638 réponses à ce sujet

[EagleDelta3]

I don't understand what everyone is complaining about. Yes, $40 might seem like alot, but anyone in here who's been into PC gaming for years knows that expansion packs generally sell for about 60-70% of the cost of the game. I remember FPS expansions with only 3-4 hrs of gameplay that sold for $30 when the main game cost $50. That's the way it's always been, you guys that have only ever played consoles just aren't used to it.

[DragoonKain3]

Personally, I see this as an investment. Not in terms of getting more money back like a real investment, but in terms of supporting a company and a game in hopes that even more DLCs and expansions keep coming.

Overpriced at 30 bucks for the PC? Maybe, but even then I see it as 20 bucks for DLC and 10 bucks towards Bioware so that they keep making more DAO content in a timely fashion. It's the same reason why I get the collector's edition. I know the extras is hardly worth the extra 10 bucks, but its extra money Bioware gets to use for future games.

In this capitalist society, we practically 'vote' with our money in terms of companies and whatnot. I just happen to like DAO so much that I'm willing to spend a bit extra just so my voice of wanting more DAO content gets heard a little bit clearer. Sure some people are more frugal with their money, but with DAO I'm willing to spend a little bit extra. But then again, that's from a fanboy speaking. XD

[TheMadCat]

So no matter the product, you blindly accept the price?

You never want to get a better deal??

So
it is not ok for me to make the assumption that charging $20-$25 for an
expansion, over 3 different platforms.. remember, and this being the
only expansion.. along with the occasional $5-$7 for DLC (which i pay,
dont really mind) for however long this game goes.. EA will not make a
profit?

My opinion is they will make a profit. EA has there name stamped on ME2, Old Republic, DA.. tons of other titles out there too.

I
will buy the expansion on the first day.. but that doesnt mean as a
responsible consumer i wont question the charge.. and if i cant afford
it at the time, i wont buy it.

Who says I don't question the price?

But you see, I'm able to look at things from a much more, understanding viewpoint due to my profession then others may have. Indeed it could be a giant ripoff, it can also be Bioware is selling it at a loss. You don't know either way, neither do I. But I do know companies, espeically sub-divisions which is basicly what Bioware is, need to create a constant stream of profit. Being nice and taking profit from one area to make up for another causes a loss in both areas. It's a very poor business decision to take profit from, say the DLC, and use it to recoup the loss from the expansion, for the sole reason of being nice.

I mean it's cool to "question" a price, dig down and try and figure out why it was set at that. But it's a bit naive to call out Bioware and saying they should lower the price because they've got other projects and should be nice. You're spending $40, they can lose $4 Million on this project in the blink of an eye.

[Obliterati]

MerinTB wrote...

Obliterati wrote...

Ishbo wrote...

Anyway I think the main two grievances people have atm are that:

a) The price is quite high, especially compared to DA:O and other 'full' games
It's not a huge expansion compared to other expansions

And I really wish people would stop using films and nights out to compare prices, they're completely different.

This is exactly right.

Awakenings should not be compared to movies or coffee or cars or space shuttles or whatever, but to similar products.

Many other modern game expansions - like those of, say, Fallout 3, or GTA4, or Oblivion - are less expensive and/or provide more content. 

The "development cost" argument doesn't hold water. Neither does the "it's worth 6.4 lattes from Starbucks" argument.

Huh.  I thought the discussion was almost exclusively what an hours worth of entertainment was worth.

Dollars are dollars, so a dollar spent on two hours of movie is the same dollar spent on two hours of gameplay, is it not?

The problem you are having is you are trying to quantify the value of an HOUR OF GAMING between games, when others are qualifying the value of spending a dollar on an hour of gaming.

I think your distinction is meaningless.  The only true comparision some of you could argue is if you had two Bioware expansions being release fo DAO with the same amount of content, same amount of voice acting, same amount of development costs, same number of hours of playtime - and they charged different prices for the two.

Otherwise, even comparing Awakening to Warden's Keep or Throne of Bhaal is an exercise in futility.

The only argument that matters when it comes to price is what value people put on a dollar for entertainment.  And in that sense movies, games, books, comics, concert tickets, etc, are all valid comparisions for the value of a dollar's worth of entertainment.

So comparing similar items to measure their relative value is an excercise in futility?

Well then, that should make car shopping with my wife a lot easier.

"Honey, comparing the cost of that Subaru to this Ferrari is an excercise in futility! The internetz told me so!"

[Ishbo]

Liquid Wolf wrote...

How much was Modern Warfare 2 and how much time did people spend playing through the main campaign?

MW2 cost around $60-70

If you want hours:
MW2's campaign probably took most people 8 hours or so. Spec Ops, maybe another 8 hours. Multiplayer, well, depends whether you like it, assuming you do since it's so well known you must have known what it was about before buying it, at least 15-20 hours +. 20 hours is probably enough to unlock many of the major guns in MP.

So let's say 40 hours, with a potential many dozens more if you like MP a lot.

