03-20-2012, 07:17 PM
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#13
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Rookie
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I still take the stance of stop buying games that have Online Pass codes, go to forums of the game, voice you are not buying for that reason.
Granted you will still have the typical 10 year old (or the maturity of one) saying "don't buy it no one will miss you". Yet, if the sales are missed. Someone WILL miss you. And it WILL change.
Let’s be honest, the Online Pass is a complete, total, utter, pathetic ripoff to games and customers.
But they say ohhhh, we do this cause we have to. We have to make money. Ohhhh, this is what must be done. WE NEED MONEY!
Want to make money? Pretty simple. Make a good game and people WILL play it. CHARGE us to play it AFTER we BOUGHT it and people will skip it. It is proven repeatedly, a solid business strategy is -- make a good product. It is really just that easy. Ray Kinsella be first to tell you he learned “build it, and they will come”.
Let us breakdown this simple business practice of having and making a good product. If you keep saying, WE NEED MONEY! Then go about making it happen.
John goes to a game store, picks up a new game, and is having a blast with it. He wants his friends to play. But no one wants to put down money on a game with no history behind it, nor do they want to PAY $10 for the “privilege” to PLAY the game they JUST BOUGHT. But John talks to let’s say, for this conversation, 8 friends. Only one of those friends buys. So game + online pass is $70.
Say John plays that same great new game. He thinks it’s great and is having a blast. John says to his friend, hey Tim, you really got to play this game. Tim is, well I'm not sure it’s a new game with no history, it might suck. John retorts, the game is solid. After several weeks Tim does buy the game. Being not sure, he does buy it used to play with John. Once again lets stress the used factor. Tim buys it used.
Well Tim likes it. And he talks Joe into playing it too.
Then Robert.
Then Jason.
Then Mike.
Then Jose.
Then Ryan.
Then Howard.
So we have John who bought the game first. So there is one copy sold at $60. But John brought 8 other people to play and enjoy the game who would have avoided the game all together since buying a NEW game with ZERO history behind it was NOT their style or would have AVOIDED the game if they HAD to PAY $10 to play online.
Now we have a customer base here of 9 people. Next year, or when the next games comes out, it will still draw from that customer base. Now we have 9 sold at $60 for $540 versus the one sold at $60 and an Online Pass of $10 for $70. Call me crazy but if I'm running a business and I have a chance at $540 in sales versus $70, I'm taking the $540. Plus I just grew my customer base for the future cause IF that iteration of the game is good, when next year or the third sequel is out my numbers will grow again. This is a good thing. WE NEED MONEY!
Without the Online Scam, errrr, I mean Online Pass, you could argue that no money is being made off the used copies of games sold. Ok, I'll give you that. But look at the model there -- if they are not buying the game at all, you are NOT SELLING anyway. Good business will always be solid business growth. Plain and simple. Greed will get you nothing but a short product life.
Yes, Gordon Gekko said "Greed is good". But greed without growth is worthless. So while many will say "greed is good", I have to say "growth is grand". For without that growth you will eventually fall behind and to the wayside. When that happens, you will no longer be saying WE NEED MONEY!
You will be saying, WE NEED JOBS!
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