Publishers: Selling people Half a game will curb Piracy

[MetalSymphony]

First, it was Codemasters (Link), and now Namco Bandai (Link) is getting on the train that selling people full games is just asking for them to pirate it, and they the only solution is to sell them Incomplete games then force them to buy the rest as DLC.

NB's CEO, Shukuo Ishikawa, says:

Selling a game only once for 700-800 is no good at all. If you sell it for 250, or even give it away free, then you can sell episodes and items online. They’ll soon be dropping 100 or 200 on these, and you can also do monthly charges.”

So, do you think that Nickle and Dimeing people's games will cut Piracy, or is it a thinly veiled excuse to milk gamers for all they're worth?

 

[Icefish]

This isn't going to cut piracy. If anything, it'll increase it. I don't know about you, but I hate microtransactions. Paying for content I should already have is stupid.

 

[FlashNeko]

This seems less anti-piracy and more that the various companies involved have seen the success of things like the Free-to-Play model Korean MMOs use and how some games on WiiWare/PSN/Live Arcade can make as much of a profit as disc-based releases with a much smaller operating cost.

It only makes sense that some of the bigger companies would want a piece of that lucrative pie too.

 

[KouAidou]

I think selling people half a game is counterproductive. That just pisses people off. It only works on the free-to-play model that FlashNeko mentioned.

 

[SaikoDragon]

This isn't going to cut piracy. If anything, it'll increase it. I don't know about you, but I hate microtransactions. Paying for content I should already have is stupid.

yup. People will still pirate it. They are simply punishing the regular consumer with price spikes and turning them into new pirates.

 

[KingRanger]

If this happens, and I am not saying it would, it will kill things like Gamefly.

 

[Dark Kabuto]

If this happens, and I am not saying it would, it will kill things like Gamefly.

Not to mention it'll ruin the point of letting people borrow games, or giving them as gifts. And what about selling them on places like Ebay?

A person would have to pay AGAIN to get the full game...I bet that'll alone would make it real annoying.

 

[Artic_Rival]

... That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. This reminds me of a certain game called Fallout 3. It, by definition, had a stupid ending and the only way you can continue from your beaten game is if you buy one of their DLCs. Now imagine ten, if not hundreds of games like Fallout 3. It just screams wall banger.

 

[MetalSymphony]

Some companies already do this in a Limited fashion, like EA's Project 10 Dollar that locks some features (namely online play) behind a pay wall that you get a code for if you buy it new, but have to pay to unlock if you bought used.

Maybe it's the inevitable future of gaming, maybe not.

 

[Dark Kabuto]

... That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. This reminds me of a certain game called Fallout 3. It, by definition, had a stupid ending and the only way you can continue from your beaten game is if you buy one of their DLCs. Now imagine ten, if not hundreds of games like Fallout 3. It just screams wall banger.

To be fair though, Fallout 3 even with the stupid WTF ending it had is a damned fine game.