And yes, that inquiry will most likely include the price of video games.
It’s been too long since we’ve had an old fashioned Objection! So we’ve decided to take one of the most controvesial perennial topics, game pricing, and take a different angle: are we too entitled? Should we really complain about the price of games when we, as consumers, have more choice than we’ve ever had before?
One week before the release of Activision’s holiday Trojan Horse, Modern Warfare 3, we sat down for a rare interview with Ben Graetz, the Managing Director of Activision Blizzard in Australia. No question was out of bounds as we discussed game pricing, Activision’s reputation, and its future as a publisher.
Speaking to Gamespot, Rob Blythe, a consumer analyst for Macquarie Bank, has claimed that he expects video game prices in Australia to undergo a correction in the next year.
Alright everyone. Set your phasers to rage, and please don’t shoot the messenger! We’ve spent a lot of time here at Kotaku discussing video game prices. This comic strip is saying we have nothing to complain about.
In the wake of Apple reducing prices on the App Store according to exchange rates, we encouraged people to contact the ACCC with regards to increased Australian prices on online stores such as PSN and Xbox LIVE. The ACCC has started sending out replies and the message is consistent across the board: there’s apparently very little the ACCC can do about it.
Today Apple brought the cost of Applications on its App Store in line with the US, to account for the consistent strength of the Australian dollar in comparison to the US. Yet we, as gamers, are still paying more on almost any other online service you care to name. Apple has adjusted to the exchange rate- where is our correction?
Game prices — in Australia it’s the ultimate taboo subject, but we managed to get hold of Ed Fong, Managing Director of Ubisoft and Paul Yardley, Managing Director of GAME, to talk game prices in Australia. Can we go lower? And how can the local industry compete with the rapid growth of online shopping?
When it comes to MMO subscriptions, most will charge Australian users the direct exchange equivalent of what gamers in the US are paying. World of Warcraft, for example, cost $15US and that’s the same for everyone – if you are paying in Australian dollars you are simply charged what the exchange rate dictates. With DC Universe, however, players are being charged a flat rate in Australian dollars, which has resulted in a $5 mark up per month – and users are not happy.
