At what price does the average gamer refuse to buy a new AAA game?

[ZedClampet]

Unfortunately, gamers have proven that they will pay almost any price for almost anything, but is there an end to it? Some new Nintendo games are going to be $80. Meanwhile, we have BG3 developers saying games should cost from $100 to $120.

Economics says that the more stuff costs, the less people buy. And that's with reasonable price increases. Doubling your price in a little over a year would be pure madness. Is this indicative of why the industry is in trouble right now, the greedy philosophy to constantly take more for less? What are your thoughts? When will the average gamer simply declare that they've had enough?

 

[Alm]

I think a lot of gamers would take issue with Nintendo's new $80 price. I'm probably worse than most in that I'd probably stretch to $100 if I really wanted the game but it would definitely cause me to buy less games a year. I think the trouble we are having is that wages aren't rising with inflation so companies are making less money and passing that onto the consumer who can't afford it. I don't think it's a completely recent thing and that companies had been soaking up costs a bit but now it's coming to a head.

 

[Slasken]

Piracy will make a comeback sooner or later.

 

[Colif]

I am glad I don't have kids who would want me to waste $114 on Mario Kart World and also buy the console... hmm, how much is that here... $700... with the game its $770, which is the sane way to buy it... if sane is right word.

Nope... not worth it, the games have to be amazing for me to buy it. I have better uses for my cash... like a new PC. I am ignoring everything else until then.

I hope games release faster than they did on N64, you soon get bored of release games if there is a 6 month gap between games.

Diablo 4 was the last game I paid full price for and that was June last year. So I am probably due for one, but I expect the next few I want to be cheaper anyway.. has to be a AAA game I want to play before I buy one.

 

[DXCHASE]

Imo, the average Nintendo gamer will pay those prices, but the average gamer?? No.

I am looking forward to seeing the sales of these games. Im hoping it does bad personally, but the Nintendo fanboy base is big and even though they are being vocal about lower prices, they are still going to buy them.

Nintendo is among the most greediest gaming companies and are releasing these sub-par handhelds with games more expensive than PC games which do infinitely more than a nintendo switch game could ever dream of. I do like that you can use the controller as a mouse, thats a neat idea but i can also see it being very laggy to use.

Piracy will make a comeback sooner or later.

Its wildly popular now imo. Its the best way to demo games. But if the price of games sore to Switch 2 games pricing soon, it will most surely see a bump, esp. if nintendo switch 2 games can be emulated.

 

[ZedClampet]

I am glad I don't have kids who would want me to waste $114 on Mario Kart World and also buy the console... hmm, how much is that here... $700... with the game its $770, which is the sane way to buy it... if sane is right word.

Nope... not worth it, the games have to be amazing for me to buy it. I have better uses for my cash... like a new PC. I am ignoring everything else until then.

I hope games release faster than they did on N64, you soon get bored of release games if there is a 6 month gap between games.

Diablo 4 was the last game I paid full price for and that was June last year. So I am probably due for one, but I expect the next few I want to be cheaper anyway.. has to be a AAA game I want to play before I buy one.

My next full price game (actually 10 percent off, but that doesn't count) will be Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 which comes out later this month.

 

[ZedClampet]

Its wildly popular now imo. Its the best way to demo games. But if the price of games sore to Switch 2 games pricing soon, it will most surely see a bump, esp. if nintendo switch 2 games can be emulated.

From watching SteamDB charts a little, it seems like anywhere from 80k to 200k are playing pirated copies at any given time. Usually the higher numbers mean there is a viral game, as is going on right now with Schedule 1.

Of course, these numbers are not including emulators. Just games that are tricking their way past Steam DRM (it also means that Valve is letting them do it since they can track it).

 

[Colif]

My next full price game (actually 10 percent off, but that doesn't count) will be Clair Obscure: Expedition 33 which comes out later this month.

I don't know how much Titan Quest 2 will be (or when it will release) but it likely be the more expensive of the 2 games I have wishlisted.

I might play Tropico tomorrow if I remember. I have been watching someone play Age of Wonders 4 but I find the combat tedious so its not really a game I would play - I just skip the fights.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

Most of the time for me its already at €60. Its a rare game I'll pay that or more for.

I have a Switch and paid full price for Mario Odyssey and Zelda BOTW when I bought it, after that I got everything I have on there at least at a slight discount, but yea Nintendo is generally expensive when you compare their games to grabbing stuff off a PC digital store on sale. Having said that I remember paying £59.99 for Goldeneye and other N64 games 25+years ago. Playstation and PC games around that time were £39.99 so they havent kept up with inflation, although obviously these days they save a lot on packaging and physical media yada yada.

