Take-Two: Quality And Support Can Counter Used Games
See Full ImageUsed video game sales are a gigantic market, one GameStop has counted on for billions of dollars in profit, and one in which most major retailers have dabbled.
But big game publishers have voiced their displeasure with the system; they're a little unhappy that they only see profits from one sale, while the retailer can turn around and sell it a hundred more times. And each time, they'll make about a 120% profit based on the trade-in rates and price tags of used games. So, publishers like EA and THQ (and soon, Ubisoft) have sought to combat the problem by discouraging the purchase of pre-owned games through one-time online unlock codes. But Take-Two chairman and soon-to-be CEO Strauss Zelnick doesn't believe in this approach. Quite simply, he says "it's irrelevant to be critical of the used-game marketplace" and that publishers need only produce titles consumers want to keep.
"You don't want to use a stick punishing users for buying used; you want to give them a reason to buy new. You want to create something that's of benefit to consumers."
In addition to making a quality product, Zelnick adds that it's important to support that product down the road, thereby giving the gamer ample reason to keep it. These days, this is done via downloadable content, which can indeed come at a fast clip for the well-supported games. "By letting consumers know there's more stuff to come, it stands to reason they'd hang on to their titles," said Zelnick. Lastly, he mentioned that MMOs aren't part of Take-Two's future plans, saying that the idea of spending $100 million to launch something that might not work doesn't sit well with the company.
"How many MMOs have worked in the US market? WoW and Everquest. How many have been launched? We didn't like those odds."
Well, it's certainly a logical answer to the problem. I'd also like to add that if there were more collectors in this day and age - rather than those who wouldn't mind in the slightest if everything went digital tomorrow, and those who never keep a game they wouldn't play again - it might be a different story. Personally, I keep any game I deem worthy of being in my collection. I play most only once but that's hardly the point. The only time I ever traded in a game is when I was disappointed with it, which wasn't often because I knew what I liked and I did my research.
...but clearly, this is a very different generation of gamers and I'm a dinosaur; part of a dying breed.
Tags: used games, game industry, take-two, preowned games
11/11/2010 3:01:00 PM Ben Dutka
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Comments (60 posts)
kevinater321
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 9:20:04 PM
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Zorigo
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 4:19:00 PM
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maxpontiac
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:21:35 PM
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2 up, 0 down
hellish_devil
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:22:34 PM
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Do you sell them, or give them to Arnorld as a gift?
Last edited by hellish_devil on 11/11/2010 3:23:27 PM
2 up, 1 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:16:47 PM
2 up, 1 down
LegendaryWolfeh
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:43:58 PM
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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:02:21 PM
2 up, 1 down
LegendaryWolfeh
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 8:17:42 PM
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Lazytrappin
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:23:21 PM
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FatherSun
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:24:14 PM
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BikerSaint
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 8:47:17 PM
I take it that you don't still have Barbie's Riding Academy then, LOL
Anyway...
"One man's trash is another man's stash".
As a collector, I even need those rotten "gag-a-maggot" fish-head stinkers.
So just give me a shout whenever you need the garbage taken out
Last edited by BikerSaint on 11/11/2010 8:48:20 PM
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AlfaChaos
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:28:18 PM
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Jawknee
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:33:36 PM
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3 up, 0 down
SixSpeedKing
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:28:34 PM
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bigrailer19
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 9:05:47 PM
It's a very good ad simple rule though; release a top notch game and you'll get my money and even after I finish I wanna keep it Cus the replay value is high...
Last edited by bigrailer19 on 11/11/2010 9:08:55 PM
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Jawknee
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 12:36:31 AM
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Underdog15
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:46:57 PM
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I also still believe used sales are the bane of the industry. There definitely needs to be more reform to laws, etc, but for now, I definitely agree with the "then we'll just have to produce something worth keeping" approach from devs.
Taking action against buyers... I get the approach, and I understand why... I just think there are better ways of handling it.
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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:17:46 PM
The only thing that bugs me is having a game that I haven't finished. I HATE that. It's why 95% of games in my collection have been completed.
4 up, 0 down
jaybiv
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 6:46:31 PM
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H8WL3R
Sunday, November 14, 2010 @ 4:10:33 PM
Speaking of collections though, WOW, your collection of consoles/games must be huge BikerSaint! It must really be something to behold. Do you have a huge basement to stock it all? I was also wondering if you're an avid collector of movies and music? :-)
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tes37
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:59:31 PM
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Ben, if you're a dinosaur, then I guess that makes me a fossil.
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WorldEndsWithMe
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:59:45 PM
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2 up, 1 down
Lawless SXE
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:02:48 PM
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But many people do not take this view. For example, I once saw a guy trading in R2, GT5Prologue, KZ3 and Halo 3 to get ODST and I think L4D. I was shocked.
Peace.
