muppetrat wrote:Why do games have to cost so much? Just wondering xD
Generally speaking, they really aren't that expensive, at least not in the U.S.
Games themselves have, relatively speaking, gotten
cheaper over time. Check out this
short clip of Toys R Us almost 30 years ago. Genesis games
then were similar to prices of new games now.
Where you actually tend to see inflation take effect is on hardware. The $150 or so that a
NES Power Set would have run you in 1988 would be around $320 today, or a few bucks more than a Switch (though, to be fair, that included more out of the box).
In addition to that, we also tend to see games remain available as their prices drop - whether via digital options or via vast online selections. Some of it might be more applicable to PC gaming, but I mean, we can often get legal copies of games for a few bucks or less. It's not even that uncommon to get free games for one reason or another.
If you account for the entertainment value of even a single game, it can be an extremely cheap hobby. Obviously, that's not necessarily true for
collecting, and buying up everything that looks half interesting as it comes out will add up.
Still, that's more an overall thing, which may not feel as true when faced with particular games or publishers. I mean, AAA games do cost a lot to make, but, probably also sell enough that they don't need to double or triple their sticker price in add-on content. So it might come down to what you particularly have in mind as expensive. If all you're looking at is having quality games of some kind available to play for low cost, then there's a ton of stuff out there. Things like a $130 SKU of
Black Ops 4 to preorder are more the exception.
