Gaming is an expensive hobby. Games cost a frightful amount of money to buy, but they cost stupid amounts of money to make – which is why we’re seeing so many games being monetised outside of the $60 we’re currently paying for them.
They cost a frightful amount of money to make though, and the $60 we pay barely covers the cost of making the game even when one is successful. It’s why we’re seeing so many games being supported by DLC and microtransactions – but also why we’re seeing a rise on games that are built on a “continual development” cycle. They’re games where much of the financial risk is being carried by players.
Take Destiny (and soon, The Division) as a good example of this shift towards games as service. While they may have cost an initial outlay of $60, they’re the sort of things you’ll keep playing, that’ll keep being supported by paid for content. But! There are so many more; Street Fighter V is a good example. It launched with paltry content, and is still in development – with new features and characters being added every month. Rainbow Six: Siege, and the new Hitman – especially before its recent turn as pure episodic game – are also great examples of games in continued development; game which follow the same sort of strategies as Early Access titles.
While the trend for these sorts of games and release strategies was confined to the indie games space for a while (where it made a lot of sense), it seems that they’re increasingly being used for AAA games by big publishers.
Do you ultimately think this is a good thing? It does, after all, fund the games we love and means we’ll see more games from big publishers. But is it also anti-consumer? What do you think?
Last Updated: March 18, 2016
Thys Ventura aka Spathi
March 18, 2016 at 10:38
I’m loving the idea of continued development, kickstarter and early access. We, the gamers, have a larger and more varied selection of games than ever before. Sometimes I miss paying for a game once, getting the full experience right of the bat and finishing it. Though, there will always be room for experiences like that as well.
To answer your question: Continued development is not the future of the industry, but it’s an permanent addition to the industry, and one which I support.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 10:43
We all called this 4 years ago. Then Skyrim came out and proved that the SP experience still sells more. Then we predicted (as a joke) that Capcom will sell games in segments. Starting with the title screen. Its happened with Hitman. Expect more.
But Ultimately 2015 proved that there is no need for these always on-line long term service work models. The Single Player once off experiences of 2015 KILLED the co-op games, from The Witcher, MGSV, Until Dawn, Bloodborne, Syndicate… many more.
The Industry in 2016 wants to make money more than making games.
You vote with your wallets, the punters form the Industry, and judging by todays standard of quick fix, instant gratification my trump card is better than your trump card because I bought it kids, the old school are out.
R.I.P. Golden age.
P.S. CD Projekt Red are the last company who want to make games more than money.
DONT SUPPORT DRM (ALWAYS ON-LINE)
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:01
“Then Skyrim came out and proved that the SP experience still sells more”
and then Bethesda somehow thought that making an Elder Scrolls MMO is a brilliant idea and ended up raping the Elder Scrolls brand.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:05
That had to be Zynimax and not Todd Howards call. On-line was a fad 4 years ago because the consoles were not fully pledged always on-line PCs yet. Even Final Fantasy on-line failed, but like Diablo 3, it took 4 years of public Beta at full retail to fix their shit.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:06
Diablo 3 still doesn’t even have controller support on pc, so according to me it’s still not completed. Won’t bother with it on pc.
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:10
Who would’ve thought people would like a good game that doesn’t try to rifle through their pockets the moment they turn their heads?
Not the idiots who predicted the end of PC gaming, the end of console gaming, that mobile gaming was taking over, that everyone wants to be online all the time. No, they predicted shallow always-online click-fest kak with $5 skins linked to Facebook was the future.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:21
Oculas Facebook advertising is the new future. Watch this space.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:22
Which one? the one on the bottom left corner?
Ottokie vs the forces of Evil
March 18, 2016 at 11:23
“See what happened to you in the last year! now in VR!”
Raptor Rants
March 18, 2016 at 11:44
I came here to say this. You said it instead. I am happy to say that we all called it.
