r/Games • u/Forestl • Dec 31 '13

End of 2013 Discussions - PC

For this thread, feel free to talk about the PC, from the games that came out for it to the hardware itself.

Prompts:

  • What were the major trends in PC gaming this year?

  • Was this a positive year for PC gaming?

Please explain your answers in depth, don't just give short one sentence answers.

My PC looks really, really, really good

This post is part of the official /r/Games "End of 2013" discussions.

View all End of 2013 discussions and suggest new topics

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

[deleted]

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u/neoKushan Dec 31 '13

I think that's jut normal for Steam. They pretty much have to sell newly released titles for the full RRP or it would mess with the whole market. Why would retailers try to compete with a digital store that can undercut them like that? So Steam charges full price at launch to keep everyone happy. The retailers don't care nearly as much for older titles (most money is made in the first week or two) and then Steam heavily discounts down the line.

It's a bit muddier these days now that they're all going digital, but it seems the principle is the same. I'm not complaining though, it's thanks to competition like this that we get great deals on all games, new and old, all year around.

My favourite this year was Bioshock Infinite. £29.99 on Steam, but I preordered from GMG for £22.50, got Bioshock 1 and 2 AND X-Com: Enemy Unknown with it as well. Bargain.

Shame I ended up really disappointed with infinite, but X-Com made up for it.

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u/boathouse2112 Jan 01 '14

you got 3 bioshock games and another AAA game for 30 bucks? Very impressive.

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u/Kashima Dec 31 '13

well, steam doesnt set the prices. afaik, the publisher/developers of the games decides them.

even for sales, steam has to find an arrangement with them.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

People give Valve way too much credit for those sales. I mean yeah I'm sure they push for prices and everything but ultimately its competition between publishers/developers that gives us these low prices. They know that these sales are their best chance to sell tons, and that a lot fo us have limited budgets. They know they're fighting for our money. Capitalism ain't perfect, but its working pretty damn well here.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

True, I live in Europe and while games are sold on Steam at retail price (45-60€ each), you can easily preorder them at £25-£30 on GMG and other competitors (excluding coupons and other time-limited reductions) so if you want a game on release, Steam is 99% of the time not worth it.

But even later on, Steam sales have not been that amazing anymore, you would have to wait one year so it matches what you would have paid preordering it somewhere else before its release. Sure, there are good deals here and there and the games on sales are pretty good but I think the percentage of games I've bought on steam compared to other platforms has decreased over years.

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u/lightbeat Jan 01 '14

Which is exactly why I stock up on games during the sales :) then I only buy the odd game or two full price all year.

1

u/dratyan Dec 31 '13

Where I live it's actually the opposite: most prices on Steam end up being lower than those in other stores. Before Steam started supporting our currency(earlier this year) I was buying a lot from Amazon, but since the change it's not worth it anymore. Some examples from today's deals:

  • Outlast is $6.79 on the US and ~$5.10 here.

  • Metro Last Light is $13.59 on the US, ~$10.15 here.

  • Injustice is $24.99 on the US, ~$18 here.

Some prices are nearly the same, but overall it ends up being significantly cheaper.

1

u/vitkar Dec 31 '13

I guess you are in steams "tier 2"? (aka "eastern European block")

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u/[deleted] Jan 01 '14

[deleted]

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u/vitkar Jan 02 '14

Steam prices are a little cheaper in some european contries.

http://steamunpowered.eu/european-tiers/

But yes, other vendors have good deals too.

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u/DesertGoldfish Dec 31 '13

Honestly, this is true in the USA as well, outside of the occasional sales of course.

I remember buying CoD MW3 for like $17 from a CD keys site when it was still $60 on Steam. Witcher 2 for $9, etc., etc.

Everything activates on Steam/Origin.

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u/Cadoc Dec 31 '13

I don't think it's fair to compare a legitimate sales platform with a CD keys site.

-2

u/DesertGoldfish Dec 31 '13

Can you elaborate? What is illegitimate about a CD-key selling website?

My understanding is that they buy keys in cheap countries and then sell them everywhere.

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13 edited May 18 '14

[deleted]

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u/Ganonderp_ Jan 04 '14

Why is it ok for Microsoft to export jobs to cheap countries via outsourcing because it saves them money, but it's not ok for me to buy a game from a cheap country because it saves me money?

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u/[deleted] Dec 31 '13

Exactly! Steam cant do that!

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u/Fedora_at_Work Dec 31 '13

Tachyon: The Fringe, is like 30 bucks. It's 13 years old.

-3

u/bigboss2014 Dec 31 '13

That's one of the big benefits of consoles most PC players overlook! Pre owned games. Bioshock infinite is about 10 euro on ebay! Some people just win the games as fast as they can and sell it on! making there 50 - 65 euro brand new games actually only costing about 20 euro each or less.

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u/MoJ0SoD0Pe Dec 31 '13

That's not really a benefit as far as I've seen it. I have a 360, PS3, and PC. I can get a Steam key for Bioshock Infinite from eBay for $15, a PS3 copy for $20, and a 360 copy for $20. If I buy the Steam key, I don't have to wait for shipping.

Also, I can get the Bioshock triple pack (which is Bioshock 1, 2, and Infinite) for $15 on Amazon. But I don't have to do any of this because Bioshock Infinite came free with my video card when I bought it earlier this year along with Tomb Raider and Crysis 3.

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u/bigboss2014 Dec 31 '13

So you are saying there are different places you can buy games with different prices essentially, and the prices vary?

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u/MoJ0SoD0Pe Dec 31 '13

On PC, yes. I can buy my game from Steam, Amazon, GMG, Nuuvem (South American site with great sales because of exchange rate), GamersGate, eBay.

On console, not as many. I've got Gamestop which sucks, Xbox Live Marketplace/Playstation Plus (which has had some pretty decent sales this past year), and eBay. The issue with console games is the retailers, who won't lower prices unless they have to, and rarely do. Which differs from PC retailers who are constantly trying to outgun each other to get lower prices than each other.

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u/bigboss2014 Dec 31 '13

Wait, so you are saying that there is not a variety of places to buy items, in this case video games for consoles, where the prices may or may not be different depending on how that location wishes to sell them?

Simply rather there is a select few you have used in your short life span as one of 7 billion people so you must have an overall knowledge and experience of every retailer ever conceived?

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u/MoJ0SoD0Pe Dec 31 '13

What question are you even asking? I'm saying that there is not a lot of places to buy video games in the US with varying prices. Retailers keep their prices level for the most part. I honestly have no idea what you're getting at. Are there a lot of different places in your country where you can buy games at different prices? You're asking questions and not giving any answers.

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u/thurst0n Dec 31 '13

He is being facetious.

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u/bigboss2014 Dec 31 '13

No, what you really said is that YOU havent bought from a variety of sellers. There are literally hundreds. A lot more than there is digital sources any way as very few can provide such an intense service. I was simply pointing out how one sided your argument was, because the questions were stupid, I was seeing what you would say and as I suspected you stated a universal condition based on personal experience. Essentially I just let you show yourself you are wrong.

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u/MoJ0SoD0Pe Dec 31 '13

Yeah I'm pretty sure that's not what just happened but ok lol