1 up, 0 down
A2K78
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:24:31 PM
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Anyhow Take-Two notion that quality and support can counter secondhand games is nothing but a flawed piece of logic. In fact it the very same flawed logic publishers used when they embarked on a campaign to lockout import titles.
For the record, I stopped buying games new years ago but instead now buy them secondhand especially when I get them at prices I'm willing pay instead of being shilled into paying $50-60 for the title.
1 up, 4 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:01:50 PM
And if you're making any sort of case for piracy, don't bother to respond.
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 11/11/2010 5:03:26 PM
4 up, 1 down
AnonWTF
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 6:38:03 PM
Yes, quality does have an effect on sales, but as long as there are people who are poor, people who are patient, and people who want more money. Then cheap, used video games will always dominate unless everyone goes digital.
So yes, there are a lot of consumers scared away from black ops price tag if you take into account how many times it is going to be bought used.
Last month I bought 21 video games, 1 wireless controller, and 1 memory card under 200 dollars including shipping/handling + taxes. This is not a bluff and this was done legally. Everything was used except the accessories.
If I were a publisher and/or game developer I would definitely want to go digital. But since I'm a poor consumer, I really want the gaming market to stay like this. Right now though, they are in a damn it you do or damn it you don't situation.
PS
Don't trade in/sell your games to places like gamestop. Sell it on ebay or something.
2 up, 2 down
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 9:30:33 PM
$60 isn't too much to ask. In fact, it's way too low considering the budgets of these games. It cost $60 for a SNES cartridge 20 years ago......by all rights, games could easily cost $100 now.
2 up, 3 down
Underdog15
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 9:38:44 AM
It's really dumb and it implies a heavy sense of entitlement.
Come on people, video games are not necessities. They are LUXURIES... meant for DISPOSABLE income only. If you are low on cash, there is no justifiable reason to say you deserve 20+ games per year. If you manage to save a bit, get a game or two, sure. I have never and still never buy games unless I have some extra dough lying around. Even if a game I really want comes out, I hold off.
Nowadays, I have a little extra disposable cash. But I wasn't always like that. I was a student once too, ya know, and money was little and far between. I might have gotten 1-3 new games per year. Normally, I just rented if I had an extra couple bucks. Sure, I could have prioritized my spending to buy a few more games, but that wouldn't have been responsible given my income at the time.
I dunno, I work with genuinely poor people on a daily business... I think too many people use their lack of wealth as an excuse to not have to examine their habits.
1 up, 1 down
Jawknee
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 12:16:21 PM
Last edited by Jawknee on 11/12/2010 12:18:29 PM
0 up, 1 down
AnonWTF
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 10:12:28 PM
By all rights, games could be WORTH & cost 600 dollars and it wouldn't matter. If the people you are marketing it to, can't afford it then it is a waste of time. PS3 anyone?
To: underdog "It's really dumb and it implies a heavy sense of entitlement."
I think you missed the whole concept. If your poor, your going to have to be smart and find other ways to get what you want with the money you have or you simply can't get it. Hence why I thought it's insane when Ben said a used game that was only 5 dollars cheaper than the retail price and the retail price was at 60.
And sure jaw, I would gladly make more money if there were more available jobs. I'm not lazy!
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H8WL3R
Sunday, November 14, 2010 @ 4:38:17 PM
To everyone who can afford it though and takes in part of D1P(s) (or soon thereafter), I SALUTE YOU and am VERY THANKFUL.
I admit to occasionally buying used, but this applies especially to movies. For movies I wait usually at least 4 weeks and buy it from my local and very conveninetly located rental video store, although I still get new (except for most of the newest releases, when they have enough copies and I can afford it). I tend to buy games new though, usually patiently waiting and using the methods in the introductory paragraph.
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A2K78
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 4:35:26 PM
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secondhand games and piracy are not the bane of the game industry, but rather its the publishers and game developers themselves.
" There definitely needs to be more reform to laws, etc"
reforms law like what, ones that favor corporations(publishers and developers) over consumers?
2 up, 3 down
Jawknee
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 12:18:07 PM
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DjEezzy
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:02:00 PM
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Gordo
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 5:14:13 PM
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A few months down the track JB HiFi will put them on special new for $60. At that point you can usually get the game used for $30 to $40.
You can also trade in 3 decent games and get a new one free. You can also usually get $20-$40 trade in value for most newish games.
So, unless you have a large budget for games (which I don't since I have two kids, a wife, a mortgage and two cars to run) the options are either 1. Don't buy new games, 2. Only buy new games when they hit that $60 mark after a few months or 3. Buy used/cheap, play and trade back later.
The same money is just circulating in the pot. If I buy a few games used or cheap then I will play them and trade them in later and always use that trade in value to purchase more games.
I would never buy a game for RRP $110. $70 is the most I would ever spend and even then I would usually trade in a game or two at the same time to bring the price down to $35.
