Segamight be considering raising its game prices. IfSegaraises its prices, then the Japanese video game company will join the likes of Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony, among many others, in this increasingly common yet controversial practice.
The first company to release a game for $70 wasTake-Two withNBA 2K21in August 2020. Then Sony followed, charging the same amount for games such asHorizon Forbidden West,Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, andGod of War Ragnarok. Most major companies have also priced some of their games at $70. While studios argue that the price is fair considering the quality of the games that are being released, this can be questioned due to the mishaps with the latest releases. Both Microsoft’sRedfalland EA’sStar Wars Jedi: Survivorcame out with plenty of bugs and performance issues. Meanwhile, data coming from Sony indicates that PS5 owners are buying fewer games since the $70 price was introduced.
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During a recent Q&A session after Sega published its full-year earnings, Sega’s CEO Haruki Satomi and CFO Koichi Fukazawa were asked if they were considering releasing more expensive games. In the English transcript of the event, Sega acknowledges prices have been increasing all over the AAA video game market with virtually no companies left who are still releasing their titles for $60. However, the company is not completely committed to the idea of increasing its prices. Currently, Sega wants to review the prices of some of its games it believes could be worth a higher value, while monitoringthe conditions of the AAA market.
Sega’s latest major release wasSonic Frontiers,which sold over 3.2 million copies as of March 2023 and was priced at $59.99. Among its upcoming games for this year areSonic Origins Plus,Samba de Amigo: Party Central, andEtrian Odyssey Origins Collection. While the former two will cost $39.99, the latter can be pre-ordered for $79.99, but the higher price is understandable considering the collection will offer three games for players. Sega is also planning to release remasters and sequels of a number of its past popular titles in the future.
By now most major AAA companies have fallen in line with the $70 price tag. But whether that’s having a positive effect on the video game industry is questionable at best. The market may change if games continue to release in questionable conditions at such a high price.
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