Sony CEO 'totally opposed to blocking used games'

[Joelcool7]

Fact is on the N64 games retailed here in Canada for 99.99$-120$ often. My copy of LoZ:MM 120$, HarvestMoon64 120$ , Donkey Kong 64 120$. A lot of games cost as little as 79.99$ if they were budget but most often the retail price hovered around 100$. In fact towards the end of the N64 I remember seeing games at 120$ when the hardware itself was only 99.99$.
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Guess what I still bought my games as did every other gamer. At today's currency value the N64 games would be past 150$ and we didn't break a sweat. NES games at current currency exchange rates up to 80$-90$ same goes for Genesis. We have always paid heavily for our games, now PSOne did introduce the 49.99$ CAD game release a game could go as low as 39.99$ launch in the mid 90's in the US. But us Canadians still paid up to 60-70$ for our games. I do remember PSOne games however did retail far cheaper towards the end of the generation when the collections started piling out. But for the most past back then we paid almost what we do today, but update the currency value and we are paying about the same or less then we did with even the PSOne!

It does not make any logical sense that we pay the same or less despite Dev costs being 10x more expensive today then NES days. With the next gen we are looking at 2-3x our current Dev costs.

Yet consumers want higher production values and cheaper prices. This is unrealistic and seriously insane. That is largely why Nintendo is again not likely going full next gen graphical upgrade, it is a suicidal business model. It is also why so many studios are closing, downsizing or going mobile. It is why developers are far less likely to produce new or risky IP. It is why we will see more and more annual releases, shorter and shorter campaigns, more and more DLC, more recycling of NPC's and buildings.

Development costs are simply unsustainable, every developer and publisher sees this. But the consumers are demanding they produce more expensive products. In the end how has Sony fairer giving the customers exactly what the customers want?

We want a high powered graphical super power (Sony -PS3 = massive losses and struggling for market share)
We want a coop sci-fi shooter with amazing Hollywood visuals (Sony gives KZ2/Resistance = mediocre sales and the death of Resistance)
We want an amazing online shooter, something different (Sony - M.A.G = sales failure)
We want a platformer (Sony R&C , Jak Daxter, LBP. = decent success but nothing close to Nintendo sales)
We want a WiiHD, motion controls with high end games (Sony - Move = alright but not impressive software figures)
We want free PSN (Xbox Live slaughters Sony)
We want cinematic visuals (Sony Uncharted = Successful but doesn't even challenge Halo/Gears)

Now Sony did absolutely everything the consumer wanted. To the tee and today they are still doing it (We want a Super Smash Brothers) will Battle Royal even come close to 8+ million copies? Not likely!

What about the whole
We want to take our games on the go start playing on our home console and transfer to our handheld!(Sony PSP/Vita - Dismal software sales and for Vita disastrous hardware sales)

Then you have Nintendo and they don't listen to the fans much at all. You want a HD photo realistic Zelda, here have WindWaker, you want an amazing 3D full fledged Pokemon game, here have Stadium. You want a Mario FPS well here's Mario Galaxy. You want a powerful graphically stunning machine? Here have a slightly advanced machine with a tablet controller you never thought of or wanted.

Microsoft then did likewise. Oh you want another Gears or Halo? Here is Kinect Sports! Guess what the Kinect games no one wanted sold like hot cakes.

Moral of the story, don't try giving consumers what they want. Why? Consumers know jack shit about what they want! No matter what you do the consumers will always be upset. So what should a developer do?

A developer should make the game they want to make, targeting the audience they want to target. Retail the game at the price they need to break even. Sell the content they need to sell!

Don't play catch up giving the consumers what they think they want, give them what they don't k.ow they want yet. Get ahead of the consumer and produce a quality product that is viable!