Ottokie vs the forces of Evil
March 18, 2016 at 10:46
In my opinion when you buy a game at these ludicrous prices, it needs to have a beginning and end with enough content (good content and story, not some 2 line drivel every time you pass an NPC). When DLC and micro transactions (not including MT for F2P games) came a long I almost exclusively started buying Indie games.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:00
But but but all these Idiot gamers support SHIT like $60 1 level always on-line FCUKING BOLLOCKS like HITMAN. hitman intro R1000 for 1 FCUKING LEVEL. Thats if you are not BOOTED out of the SERVERS.
My mind boggles.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:00
Are you referring to the first or the last division of the division?
Ottokie vs the forces of Evil
March 18, 2016 at 11:02
First AAA game I caved and bought since 2014… burned my fingers. Maybe it’s a good thing to have a reminder now and again as to why I don’t play AAA in their first year of releasing.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:08
I feel you, everything ubi, from ass in a hattins creed, to the division is based on the sole purpose of “‘smores” from where you enter one of their universes all the way through to where you’re given this vague completely daft “ending which is actually a sequel baiting snippet to make you wonder about why you actually played the game in the first place, because clearly it was a PoS” which then just proves that the only reason for existence of said game, is to let the publisher print money, because they don’t really have to do much in the lines of provide you a high quality game filled with unique content…
TL;DR: I’m pissed at Ubi…. Again, a f*cking gain…
Umar
March 18, 2016 at 10:46
I personally don’t mind it. The service push has been coming on for a while now. As long as the game is worth the initial asking price, and we’re not paying full proce for early access, I don’t care too much. I think this form of gaming will become bigger in the future, but I don’t see it taking over completely.
Deceased
March 18, 2016 at 10:54
Love-Hate relationship
Some KickStarter games/concepts are epic, and if it’s the same guys that makes ShadowRun for example, you know you’ll have a completed game ( roughly by the time they promised ).
But then, you know, you get something like DayZ Standalone, and you’re like: “Is this shit still alive?! :O”
Side note – Dunno yet how I feel about games splitting in two to make the BattleRoyale version and an actual game version … 😐 ( FFD for next week mayhaps 😀 )
konfab
March 18, 2016 at 10:55
If it actually worked like games as a service, I would be really inclined to go for it. For example instead of paying R900 for a specific game. You subscribe to that particular publisher for however long you want to play their games.
So if you are a bit of a fan of EA games for example, you can pay them a fixed per month, then you get access to their entire library. They have an incentive to keep customers so they will make good long lasting games that keep people paying.
From their end, they will have a continuous revenue stream that makes things like salaries a lot easier.
Most people can take a small knock every month instead of getting hammered mercilessly whenever silly season kicks in (December).
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 10:58
I think it’s fundamentally anti-consumer from AAA publishers to do this. They can fund these games themselves, but they’re spreading the risk to their customers… except that’s not a risk we’re meant to assume with them. It’s EAAArly AAAccess. I can see why it’s attractive for them, but there’s no benefit to the customer whatsoever. You’re getting less and less for your money, and being told it’s for your benefit.
They charge you $60 upfront, then make vague promises about the additional content coming soon. What recourse do you as the customer have if they don’t deliver, or more likely – throw in the absolute bare minimum in order to appear to be delivering.
Me? I’d rather wait an extra 6 months & pay $70 for a full game than get it 6 months earlier, pay $60 and an extra $30 for a season pass. But that won’t happen, because DLC/SP/MT has become far too lucrative and EASY for that.
AAA games are turning into stretch goal-heavy Kickstarter projects. I will not buy any AAA game that does this.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:02
Don’t forget promises about NOT doing MTs and then adding MTs.
