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[IbizaPocholo]

Rockstar owner argues players ‘are ready for $70 games’ | VGC

Take-Two CEO defends NBA 2K21’s much criticised launch price…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Speaking during the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference this week (transcribed by VGC), Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick was asked for his views on the reaction to NBA 2K21’s price point and what it means for game prices in the future.

“We announced a $70 price point for NBA 2K21, our view was that we’re offering an array of extraordinary experiences, lots of replayability, and the last time there was a frontline price increase in the US was 2005, 2006, so we think consumers were ready for it,” Zelnick replied.

He did stop short, however, of suggesting that future games will cost $70 going forwards, instead suggesting that the company needs to focus on providing a level of content that justifies that price point.

“We haven’t said anything about pricing other titles so far, and we tend to make announcements on a title-by-title basis, but I think our view is [that we want to] always deliver more value than what we charge, make sure the consumer has the experience and[…] the experience of paying for it, both are positive experiences,” he explained.

“We all know anecdotally that even if you love a consumer experience, if you feel you were overcharged for it, it ruins the experience, you don’t want to have it again. [If you] go to a great restaurant, a really really fine restaurant, have a great meal and great service, then you get a check that’s double what you think it should be, you’re never going back.”

He added: “So we always want to make sure that consumers feel like we deliver much more than we ask in return, and that’s true for our current consumer spending as well. We’re an entertainment company, we’re here to captivate and engage consumers, and if we do that then monetisation follows.”

 

[Jigsaah]

"Ready" is such a strong word...

 

[shoplifter]

'Ready' implies that there's some sort of benefit in the price increase

 

[SlimeGooGoo]

.

 

[Iced Arcade]

I dunno Zelnick, I'm ready for $50 games. would actually buy more games.

I'll play something else on gamepass in the mean time

 

[Cravis]

 

[harmny]

'Ready' implies that there's some sort of benefit in the price increase

The benefit is the array of extraordinary experiences and lots of replayability you get with the next gen version of the game

 

[shoplifter]

The benefit is the array of extraordinary experiences and lots of replayability you get with the next gen version of the game

I could get that with a $60 game too

 

[ReBurn]

I'm ready for $35 games a year later.

 

[Rean no Kiseki]

Strauss Zelnick.... A name that sounds as slimey as T2 BS practices.

 

[HE1NZ]

I never bought a single game for $60

 

[In Your Vase]

No on 70.

Come on, greedmaster Strauss.

 

[MeatSafeMurderer]

I'd argue that Strauss Zelnick is ready to take a pay cut.

 

[noise36]

Its already happening in Australia Sony are charging $125 for games and even at third party retailers around $100 for physical (ratchet/ demons souls etc), previously we would have paid around $69-$79 at launch. Its part of the reason my ps5 gathers dust.

 

[LavitzSlambert]

We think gamers are ready for $70, but we are only announcing this for NBA 2K21 because we are not actually sure if gamers are ready for $70 games.

Fuck off with this cash grab. You getting digital sales and now you want even more, lmao.

 

[bitbydeath]

 

[Impotaku]

I know what i'm ready for. Games been released in a fucking finished state then we can maybe talk about charging more for them when publishers have that first issue delt with.

 

[bender]

$70 games they monetize as if they were free-to-play.

 

[MeatSafeMurderer]

$70 games they monetize as if they were free-to-play.

The irony is that if they'd just increased the base price to $70 a decade ago citing "inflation" instead of nickle and diming us with a million different editions and microtransactions out of the arse I doubt anyone would've batted an eye.

 

[bender]

The irony is that if they'd just increased the base price to $70 a decade ago citing "inflation" instead of nickle and diming us with a million different editions and microtransactions out of the arse I doubt anyone would've batted an eye.

Post sale monetization was coming no matter the price though. I'm just glad that most of the publishers and games that are the most egregious are easy for me to ignore.

 

[Concern]

Good luck with that.

Haven't bought a new game day one since Modern Warfare 2019. And its only because of gamesharing, so it was only $30.

 

[Abriael_GN]

"owner?"

 

[YukiOnna]

Up here it's been $79.99 standard for an entire generation...

 

[Crimson Adventurer]

I’m not ready to always pay $70+ (Gotta include day 1 dlc or deluxe editions) for one single game.

At this point, I’m even more ready to have the patience of the Dalai Lama and just wait for digital sales of those games.

 

[SLB1904]

Players*

*PC players are not included

 

[chilleverest]

Must be the same Strauss from RDR 2.

 

[ButchCat]

And I argue that I’m ready to say f*ck you. So there’s that.

 

[CertifiedKiwi]

Well there is always gamepass...

 

[Moonjt9]

I'm ready for $35 games a year later.

These days it’s more like two months later. Buying full priced games doesn’t make a lot of sense anymore.

 

[ArtemisClydeFrog]

Gameshare OP, gonna end up paying $35 instead of $30 and it only counts as one sale for Take-Two.

*for any future good games. I'll pass on NBA games.

 

[Kagey K]

I have seen lots here defend the price hike, so it seems he might be right that some gamers are ready for it.

The rest of us will get drug along begrudgingly or wait for deep discounts, which will take longer because we need deeper cuts to equal the same price as now.

 

[zombrex]

Of course they are. We already have higher priced special editions with minimal digital benefits.
Most people are also willing to pay more to have a product sooner. if you don't need it ASAP then wait for a price drop. Games offer massive value for money for the amount of hours of entertainment you can get from them. If you play a game for hundreds or even thousands of hours then complaining about $10 price increase is pretty pathetic.