If you want development effort:
$200 million to create the game
2 years of development time

DA:O x-pac costs $40, offers 15 hours, suppose we bump that to 25 for replay value. Development time, less than half a year? Let's hope it's not more than that... Cost = probably quite a lot less than $200 million

Whether MW2's higher price is justifiable is down to you, but my point is, like films, these two games aren't be compared simply by price.

[McKvechkin]

SuperBaggles1 wrote...

You guys do realize that the average game is only 15 hours and costs at least $20 more than this expansion...right?

I mean this is basically getting a brand spanking new game for $20 less.

Quoted for truth and accuracy.

Many games, some of which cost more money, are no longer in playtime than this expansion, while some are far shorter. Also, many games have less replay value, since many games have one playable character with one set of skills that can't be altered beyond weapons and powerups. With this game you have different classes to play through, and you can build up each of those classes differently each time. You can also build up your companions differently as well. So each run through can be a different experience. Running through as a Mage will certainly yield a different experience than a previous run through as a 2H Berserker.

15 hours of gameplay is pretty damn good these days for a full game, and many of those have poor replay. Add on the high replay value of Dragon Age, and you are really getting much more than 15 hours.
But as with everything, ymmv.

[Althernai]

When Throne of Bhaal (the expansion for Baldur's Gate II) was released almost a decade ago, it also cost $30 for around 15 hours of additional gameplay (not much compared to what was in BG2). I don't see what people are complaining about -- if anything, the expansions have gotten cheaper since you can probably find it on sale somewhere on the internet for $20-25 (Amazon does this a lot) and $30 in 2001 is worth around $37 now because of inflation.

[Arbiter Libera]

It better include all the DLCs released so far... or should I say, up to it's release (minus the Stone Prisoner and Dragon Armor) and THAN the price may be justified. Otherwise, no matter what I hear, it sounds like money grubbing to me.

Modifié par Arbiter Libera, 05 janvier 2010 - 07:56 .

[Ishbo]

McKvechkin wrote...

SuperBaggles1 wrote...

You guys do realize that the average game is only 15 hours and costs at least $20 more than this expansion...right?

I mean this is basically getting a brand spanking new game for $20 less.

Quoted for truth and accuracy.

Many games, some of which cost more money, are no longer in playtime than this expansion, while some are far shorter. Also, many games have less replay value, since many games have one playable character with one set of skills that can't be altered beyond weapons and powerups. With this game you have different classes to play through, and you can build up each of those classes differently each time. You can also build up your companions differently as well. So each run through can be a different experience. Running through as a Mage will certainly yield a different experience than a previous run through as a 2H Berserker.

15 hours of gameplay is pretty damn good these days for a full game, and many of those have poor replay. Add on the high replay value of Dragon Age, and you are really getting much more than 15 hours.
But as with everything, ymmv.

But it's not buying a brand new game is it? We're buying an expansion pack, which is fundamentally different.

Anyway I'm not so convinced that playing as a mage instead of a warrior in a second playthrough is ultimately that different, since you control many other characters at the same time. While using a warrior as a PC on my playthrough I probably played as a mage (Morrigan and Wynnne) more. Just my opinion though.

[Gvaz]

If it's a brand new game, and its an rpg, it should last quite a bit longer than 15 hours advertised. maybe 15 hours for an fps, but rpg? no

[pathenry]

How do they come up with these number of hours anyway?

Cause they also say that Stone Prisoner adds "hours of additional gameplay", which is utter BS.

[TheMadCat]

pathenry wrote...


How do they come up with these number of hours anyway?

Cause they also say that Stone Prisoner adds "hours of additional gameplay", which is utter BS.

Between the quest to get it, all of it's conversations, and it's eventual sidequest I'd say it adds a couple of hours overall.

[mAcOdIn]

Haha, it's all a matter of perception, had they merely called it the sequel within a trilogy everyone would be applauding the 40 dollar price point, but since it's being billed as an expansion it's a rip off.

I, myself, will take a wait and see approach as the release gets closer and I can see what all is added before I make my decision. I rather liked Dragon Age and was rather impressed, first game I've liked from them since KoTOR, with JE running like molasses and being unplayable on my PC and NWN not doing it for me, so to me, Bioware did a real good job with Dragon Age and I'll probably buy it. I like the world, I like the characters, I'd like to see more of it. It'd have to be pretty anemic for that 40 bucks for me to not grab it, but like I said, I'll wait and see. Plus, I figure it'll probably have more assets for Mods, in the way the game does things, in models, all kinds of stuff so I'm sure it'll expand the game quite a bit. But, wait and see and all.

Price it at whatever it needs to be priced at so you guys can keep eating Bioware, don't want to see another Pandemic here.  I don't know why people have this notion that game companies should run as non profits or whatever but it's pretty naieve.  They're not a charity they're a business, whatever keeps the doors open.