Scummy move that.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:13
* “AAA”
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:19
AAAccess
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:30
I don’t believe in “AAA” games
I just believe in good games.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:32
That match its entry fee
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:37
I’ve played really really good games that lasted 4 hours only. But they left an impression. That’s a good game.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:49
Journey, Flow, Flower, Tale of 2 Brothers, Limbo, Pure Pool, Firewatch, Unravel, Torren are all sitting on my dashboard 🙂
But my most played game on the PS2 is my favourite little 2hour romp. Great pacing… it goes to ICO, the cheapest game that I found in a bargain Bin for R49.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:50
Yea man. I have Tale of 2 Brothers sitting on my Steam backlog, so need to get into that myself. And looking forward to getting Firewatch. Looks pretty cool.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:50
Cheap as chips and worth every minute.
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:57
Is it… ICO-nic?
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:58
Yes, more so than a dark blue hat with squiggles on it AKA the unknown man Aiden Pierce.
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:59
Is that the guy from the new Assassin’s Creed or Division? ;P
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 12:02
Close. He has more backstory than Destiny, he hacks shit, hence ICONIC 😛
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 12:05
*sigh
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:17
The thing I hate the most about this business principle, is that if you were to give the same amount of money to an indie dev, they would make you the best game they could, and then some, whereas the publishers have the foothold and a loyal following base, which in essence steals the soul out of the eyes of the bottom guys that still had passion but can’t do anything due to limits…
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 10:59
I honestly don’t think it’s a good thing. And the whole “barely” covering costs thing. I’m not so sure they’d all be in this business for paltry margins.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:02
WHO HAS PRE-ORDERED THE ASSASSINS CREED MOVIE TICKETS?
You need to be shot.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:05
You can pre-order movie tickets?!
From a business perspective, it’s quite clever to offer pre-orders because it’s a much bigger income than on-day purchases…dependent of course on the pre-order period.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:06
ICONIC movie tickets… fcuking Ubisoft.
Captain JJ the Isolated
March 18, 2016 at 11:09
Yea man.
Well, I’m against this shit as much as the next guy, but I can’t help but think that if they can find a market for it, it’s their initiative that’s bringing them more money.
I know there are a lot of people who for some queer reason think that showing off about being able to watch something or play something before you makes them feel special. I honestly don’t get that.
So sadly, the model works.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:19
Like buying a car before its come off the production line lol Now thats fanboyisim.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:20
Until they discontinue the car before the first delivery…
Jan Prins
March 18, 2016 at 11:30
It was me! But it has Magneto Junior in it. Because YAY!
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:31
BAM!!!
Ottokie vs the forces of Evil
March 18, 2016 at 11:20
Initial release of a AAA game is the proverbial “cow milking barn” being built.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:22
Only, at some point they’ll realise, it’s not the cow they’ve been milking, but the bull…
Jan Prins
March 18, 2016 at 11:23
Great Add on? Yup!
Horse Shit add on? Nope? Whoops. Sorry. Meant to type armor. Not shit.
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:24
Oh….You mean, not faecal matter?
Jan Prins
March 18, 2016 at 11:32
Coming soon! See how your horse does a Twirly Poop Ice Cream! So realistic you can see the maggots squirming about!
Greylingad[CNFRMD]
March 18, 2016 at 11:58
Lovely, a Bear Grylls delicacy….
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:24
Golden Horse shit DLC?… now that Ill buy 🙂
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:24
Don’t give Konami ideas for D-Horse DLC!
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:25
Are they still supporting that game? I had no idea it had a large enough on-line community.
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:27
No idea. Don’t have it, wouldn’t play online if I did.
oVg
March 18, 2016 at 11:30
But… its directed by Hideo Kojima!!!
Alien Emperor Trevor
March 18, 2016 at 11:33
…
HvR
March 18, 2016 at 11:43
I have no problem with the continued development model it works for certain game styles.
The problem is the game industry is like 4 year olds playing soccer, if somebody tries something new and it pays off every jumps/stumbles along to get on the same bandwagon. Someone does good with MMO everybody jumps on the bandwagon forcing their IP into the MMO box until the market is so oversaturated that even the original MMO gets shunned by the market, then season pass/DLC, the episodic, then free to play mobile …… now continued development cycles.