 

[greencoder]

I almost never buy games at full price because I have a backlog and like to wait for all the patches and DLCs. But I don't understand people whose main hobby is gaming and they whine about the $70 games. How many AAA games do you buy at launch/at full price? Pretty sure no more than 10, so 10 * 10 = $100, that's somehow the big amount of money for your main hobby.

*Relevant only for the 1st world countries.

 

[DarkArterialGore]

$70 games they monetize as if they were free-to-play.

 

[JeremyEtcetera]

His company's playerbase grew up on standardized PS2 game prices. Those people who grew up on GTA 3 and up aren't used to the super high game prices of SNES gen and earlier so they can't relate.

He's talking to the wrong audience.

 

[93xfan]

Playstation owners are

I thought they are not E

 

[Dunki]

Back on SNES Age I bought 180 DMark games because this is what they actually did cost in Germany. Thats basically 90 Euro so 107$^^

 

[Banjo64]

$70 dollars for 2/3 of a game with DLC and MTX is the new norm, but you’re a fucking sucker if you pay it instead of waiting 2 months for a hefty discount.

 

[Barakov]

Rockstar owner argues players ‘are ready for $70 games’ | VGC

Take-Two CEO defends NBA 2K21’s much criticised launch price…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Speaking during the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference this week (transcribed by VGC), Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick was asked for his views on the reaction to NBA 2K21’s price point and what it means for game prices in the future.

“We announced a $70 price point for NBA 2K21, our view was that we’re offering an array of extraordinary experiences, lots of replayability, and the last time there was a frontline price increase in the US was 2005, 2006, so we think consumers were ready for it,” Zelnick replied.

He did stop short, however, of suggesting that future games will cost $70 going forwards, instead suggesting that the company needs to focus on providing a level of content that justifies that price point.

“We haven’t said anything about pricing other titles so far, and we tend to make announcements on a title-by-title basis, but I think our view is [that we want to] always deliver more value than what we charge, make sure the consumer has the experience and[…] the experience of paying for it, both are positive experiences,” he explained.

“We all know anecdotally that even if you love a consumer experience, if you feel you were overcharged for it, it ruins the experience, you don’t want to have it again. [If you] go to a great restaurant, a really really fine restaurant, have a great meal and great service, then you get a check that’s double what you think it should be, you’re never going back.”

He added: “So we always want to make sure that consumers feel like we deliver much more than we ask in return, and that’s true for our current consumer spending as well. We’re an entertainment company, we’re here to captivate and engage consumers, and if we do that then monetisation follows.”

 

[longdi]

$70 USD imo is simply too rich for a single game. Even if it is a big blockbuster release, i wont be buying day 1. It just seems too spendthrifty.

 

[Soodanim]

It’s a mystery why people are cynical and distrusting. I haven’t looked at the public financial statements for Take Two, but I guarantee they’re doing well.

The worst bit? People will pay it, and that’s what he’s really saying.

 

[Old Empire.]

Strength of game pass says otherwise. More people will pay 12 dollar subscription each month to play new games.

Microsoft model makes more sense, they just need to stop the loopholes where gamers will exploit it.

 

[Makoto-Yuki]

i'll argue that you should get ready to go take a fuck to yourself mate.

 

[Graciaus]

For 2K a game that hasn't improved in years? Lol. I'm ready to skip it if anything.

 

[Bernd Lauert]

People who use their consoles as a NBA2K machine are ready to pay 70 dollars because they don't buy any other games lmao

 

[Heimdall_Xtreme]

Rockstar owner argues players ‘are ready for $70 games’ | VGC

Take-Two CEO defends NBA 2K21’s much criticised launch price…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Speaking during the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference this week (transcribed by VGC), Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick was asked for his views on the reaction to NBA 2K21’s price point and what it means for game prices in the future.

“We announced a $70 price point for NBA 2K21, our view was that we’re offering an array of extraordinary experiences, lots of replayability, and the last time there was a frontline price increase in the US was 2005, 2006, so we think consumers were ready for it,” Zelnick replied.

He did stop short, however, of suggesting that future games will cost $70 going forwards, instead suggesting that the company needs to focus on providing a level of content that justifies that price point.

“We haven’t said anything about pricing other titles so far, and we tend to make announcements on a title-by-title basis, but I think our view is [that we want to] always deliver more value than what we charge, make sure the consumer has the experience and[…] the experience of paying for it, both are positive experiences,” he explained.

“We all know anecdotally that even if you love a consumer experience, if you feel you were overcharged for it, it ruins the experience, you don’t want to have it again. [If you] go to a great restaurant, a really really fine restaurant, have a great meal and great service, then you get a check that’s double what you think it should be, you’re never going back.”

He added: “So we always want to make sure that consumers feel like we deliver much more than we ask in return, and that’s true for our current consumer spending as well. We’re an entertainment company, we’re here to captivate and engage consumers, and if we do that then monetisation follows.”

Está pendejo.

What a dumb guy.... So give me money then

 

[DGrayson]

Include all future dlc and all cosmetic dlc and no mtx and then we can talk

 

[FranXico]

They're also ready to not buy your games at all, Strauss.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

'Ready' implies that there's some sort of benefit in the price increase

There is.

Teams scope for estimated returns.

 

[Hypereides]

Its going to be a sad day in gaming history once these companies manage to successfully indoctrinate the vast majority of gamers into spending 70$ on games which are in all likelihood unfinished, incomplete, microtransaction-riddled, and, in some cases, remade. I mean, they're half way there already.

I won't be a part of it anyway so this is just pure entertainment.