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Cerebralbore101 on 18 May 2017
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Conina said:
Cerebralbore101 said:

I had a college course on this a few years back. The console manufacturer gets $7-10 in fees. Next the publisher gets $10. Marketing is usually $10, but can be nothing if you don't want to market. Stores take $10-15. Shipping is $5. For a heavily marketed game where the developer is not the publisher, the dev gets $10 of your $60.

Must have been a pretty shitty course if it conveyed the false impression that all these shares are set in stone and don't vary depending on negotiations (devs <-> publishers), different stores with different impact/reach <-> publishers, circulation strength of a game, margins for back catalog titles...

Cerebralbore101 said:

IMO Valve should only take $10 off every new release sale.

$10, no matter if the price on Steam for the game (set by the publisher) is $20, $30, $40, $50, $60, $70 or $80?

Cerebralbore101 said:

AAA PC titles could easily release for $40

And you can find almost any PC title easily for $40 (or less) right at launch or within the first month. Even if a game needs Steam, Valve ain't the only one selling the game. Valve has some many partners like GreenManGaming or the Humble Store allowing a healthy competition for Steam-bound games.

Cerebralbore101 said:

But Valve and the devs want to make more money, instead of pass the savings on to the consumer.

Supply and demand are the base of a price, not the production or distribution costs.

Cerebralbore101 said:

Best Buy doesn't even charge the $15, which makes their games $45. They are banking on you buying additional products from their store, or paying interest on a credit card.

And why should Valve care about Best Buys prices? Valve has a much bigger marketing reach than Best Buys... so you can add some of your ten bucks for marketing to the Steam price.

1. But my wording conveyed that these things aren't set in stone. Usually. 7-10. 10-15. You are just nitpicking here.

2. No, $10 off what would be a $60 release in stores. Obviously they would take less or more depending on the price of the game.

3. And you can easily find a used copy of any physical version of a game for $40 right around launch. For example: vgpricecharting already has Prey listed at $40 for a CIB used copy. Digital should never be the exact same price as physical because a digital copy is worthless after you activate the key. With digital you aren't buying a game, you are paying for permission to play said game. The minimum price on the regular steam store for a brand new AAA release should be $40. Not a whopping $60.

4. With digital the supply is borderline infinite. 

5. Valve has bigger marketing than Best Buy? Do you have a source for that information?