For the Emperor!
March 18, 2016 at 11:49
Look, it is a difficult rope to walk on. It is windy up there on that tight-rope. When done RIGHT, I have no issue with it. When done WRONG, I take issue. Like the Chaos being pre-order DLC bonus for Warhammer TW. It is ready release day, so should have been in the fraggin game. Then you get Battlefleet Gothic Armada where the Space Marines will not be ready for release and will be DLC. But everyone buying the game within the first two months of release can get it for free. That sits better. But guys stripping content out for DLC makes me want to wait for the GotY edition that includes all the DLC.
http://screenrant.com/wp-content/uploads/walk-2015-joseph-gordon-levitt-570×285.jpg
VampyreSquirrel
March 18, 2016 at 11:59
A game goes straight off my radar if it’s “early access”.
Ryanza
March 18, 2016 at 13:16
If you look at sale charts for every month of the year, you will see where the money is going. Call of Duty, Fifa, shit like that. How much does it cost to develop Call of Duty vs how much Call of Duty makes. You will see Call of Duty is not struggling with the $60 to make fucking money.
If you have a system where but only a few names in gaming is taking all the money then yes the little guy, the new IP, will struggle. DLC, Season Passes, is not the answer to fix the problems.
If we look at how well GTA sells and GTA is not released every single fucking year. The amount of money Call of Duty makes, they can afford to only release one fucking Call of Duty game every 3-4 years. Same with Fifa.
That means that there will be more money for gamers to use on other games, instead of just buying the same shit every year.
The Witcher 3 – Game of The Year- And didn’t sell like one.
If Call of Duty and Fifa (sport games) are not released for the next 3 years. how much money do think will go towards other games, which in turns leads to growth and development of these other new games.
So we at the point where only but a few games are taking in most of the money every month and every year and DLC and Season Passes are not going to help this serious problem gaming is in.
Change comes from us. We need to know where the problems are and we need to not support that shit.
If Call of Duty is taking in so much money every single day then don’t support that shit. Don’t buy it. Buy something else instead.
All of us, can save the gaming industry by changing the direction of the money.
The Sten
March 18, 2016 at 14:02
Holy shit i cant believe im saying this to you but…….nice post.
Its not the fault of the developer or publisher to make bad monetisation structures for their games but rather the uninformed consumer (us) who makes poor spending choices when buying content which turns into shitty trends that developers HAVE to respond to to pay their bills. This ends up lowering the standards of games for all.
Ghost In The Rift
March 18, 2016 at 13:33
I just want good SP games, the online thing is a lot of fun and all but so time consuming for people that have Jobs, i loved GTA V online but the grinding is what pushed me away, i really don’t have the time and patience to do the same shit over and over on my of Saturday where i feel i did not make any progress at all, i personally don’t know of a MMO where you feel that you progress trough the game,so even if there is one and continued development that’s only digital, its a killer on bandwidth meaning people who have capped internet, so when i’m in Musica or BT Games i only look for SP games that are more or less fully developed and only require an update or patch here and there, The Witcher 3 was an exception for me, personally for obvious reasons and at least i got the physical copy so saved my self a weeks time downloading and 40GB of data had only that crap load of patches. Ill support any continued development game if it has SP in mind, for the long run, and a physical copy, but that’s so rare, rare like chicken teeth , but i’m still keen on Squadron 42 that’s releasing in 2028
Dane
March 18, 2016 at 13:41
If it’s healthy for the industry, then it’s healthy for the industry. I would rather play two games that offer micro’s and continued updates than one game without.
But let us think of UT2001. What a great experience. Simple and the same for everyone. Always. Compare that playing environment to f*&#$ing TF2 which updates every 13 minutes and needs you to trade and purchase and hassle.