New games have a resale value which diminishes with time. For average games there is no point having them sitting on a shelf. Sometimes I've bought three 3 used games and traded them back without even playing them for a new one!
Cheap? Probably.
Realistic? Definately...
Hurting the games industry? Not as badly as they make out.
The used game sector helps stimulate the games economy especially in the non-US games market where prices are more expensive.
Cut it out or go totally digital then the whole games industry suffers. (in my humble opinion!)
1 up, 0 down
Underdog15
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 8:58:56 AM
As is, you could certainly make a case that there are minimal sales increases due to the used sales, however, you could make a similar case about diminished production quality. Budgets are limited to ensure more money is made than dished out. If those budgets had more wiggle room for the entire industry and not just blockbusters like CoD, you'd see far more competition. In the end, I just don't think you can totally win either way. You just have to decide which is the lesser of two evils, really.
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PasteNuggs
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 6:51:01 PM
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RaGeQuiT
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 6:40:15 PM
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Last edited by RaGeQuiT on 11/11/2010 6:40:56 PM
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jaybiv
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 6:55:58 PM
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GuernicaReborn
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 7:07:33 PM
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The console gaming industry has it easy. Just imagine if pirating was as big of a problem with console gaming as it is with music and movies.
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Snaaaake
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 7:10:51 PM
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1 up, 0 down
Gordo
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 8:21:01 PM
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"We need your support and trust!!! Dear friends, please temporarily stop your footsteps To our website Walk around A look at Maybe you'll find happiness in your sight shopping heaven and earth You'll find our price is more suitable for you. "
For the love of God if you are going to Spam at least let a native English speaker look at your wording first.
"Please temporarily stop your footsteps to our website"...
I love it!
Apologies if this is off topic but it ranks my craw... :-)
PS:
"Quality is our dignity".
0 up, 1 down
BikerSaint
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 8:58:43 PM
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You're a class act!
Hey got a question for those who have bought used & then paid that $10 on-line fee.
Does that $!0 fee cover all of that publisher's games, or is it a frigging separate $!0 fee for each game???
Just wondering how it works
Last edited by BikerSaint on 11/11/2010 9:02:46 PM
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BattleFox21
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 10:30:01 PM
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I absolutely hate caving into it, but when it's a choice of new game or being bored with the title I've already beat well you can guess which one gets beat out. :(
Last edited by BattleFox21 on 11/11/2010 10:34:40 PM
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G8GTdriver
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 10:22:06 AM
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Highlander
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 10:40:01 PM
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Whatever. I said I'll no longer participate in discussions of used games, and I'll try to keep to that.
0 up, 3 down
Phoenix
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 5:53:25 AM
Most of my games are near d1p, the ones that arnt have a reason for it, like it becomes hard to find, or I simply didnt know about it when it came out. So, say one of those situations came up, and I had to pick up used, should I then get hit with a fee to go online with it?
It really comes down to what T2 guy said, if a company puts out a quality game, no need for the buyer to sell it after they have played threw it. Replay value ftw.
2 up, 0 down
Underdog15
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 8:52:27 AM
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Jawknee
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 12:15:07 PM
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Nerull
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 12:52:34 AM
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This, and thankfully I'm not old...yet.
Last edited by Nerull on 11/12/2010 12:54:24 AM
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___________
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 1:06:47 AM
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preach what you teach for a change.......
maifa 2 is one of the best games ive played in a long time, sadly its also one of the buggiest!
i can play metro 2033 in 3D with everything maxed out and get a average FPS of 30.
i cant even play mafia 2 in 2D with medium settings without the game slowing down because my frames drop to around 10.
when a 4K PC is struggling to play a game on medium settings, thats when you know you have one lazy a$$ developer on your hands!!!!!!!!
at least they communicate well.
unlike EA, they actually responded to all my emails, though as usual not to fix any problems.
just release a patch already!!!!!!!!
if they release a patch so i can run the game properly ill buy all the DLC, if not.......
0 up, 3 down
spiderboi
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 5:46:10 AM
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frylock25
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 9:11:53 AM
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0 up, 1 down
Amazingskillz
Friday, November 12, 2010 @ 4:03:43 PM
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1 up, 0 down
SmokeyPSD
Monday, November 15, 2010 @ 1:45:27 PM
It felt like such a game. Hands down. I never got immersed in that turd for 4 minutes, let alone being able to finish the thing. What it didn't deserve was the initial praise for how pretty it looked overall when you got high enough and weren't bothering to actually play what was under the hood.
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Zorigo
Reply
Thursday, November 11, 2010 @ 3:20:54 PM
I had to pay 43 quid for Uncharted 2 to get it on release day instore... but i didnt mind. Because my thoughts were simply "uncharted 2 **** yes!!!!!!!".
i plan on getting GT5 day one too. because it has quality written all over it. The same with games like KZ3 and so on...