Regarding the DLC, the only one I thought would have been a rip off was the blood armor.  Now way would I have bought that seperately, Shale was pretty cool though, he had a good voiceover, a totally different method of equipment and was unique in that regard and offered a lot and Warden's Peak was OK for the money too.  Not Earth shattering but it took me a few hours, I liked going the different routes to see what'd happen, it also had voice acting and some cinematics, so it was worth it.

Modifié par mAcOdIn, 05 janvier 2010 - 08:20 .

[RangerSG]

Gametime hours for an RPG varies so wildly. My first DA playthrough is 80hours+ at the Alienage. That's listening to convos all the way through, to be fair, unless it's a merchant convo I've heard before.



I'd be surprised if the 15hours wasn't the 'critical path' gameplay and there's other material that makes for replayability as well. As for the price, that seems a bit high. Though I did pay $30 for Throne of Bhaal 10 years ago. But with pre-orders or shopping around you can usually find it lower than the official price. The only thing that seems odd is 6 months for a full expansion. They must have started developing it before the official release of DA even. That's some serious support from EA, something I'd not expect.

[bas273]

I'm not going to rush while playing Awakening. I'm going to take my time and enjoy every detail so hopefully I'll be able to get 25 hours out of it.

And once I've completed it I'm going to create a new character.

So hopefully this expansion pack will give me over 100 hours of new gameplay. I'd even pay $60 for that. Heck, I would even pay $60 for just the companions, Morrigan questline (if there is any) and respec option.

[Raxtoren]

So tired of this debate with how much is something "worth", you people gonna pretend like some jrpg's out there doesnt deliver the same amount of gameplay hours?



It does bother me however, that bioware claims its "15 hours" didnt one bioware employer say Warden Keeps take for many 3-4 hours?

My ass it does.

15 just sounds good, and its probably way below that.

[xCobalt]

If you think about it, when advertising DLC, "Hours of gameplay" sounds much better than "An hour of gameplay". Who knows, this 15 hours could be less.

[kennethstck]

Im with most people i love DAO,and I really dont care about the price,I think its cool how they are bringing new stuff to the DAO world to keep the game going,andd i relly like how you can import your character,heck i would give up my entire paaycheck if i had to just to buy it....i wish they would bring everythin that was offered as a free DLC through prorder from different stores as more DLC since i think most people would love to get their warden hands on the stuff,there alot of add ons theat different preorders were offering that i know i would like to get a second chance at getting.

[RPGFanboy]

It should be $30 for each system IMHO.

[UBER GEEKZILLA]

40 dollar is worth it for a game that will have 5 new party members,a HUGE new world,and secrets of the darkspawn revealed....

stop being a cheapskate and spend some money dude lol

[VanDraegon]

$40 well spent.

[Must have name]

This price seems ridiculous imo. $40 converted directly into sterling gives £25 at current exchange rates. Now, on release, DA:O cost me £30. Now, I do believe it's very hard to compare the value of a game. I've bought release games that haven't lasted that long, but they've been enjoyable enough or are of a certain genre that i'm happy with the price. Similarly i've bought games that have given me tremendous value for money for the price (e.g. (granted I haven't got round to playing it yet) Mass Effect cost me £3.25 on Steam's sale, even at standard price it's £13).



All those things aside though, the one thing I think the price of an expansion pack can be compared to is that of it's content relative to the original game. But just £5 difference between this and the entire original game, and just 5 months on from original release? I'm sorry, but that price point is awful. I'd gladly pay £15 for something like this, it's the sort've content i've been waiting for. But for just a little shy of what the original game cost me? I'm sorry, but I simply refuse to pay that much.

[Sous Chef]

Guy Laliberté spent $35 million for a 10 day trip to the International Space Station last year...so clearly, 15 hours of gameplay are worth 2.2 million dollars.

Do you really want teh ebil overlords at EA to see those numbers?  
DAO2 will end up costing 125 bucks U.S.
If it does we will blame you now.

Modifié par Sous Chef, 05 janvier 2010 - 09:26 .

[kansadoom]

Must have name wrote...

This price seems ridiculous imo. $40 converted directly into sterling gives £25 at current exchange rates. Now, on release, DA:O cost me £30. Now, I do believe it's very hard to compare the value of a game. I've bought release games that haven't lasted that long, but they've been enjoyable enough or are of a certain genre that i'm happy with the price. Similarly i've bought games that have given me tremendous value for money for the price (e.g. (granted I haven't got round to playing it yet) Mass Effect cost me £3.25 on Steam's sale, even at standard price it's £13).

All those things aside though, the one thing I think the price of an expansion pack can be compared to is that of it's content relative to the original game. But just £5 difference between this and the entire original game, and just 5 months on from original release? I'm sorry, but that price point is awful. I'd gladly pay £15 for something like this, it's the sort've content i've been waiting for. But for just a little shy of what the original game cost me? I'm sorry, but I simply refuse to pay that much.

As you payed 30 pounds I guess you bought the PC version the pc version of the expansion pack is only $30