All of that rambling to say, for me there isnt a line in the sand. If its something I really want to play I'll probably just pony up. But its not that often I'm that desperate to play something at release.

For the average gamer, I imagine publishers have lots of data on that which is why prices are where they are.

 

[BeardyHat]

I am glad I don't have kids who would want me to waste $114 on Mario Kart World and also buy the console... hmm, how much is that here... $700... with the game its $770, which is the sane way to buy it... if sane is right word.

Easy enough to just tell them no, at least, hasn't been an issue for me.

Personally, $30 is about my limit for games. At $30, I'm really considering my choices and exactly how badly I want to play the game. I am currently considering Kingdom Come 2 for $55, which is a game I really want to play after loving the first one so much, but I'm still putting it off.

Games just don't carry the value for me anymore. I have so many and so many I haven't played yet in my library that it's become difficult to buy something new, even if it's cheap. Robocop has been sitting in my GoG cart for weeks now and sat in my Steam cart weeks prior to that and it's only $10; but I don't know if that $10 is worth it, because I'm not likely to actually play it immediately and I already have something like Blood West which I bought last month and have barely put any time into.

If I can't justify $55 for a game I desperately want, but know won't be life changing or anything, you can bet I won't be spending $80-$100 on something that's really going to end-up being largely the same as things I've played before.

 

[February's Ghost]

I've already passed that point. I will only buy two games at full price in a year, though that might change this year. Everything else has to be $40 or less. Though I am going to try to not buy much this year and clear out my backlog.

Still, I think people will still pay a lot for a game, they will likely just buy fewer games. Some people just want to buy the latest games as they come out and others must if they want to play in the latest competitive arena like a new Call of Duty release.

It has, and will continue, to hurt the market as a whole. Great games are "failing to meet expectations" and rising prices are a part of that.

 

[Johnway]

The cheap skate in me will always get a game at a massive discount, not succumbing to FOMO or buying games upon release. For a AAA title thats Half Life 2 levels of legendary brilliance, £30 tops. But i'm thinking £20 if you want me to buy without much thought. £10 and i have no other games to buy, you'll have me reaching for my wallet almost instantly.

Again its a balancing act for me, if i feel that i get a lot of bang for my buck i will pay that price. Assassins valhalla Ultimate edition for £18 was an absolute steal clocking in 84 hrs and counting. But a walking simulator or game that has 5 hrs of content for the same price? no chance. nintendos suggestion of £80 for a game is a no go for me. i can wait and i have cheaper alternatives (steam).

 

[Alm]

Switch 2 preorders are getting delayed in USA as Nintendo reevaluates after tariffs.

 

[ZedClampet]

Switch 2 preorders are getting delayed in USA as Nintendo reevaluates after tariffs.

They exempted microprocessors, but I don't know what it is for a full product like a Switch.

******

On a day-to-day basis, I'm actually a $10 and under person. $15 to $20 is no problem if I really want the game. $20 to $30 is probably waiting for a sale time. Over $30 is definitely waiting on a sale. The exception, obviously, is just how much I want something. I fell in love with Expedition 33 at first sight. I didn't really care what they were going to charge for it.

 

[Pifanjr]

Based off of the mobile game market and the popularity of free to play games, I'd say that the average gamer isn't willing to pay anything up front for their games.

For gamers that do buy AAA games, I think most of them will still buy them for $100. Most gamers only play a couple of games a year (I think the Steam average is 4?) and gaming as a hobby is fairly cheap compared to a lot of other hobbies, even if a new game is $100.

 

[Colif]

We had this talk already, If there was something I wanted to buy enough, I would buy it... even pre order it if I trust the makers enough. Its just rare that happens to me. Which is probably a good thing. Most ARPG series start to fail once they hit number 3. Some fail at number 3... looks at Sacred and Torchlight... and Diablo (Lol). POE might be best stopping at 2.

Luckily none of the Nintendo games are must have... unlike in 1999 when I had to have a N64.

I wouldn't mind if there was a game I want to play, would be something to look forward to. Maybe by time I get new PC there might be something.

 

[Zloth]

I'm willing to pay a whole lot more. $100? Fine by me. Still one of the cheapest forms of entertainment out there.

However, that whole competition thing means I rarely pay even half that - usually more like $25. I look at the games I want, which includes many games from a few years ago, and there's just no point in paying a premium.

Based off of the mobile game market and the popularity of free to play games, I'd say that the average gamer isn't willing to pay anything up front for their games.

For gamers that do buy AAA games, I think most of them will still buy them for $100. Most gamers only play a couple of games a year (I think the Steam average is 4?) and gaming as a hobby is fairly cheap compared to a lot of other hobbies, even if a new game is $100.

