I remember when I first started playing electronic games. I was 8 year`s old. My dad was obsessed with getting the high score on Pac-man at our local arcade. So, Pop`s took me along for the trip. This is when my own obsession started. I loved the arcade. Dad was on Pac-man, I was on Punch out, Karate champ, Pro wrestling or whatever it was called. Then Double dragon, Slaughterhouse, TMNT arcade and T2.
I finally got an NES for christmas. Final fantasy, Metal gear, Zelda. The list could go on forever. I owned pretty much every console upto the Dreamcast. That was my last console. I then graduated to the PC. I don`t have any of my console games anymore, I have most of my PC games.
Electronic games have been my hobby(obsession) all my life. I`ve always felt like all of them were small treasure`s. I collect games. Not just for the games, The boxes and manuel`s too. I love adding new boxes too my collection. I love looking at the artwork on the cover. I really enjoy holding the boxes and reading the description`s on the back. I buy classic PC games on Amazon. I do it just so I can have the "mint" condition boxes and manuel`s. I pay a "mint" price for them too.
The point of this post is this. I`m not going to be able to continue this hobby much longer. Digital distribution is the way of the future. I`m not going to be able to get those fancy boxes anymore. EB games(In Canada,Gamestop in the state`s I think) PC selection get`s smaller by the week. They might as well just get rid of the PC section cause there`s nothing there anymore. This bother`s me alot. My games, Are my library. Imagine a library without any new book`s, This is how I feel.
I guess this show`s my age, I`m 31. The younger generation is being raised on digital distribution, The console`s are going this way too.
Am I alone in feeling this way? It`s the end of an Era...
New game release`s on Steam or any other DL service are no cheaper then boxed version`s. Where are those saving`s going? Entrenchment is the exception. I have no problem paying $9.99 for a DL only. I only buy digital when they`re on sale at least 50%.
This is exactly what I mean. I know it`s beating a dead horse, Quality packaging is a thing of the past. Paradox Interactive is the only company I can think of that release`s quality boxes, Full color manual`s. The game`s inside those boxe`s are usually buggy as all hell at release, It`s something.
Valid argument, pricing of products is a business decision that's closely related to market competition in a given time period. And yet, we can't really compare current values with previous "similar" or equivalent items for a very simple reason; economic conditions.
I'll use an analogy; I bought my first car (used Mazda RX3) for a whopping 2500$ in 1976 (1250$ just for Insurance; 21 years old was such a crazy risk, profitable to who?) and gazoline was at 0.30/Gallon, pack of cigarettes near 1.75$.
Today -- an RX8 will slap a tag of 35000$, fuel is certainly roller-coasting it's way to 1.45/Liter & smokes are overtaxed to the rim at 8.25/pack... and counting.
These "savings" go straight to PROFITS and then, mostly distributed to a bunch of investors, banks, states while partly excluding consumers right at the end of the big resupply process.
Capitalism, out of control.
And yet, offer & demand rules sometime do make a difference in pricing.
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