During his chat with GamesIndustry.biz, Bungie's lead audio director (and musical legend) Marty O'Donnell talked about the impact the pre-owned market has had on video game sales, including games from smaller studios all the way up to big budget titles like Halo. Yes, Halo."It's hard to gauge the effect of used game sales on Halo, but I'm sure it's big," said O'Donnell admitting that "complaining about sales when you have a multi-million seller is somewhat difficult to justify, but it seems to me that the folks who create and publish a game shouldn't stop receiving income from further sales." O'Donnell then commented that, in the future, smaller studios will have an even more difficult time recouping dev costs and that digital distribution could be the answer that makes everyone happy. Now go buy an extra copy of Halo 3.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
9-26-2008 @ 2:20PM
Carbonize said...
Maybe they should make games that people want to play again and again and again and not games where you only finish it to see what the story is and then sell it because it wasn't worth playing the first time (eg. the Darkness, SoF Payback, Black etc)
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9-26-2008 @ 3:42PM
Mazrael said...
Like Star Wars Unleashed..
Playing through the hardest difficulty - tryng to avoid the bugs, that Lucas knew about.. it's going to need one hell of a patch to fix it.. earlier I got killed my a royal guard who did he charge move at a rail which was 6 feet away from me.. didn't even touch me.. it feels like they got bored making it.. I got bored on the first play.. only going for chieves..
9-26-2008 @ 5:44PM
Ghen said...
Sorry to top-post, but according to O'Donnel's logic then car manufacturers, real estate developers, instrument manufacturers, etc should get kickbacks on re-sales as well. Sorry bud, once I buy what you're selling its MINE.
9-27-2008 @ 9:51PM
maxdense said...
Exactly.
9-26-2008 @ 2:29PM
joeybeast said...
so the expansion pack will be DLC only
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9-26-2008 @ 2:34PM
pandlcg said...
I'm not sure why the videogame industry always seems to harp on the second hand market. Every product has used sales and it's something that companies have always dealt with before.
I just don't understand why this is a special case and there is so much complaining going on lately.
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9-26-2008 @ 2:42PM
Jay said...
I think the reason they harp on the second hand market for video games is because a used video game is virtually brand new. It will work exactly as it did when it was opened out of the package (assuming no major scratches or errors). For most other products in general, the quality decreases over time, especially for cars where the older it is, the more likely it is to not work. I'm not saying the view is justified, I'm just trying to provide insight as to why video game devs might feel this way. Essentially, when the game is sold used, there is no difference between that used game, and the brand new, 60$ version of it. Thus, used games are often sought after more than the original.
9-26-2008 @ 2:46PM
bioadam said...
Yeah but . . . video games are just really expensive interactive media with limited means of distribution (i.e. sales of physical copies). Movies have the box office and TV shows have broadcasts (with ads!). Music has the radio and live shows. The other media with a limited means of distribution are books, which are way cheaper to make. Other than DLC, maybe the answer for publishers is ad supported games. Cortana: What are you doing in that Wendy's? Master Chief: Finishing this Coke!
9-26-2008 @ 3:05PM
dylan said...
Have you never played Crackdown? It still updates it's in-game ads, and Burnout Paradise has Ads. This is BS PR to get people to believe the rationale behind going fully digital, in which case they will eventually only grant a limited use for a full priced game which you will only get one download of. Just because it is convenient, and the people making millions and billions off you seem sad, don't throw away the idea of owning something.
9-26-2008 @ 3:18PM
Andrew said...
Part of the problem is places like GameStop make a shit ton of money from selling used games and developers and publishers see that money and want some of it.
I've been to a game store where they actually tried to talk me out of buying a copy of a game new, in favor of getting it used. I guess they have much higher margins on the used stuff.
9-26-2008 @ 2:37PM
Drew said...
I don't get it. I was buying used games at Funcoland in the early 90s. This is nothing new.
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9-26-2008 @ 2:38PM
Dones said...
"complaining about sales when you have a multi-million seller is somewhat difficult to justify, but it seems to me that the folks who create and publish a game shouldn't stop receiving income from further sales."
This has to be what Henry Ford said in response to all the used car lots springing up all over America 100 years ago.
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9-26-2008 @ 2:40PM
bioadam said...
Yet another omen that Disks will someday be dead. Pity those without an internet connection.
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9-26-2008 @ 2:47PM
mirage said...
And pity those who actually believe they own something after they buy it.
9-26-2008 @ 3:17PM
H Choi said...
I don't think people who don't have access to the internet would buy a game console in the first place.
9-26-2008 @ 2:43PM
Gemini Ace said...
If gaming goes digital distribution only, I think I'm done. They don't need to be complaining about the used market. That's the only way some people can afford games. Get over it!
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9-26-2008 @ 3:41PM
DudeRed said...
Digital downloads are slowing going to take over the market. Its not a matter of if but when.
The only complain I would really have is if they don't lower the cost some to match this shift. Not having to worry about manufacturing and distribution cost would be nice for them...but it should be nice for us too.
9-26-2008 @ 2:50PM
david said...
So, should we do the same for cars? What about computers?
Sorry Marty, but that's pure BS.
If I buy something with my money, it becomes MINE (unless otherwise stipulated via contract). Sure a company is out to make money, but there comes a point at which the consumer is getting completely screwed over by these companies.
Lesson for Bungie, et al.:
You will lose customers to this mentality.
Lesson to the rest of you:
If you don't like these business practices, don't buy their products, let capitalism take its toll on bad business.
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9-26-2008 @ 2:42PM
RSHammerhand said...
pretty much what i was going to say.
9-26-2008 @ 3:07PM
Neuromancer said...
"It seems to me that the folks who create and publish a game shouldn't stop receiving income from further sales."
This guy doesn't want us to own what we paid for and I think that's bullshit.
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