I think that average of 4 is the average number of games in each Steam user's account. Many many Steam users just play Counterstrike 2, Call of Duty, and that's it. They neither know no care about any other games. I bet a ton of them are abandoned accounts at this point, too - played a lot in high school, some over summer breaks in college, and now wouldn't even know how to log in anymore.

 

[Zimbaly]

If I can all games 40 or less, but I'm tempted at Monster Hunter... so tempted.....

 

[Slasken]

It depends on the game. There are a few titles that I would buy on day one for full price. Witcher 4, certainly. A new Red Dead Redemption game, sure. Same for the next Horizon or Elder Scrolls game.

That said, just checked out Clair Obscure Expedition 33, and that looks like a game I might buy on day one.

 

[Pifanjr]

I think that average of 4 is the average number of games in each Steam user's account. Many many Steam users just play Counterstrike 2, Call of Duty, and that's it. They neither know no care about any other games. I bet a ton of them are abandoned accounts at this point, too - played a lot in high school, some over summer breaks in college, and now wouldn't even know how to log in anymore.

4 is the median number of games played in 2024 according to Steam Replay. There's also the fact that only 15% of playtime was spend on new releases in 2024 on average, which does also suggest that most Steam users don't buy a lot of new releases. But I'm not sure if these numbers include inactive accounts.

 

[CaffeinatedBeverage]

I can't speak for gamers, but weren't a lot already complaining about the $69.99 price tag? I mean, that eventually became the norm. However, I have noticed a shift with gamers that I never expected to see, or with media in general, and that's people actually voting with their wallets. As for myself, the only developer I'm willing to shell out even $100 on is FromSoftware. They've earned my trust. No other game would I spend that much money on. And I'm not even one to wait for a sale, unless the game is really old and should have a sale, which is something Nintendo never does.

 

[Colif]

Nintendo exploit the fact you can't get their games anywhere else, that is how they can ask stupid prices and know people will pay them. Probably also why they don't have sales. Forces them to be ultra protective of their games and crack down on copies as without the monopoly, they have nothing

Good thing they still aim at kids as they have a never ending audience who don't know anything.

 

[DXCHASE]

I can't speak for gamers, but weren't a lot already complaining about the $69.99 price tag? I mean, that eventually became the norm. However, I have noticed a shift with gamers that I never expected to see, or with media in general, and that's people actually voting with their wallets. As for myself, the only developer I'm willing to shell out even $100 on is FromSoftware. They've earned my trust. No other game would I spend that much money on. And I'm not even one to wait for a sale, unless the game is really old and should have a sale, which is something Nintendo never does.

First off, welcome to the forum!!

This is why im interested in seeing what sales are going to be like. People have the same exact bond with Nintendo as you do with From Software. Id never spend 100 on From Software, i personally dont think souls games are all that great, but Doom? Diablo? im there with the 100 for those games.

Lets just see if Nintendo fans are willing to shell out 90 bucks on the regular and for most of the choices. You and I have choices, we can pick and choose what we want to spend at 100.

With the way nintendo runs its business, its customers are gonna be forced to pay 90 bucks, or whatever elevated price its actually given in the end, on everything.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

With the way nintendo runs its business, its customers are gonna be forced to pay 90 bucks, or whatever elevated price its actually given in the end, on everything.

Nintendo exploit the fact you can't get their games anywhere else, that is how they can ask stupid prices and know people will pay them. Probably also why they don't have sales. Forces them to be ultra protective of their games and crack down on copies as without the monopoly, they have nothing

Good thing they still aim at kids as they have a never ending audience who don't know anything.

While Nintendos pricing sucks, I think its worth saying that they arent phoning it in. I didnt grow up on Nintendo, but since I had my Switch Ive played a ton of Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8, Zelda BOTW, Luigis Mansion 3, and Kirby and the Forgotten Land both on my own and with my kid and they are really well made original games with fantastic ideas in them, and just a lot of fun.

the only developer I'm willing to shell out even $100 on is FromSoftware. They've earned my trust. No other game would I spend that much money on. And I'm not even one to wait for a sale, unless the game is really old and should have a sale, which is something Nintendo never does.

They do have small sales occasionally, but its never much. With you on From games though 100%.

 

[February's Ghost]

I think pricing is weird in games.

Pricing for the base game is pretty consistent for what you get from game to game. Pricing on the season pass and other DLC gets funky though.

Season passes usually go for about half the price of the base game yet what you get varies. Some give you just a quarter of content you got in the base game and some give you three quarters of content. DLC like skins are all over the place, some are priced higher because its color, mainly black, is more popular, while others just seem abritraily priced when neither seems better than the other.

Sales get weird too because you can find a gold edition one sale (game and season pass) for like $75 but you can also buy the base game and season pass separately for $60.

I honest to god have no idea what the thinking is.