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"Very High Prices"

As you probably know, CD's cost less than one pound in sterling to make and cost only pennies more to record onto. However, you go into a music store and the first thing you will notice is that brand new music CD's are priced at around fifteen and sixteen quid. Now that's a fifty per-cent increase from what they were only a few years ago.

However, it's not the price of music media I'm worried about. I listen to most music from the radio, or hear enough from TV. What I'm worried about is the very high price of videogames.

Some people have blamed high prices before on the quality of the games. Others have blamed it on the media that they are recorded onto. But I am blaming these prices on extraordinarily high amounts of greed from money making companies who publish these games. Those who exploit videogamers by using their publicity to just drain the cash from their customers so that they get all the money, and competitors get none.

I was walking around Cardiff City Centre today checking out prices and seeing what's out at the moment, and my brother who wants a new console was with me checking out the deals that are on.

I noticed that most of the games for this console are about £40, around £35 from Special Reserve, however the console itself is at the moment quite a good value to buy. Since the new consoles have come closer to release, the price of the consoles has dropped dramatically, however the games are still highly priced.

Now what console is this that I am talking about? What console has games for it that are so expensive that you can only by two with £100?

Well I expect most of you are probably thinking of the N64, with it's high charge on games due to them being recorded to Cartridge. But no, it isn't that!

Some of you may be thinking about the Game Boy Advance, also using cartridges with games priced at around £35. But no, it isn't that.

I am talking about Sony's Playstation 2.

First of all, I'm not trying to demote the console. My brother's excited about getting one, and I wouldn't mind playing one. However, I am demoting the company behind it. The company who can afford to cut jobs in it's factories, who can afford to open a "Sony Centre" in Cardiff City Centre, and who can afford to cut prices in their consoles, whilst boasting more sales on their Playstation 2 than the Dreamcast and N64, but can't keep gaming at such a low cost!

So what's this? You think I'm going nuts? There is a huge back catalogue of games for less than £9.99 for the PSOne that can be played on the Playstation 2, so why complain?

Well most people will already have most the original Playstation games they'll ever want to play. So they'll want to play graphically better, bigger and much more fun games that are new to Playstation 2. Ok, they can play their old Playstation games on it, but most of them are games that once completed you wont want to bother with again. The public want games like Crazy Taxi (new to PS2), Grand Theft Auto 3, Red Faction and many more which are brilliantly designed games. But can they afford the ones they want? Probably not.

Yep Christmas is around the corner, but that doesn't mean that games have to be so highly priced that you can buy a second hand ZX Spectrum with 200 games for the price of two PS2 games. Don't get me wrong, I'm cheesed off with the Game Boy Advance prices too.

£35 for a game that plays between SNES and N64 quality? Some of the games only have a few levels, and some aren't even worth bothering with (Jurassic Park III: The DNA Factor for example).

But Sony have no excuse, they make games on DVD's which are only slightly more expensive to produce than CD's, so they can't blame a "chip shortage" (Nintendo's excuse for their extortionally high prices). They are just using the cusotmers as a source of high profit and a huge bonus for their own families this Christmas.

If I were you, I'd stick with your old consoles and continue buying games for them (no matter whether you're playing N64, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast or Playstation), then when the GameCube and X-box are released, check to see which is the better value. Then maybe you'll be able to save some money and play more games than you would have been able to before! Or you could simply play games on the PC that most of you have (otherwise you wouldn't be reading this) with games as cheap as £4.99 and going up to £34.99 on rare occasions.

N64 games are still being sold at up to £60 where I am, PS2 titles are widely available at half that price. I'm not saying I'd have any problems with PS2 games coming down in price, but I can't afford to keep buying games for my old console.

PC games, indeed are available at £20, but you have to upgrade your PC every other week just so the stupid games will work!

Overall I'd say that for someone in my position, PS2 games are just finely priced.

Also, occasionally I find the odd bargain SNES game (UN Squadron £4!), but to get even SNES titles that I really want or am likely to play, its ridiculous!

Secret of Mana, second hand in tatty box £27!

£27!?!!!???!

I got GT3 in perfect nick for £25!

My maths state things are fine on the PS2.

I read in OPSM2 last night, that some games company, can't remember who, are re-releasing some of their PS2 launch titles for 14.99 this December, so keep an eye out!

I *think* it's the people who brought out Dynastry Warriors 2, but I'm not sure. I'll find out at lunch time and let you know.

I think you'll find that the money goes towards labour costs : people who designed the game they have to be paid, the people who programmed it that divided up onto CDs is still quite reasonable, but then there is how much they spend on the game cuple of million they want that back plus profit (they are a business) and then the shop that sells them puts up the price due to rent, wages and profits
And all that comes to about £40, you're getting a good deal really...

Etila
={B}

supply and demand. At the price they are charging enough people buy the product for them to make an optimum profit. simple really.

The price of games and everything has gone up over the years and of course there is inflation which hasn't affect much, but it's because of the depand that is around for these items. The companies can then charge god damn ridiculous prices for things they obtain for about a 5th of the price and sell them for mass profit.

Most companies with any sense will go into this and just look at virgin, their megastores are huge and everything they sell is CD's and Games. It's the way to go, and a lot of money involved as I'm sure Tony will agree. I reckon that's why he ain't online at the moment, he is probally sitting at home counting all of his money :)

i dont know about anyone else but i find that CDs are more expensive if its not in the charts, like i bought take off your pants and jacket for only 8.99 whilst dude ranch cost me 16.99(i now dont like HMV) i was told its because "now that less people buy them they have to up the price to make a profit" or something like that

gah

Edgy wrote:
> DeltaJava wrote:
> What, £6?

lol sorry, missed the "m" at
> the end :)

If only the Government made the same mistake for paying tax. That would be nice, event though I don't pay it.

You should have seen the price I paid for some BRAND NEW ZX Spectrum games in the early '90s....

10p!

I bought games like:

Newzealand Story
Stallone Cobra
Target Rennegade (those were the days)
The Untouchables
Nightbreed
(and around 15 more!)

Mainly because of the increase in game sizes and all them fancy graphics eveolving to a state of chaos.

DeltaJava wrote:
> What, £6?

lol sorry, missed the "m" at the end :)