When buying a new game, for us, part of the enjoyment is the unpacking, especially if it is limited edition packaging. It’s like buying yourself a present, and I have to admit I am a bit childlike about the whole thing – I will rush home, unpack the game and pop it straight in the console and, whilst it installs, sit down and scan thought the manual while checking out any of the extras the game came with. For me it is not just in-game bonuses wanted, it’s something tangible to help me justify the unnecessary expense.
Personally, the only time I download anything is because it is only available as a download – for example the original Perfect Dark on the Xbox Live store – or because it is cheaper than me venturing out and hunting for a particular game in stores, like Fable 3 that was released free to Xbox Gold members for 2 weeks in June last year. This seems to be something that Microsoft is finally cottoning on to, which is really great news for picky lazy gamers like myself!
Microsoft has started a new initiative by discounting Ryse: Son of Rome to £33.59 – a 33% discount – on Xbox Live. Ryse is a good game but certainly not worth paying full price for as a download where many gamers are concerned, quite simply because once you have completed the game you are still stuck with it – without a disc you can’t just sell or trade-in the game.
This decrease in price is only a test and will run until the February 24th, but hopefully this new scheme will be extended and other games will be included in the future. With Xbox Gold membership costing more than PlayStation Plus yet offering less benefits and free stuff for Xbox One owners at the moment, it is vital that Microsoft resolves this by providing either a more reasonably priced online service or by offering more benefits to get gamers back onside to avoid losing loyal customers to Sony’s new offering, the PS4.
The deduction in price, although currently temporary, is definitely a good starting point. How about making all online titles discounted all of the time? Surely, per individual game, there is a greater percentage-profit to be made in digital sales quite simply because the product does not need to be manufactured, packaged and transported as the disk alternative does. These benefits should be reflected in final pricing so consumers can have the added benefits of digital downloads, we think.
Would you buy more downloadable games and content if it was noticeably cheaper than buying a disc from a store?