Even going back to the days of the Megadrive, games hovered around the $80 – $100 mark out this way. Games have stayed the same price for years.
November 8th, 2008
Games that offer no multiplayer experiance should be cheaper. Unless we’re talking about an rpg that will be well worth it.
November 8th, 2008
yes… yes they are expensive…
November 8th, 2008
Given the prices of games, a game better not cost me $60 unless its going to have some serious lasting appeal. This is for the simple fact that you can get good games that can give you hours and hours of gameplay for $50.
If you could get a good game for, say, $70, and $80 was a higher mark, I would still get the $70, but the $80 game will have a harder time.
Certainly, nearly all video games, with a few exceptions (mostly actually to big expensive games, NOT to cheap party games) are a good value, given the cost and time spent with them.
Given most games can give you 20-40 hours of play on a first playthough, about the same for a second, while collecting all the secrets, and about 10-30 for each additional playthough, it can be a good investment.
As someone that plays old games quite often, I can say some of my old games (not RPGs) have provided me with upwards of 300 hours of fun. If I had to spend $600 on a game like this, I would only be spending $2 per hour, still an amazing value for entertainment.
And this is 10 times what a high cost game takes to buy now.
It’s an amazing value if you play though games a few times.
For a single playthough, say 20 hours for $60, is $3 per hour, which is still a pretty good value, but considering the investment of buying a console, you’d probably end up with better value from a movie.
November 9th, 2008
‘Given most games can give you 20-40 hours of play on a first playthough,’
I agree with your post except that I havn’t played a game that has lasted over 20 hours (1st play thru) in a looooooong time.
November 9th, 2008
MGS4 is still £42 here! and so is GTA4! Its not that theyre good games, rather they’ve been out here for a long time, the retailer could help us out and discount the price. On the flip side i can get Bioshock for PS3 for £30 which is a steal…if only WHsmith had it in stock…
November 9th, 2008
That’s right don’t go out, don’t watch DVDs just sit in front of the TV playing games all day. After all it’s really good value.
November 9th, 2008
I think games have always been priced pretty reasonably, I am content with the cost. Unless the game turns out to be sh*tty with no replay value.
November 9th, 2008
Royzy, that will be Heavenly sword then. Had no replay ability but it was good.
November 9th, 2008
If games had better replay value or extensibilty, I don’t think we’d see the second hand/resell market we see.
And actually, these “values” consider only that you are keeping the game. Sell it or trade it out and your “value” becomes higher.
November 10th, 2008
ya… Heavenly Sword… I saw a interview on the devs about that game… they were talking about voice acting… and bragging about voice acting… and… was just so in love with their voice acting… that they forgot to extend the game beyond 5 hours….
WHAT THE FUCK!!!!
I would play a game… even if it had shitty voice acting… BUT 5 HOURS…. not cool…
November 10th, 2008
hehe Heavenly Demo.
November 10th, 2008
Was a good game though, really enjoyed the story. Pity the studio won’t do a sequel
November 10th, 2008
8 Games (average) at $60 = $480 + $600 for the PS3 = $1080 That’s $135 a game.
$135 is not cheap! Think about what you acualy spaen to play those games before you post Blogs like this.
November 10th, 2008
SW,
If you want a long gaming experience, have you picked up a copy of Valkyria Chronicles yet? If not, then you have no excuse.
-Arvis
November 10th, 2008
Saw it in the store the otehr day after you mentioned it. But was there to buy LBP.
My problem is now, I have to get CoD5 in a few days, and now you want me to get Valkyria Chon.
Don’t think my gf is going to let me spend the $$$ without much grief
It looks good tho, just mite have to wait a little while 
November 11th, 2008
@ncaissie
The argument over which system is a better value is over. Repeatedly on this site and others a simple cost breakdown between comparable features and price to own between PS3 and Xbox has shown that it is indeed more expensive to own and play an Xbox as a now gen system. Sure, you can get a stripper arcade and play it on a 20″ Sanyo in your mom’s basement, but that isn’t exactly living in the now, is it?
Where did you get your $600 figure, 2006?
November 11th, 2008
SW,
Your loss, friend.
I can’t rightly say whether you’ll enjoy the game more than COD5, but I can tell you that I am enjoying it far more than I enjoyed COD4.
@JofaMang: You can get a stripper arcade?? Count me in!!! (not really)
-Arvis
November 11th, 2008
@ Arvis – Played the demo of Valkyria yesterday (Had it on my ps3 a while but forgot about it
)
VERY good game
Ill pick it up eventually
November 11th, 2008
A stripper arcade and lagers in the Xbox 360 are making it even more appealing…
November 12th, 2008
SW,
The demo ain’t nothing.
I guarantee the full version will have you completely sucked in by the 3rd chapter. Just when you think they couldn’t possibly have crammed in more content…
@Harry: My goodness, the “lagers” bit a few months back is still the funniest thing to ever hit The Blorge. “Cut the crap, Ivan, how do we get the beer?” I was rolling in my office…
-Arvis
June 11th, 2009
Think video games are just way too damn expensive?!? Sign the online petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/nomore60/petition.html