Frustrated Gamers Turn to Used and Online Games En Masse
New in Gaming
A little over a decade ago, people got tired of paying what they felt was too much money for music CDs. You'd pick up a new album for $20, listen through it, and discover that the two or three truly great tunes were the same ones played over and over on the radio. In response, fans turned to illegal file-sharing networks like Napster and Limewire, and the recording industry was forced to take notice. Perhaps we're about to see a similar revolution in gaming, where statistics show more and more gamers are turning to online video games and used titles to avoid the high cost of present-day video games.
According to a recent report by industry trackers NPD Group, almost as much money was spent on used and online games during the first six months of 2010 as new titles. The numbers go like this: $3.7 billion was spent in the United States between January and June 2010 on new video game software -- the kind that comes in a neat and tidy package with a disc and manual. At the same time, only slightly less, $3 billion, was spent on previously owned or downloadable video games, in both cases at a considerably lower cost to the consumer.
For those who make games, it's not great news. In addition to NPD Group's finding that, overall, hardware and software sales were down 8 percent from last year, the choice by gamers to exchange titles through used and online networks means the traditional gaming market is going to soon suffer major financial setbacks. It could also hurt retailers that offer mostly new games, like Best Buy and Walmart.
Buying Video Games Online
NPD Group didn't say where gamers were going to buy used video games nowadays, but anyone who dabbles in the occasional first-person shooter or racer doesn't have to be a genius to figure it out. Across North America, gamers are turning to marketplaces offered by Kijiji and Facebook to find used video game titles. Amazon now offers this option, too, with many games drastically reduced depending on their age and popularity. For gamers on a budget -- and let's face it, these days most of us are on one -- it's very easy to wait one or two weeks until must-have games have been played through by early adopters and then offered online for much less than their original price.
The industry has recently adopted a new tactic to fight this: game features that are only available to players who buy new. Many gamers see this as a "dirty" strategy, and it is -- but is the alternative an industry that will inevitably decline in quality?
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