According a Bloomberg report, Sony Interactive Entertainment considered charging more than $70 for its video games before settling down for this price point.
A company spokeswoman told the publication that the increase in price is “reflective of the growing development resources needed for these ambitious games.” She also pointed out that Sony’s launch PlayStation 5 games start at $50, with $70 price tags reserved for the “biggest games.”
Bloomberg claimed to have spoken to a number of executives in the games industry, who chose to remain anonymous. The article suggests that all major publishers are on board with a price increase, considering prices haven’t increased in 15 years.
Head of IDG Consulting, Yoshio Osaki, told Bloomberg that a growing percentage of games are expected to launch at $70 going forward.
“Not all publishers will launch next-gen games at $70,” said Osaki. “However, we do anticipate that a growing percentage of games will launch at $70, but not all at once and not uniformly across every publisher or every game franchise.”
Bloomberg stated that publishers have been considering price hikes for a number of years, so this discussion isn’t anything new for industry executives. Although the mere suggestion of a price increase seems to invite backlash, companies have been experimenting with various price models by offering premium editions of games with extras. DLCs, loot boxes, and Season Passes are all part of the various models publishers have been toying with.
“We don’t have a pricing strategy. We charge much, much less than the value we deliver,” said Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick. “That’s our pricing strategy, if we have one.”
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[Source: Bloomberg]
