I was within a hair-breadth of purchasing Fallout 3 for my Xbox 360 today. What stopped me? The price tag. $64. Used.
That’s right: it costs more to buy Fallout 3 used than it does to buy a fresh copy. Amazon.ca lists it at $59.99 Canadian. Still pricey, considering how long it’s been on the market. The dollar value of a game usually degrades with age, to the extent that you can buy some titles for $10 less within three months of their release. I realize that games are a commodity, and it’s a supply and demand market, but when you’re charging someone above retail for a used product, that’s getting a bit out of hand. Some greasy teen’s probably had his hands all over your used disc of Fallout 3. He could have put his balls on it and you’d never know, except for the pube. You’re paying above the full amount for a raped disc.
It’s these kind of practices that make me wonder how game resellers are getting away without being called pawn shops. They’re paying you under $40 for something they’re going to turn around and sell for $64. Sometimes, you’re lucky to get $15. Technically, they’re not paying you shit. They’re giving you gift cards. If you never redeem your credit, it means they’re getting your games for free. There’s no limit to how many time they can resell you the same disc either. You might be the fourth person to own the game. In a way, you’re just renting it for the price of buying it. You’d think it’d be the perfect business model, but still these geniuses are losing money. Blockbuster is close to bankruptcy. Think about it: the cost of a game is about sixty dollars these days. They have to rent it six times to make their money back. That’s six weeks maximum for a popular title, and then they turn a profit. Plus, any late fees add to their coffers. If they manage to rent the same title once a week for a year, they’ve made five hundred and twenty dollars, four hundred and sixty dollars of that is profit. Then they can sell the title used for the cover price, and make back their sixty dollars. That means total profit. Still, they can’t balance their books. WTF?
One of the reason Fallout 3 is so popular on the resell market is because so few people are selling their copies. Downloadable content has made many people retain their copies. In fact, it’s one of the many things that’s intrigued me about the title. These days, a game’s got to have downloadable content. It’s just smart business. After all, if people aren’t going to keep your game, they’re going to sell it. Then people are going to buy those second-hand copies. That means more people aren’t buying original copies, and the game’s manufacturer’s doesn’t make money.
Thing is: the game disc for Fallout 3 is a piece of garbage. It was shipped broken. Meaning: if you play Fallout 3, you run the risk of bricking your system. It requires a download to resolve numerous performance issues. If you’re buying Fallout 3, used or otherwise, you’re essentially buying AIDS for your gaming system. You’re being charged $64 for a scratched up copy of a game that’ll rape your Xbox. As I said, there’s a patch available, but let’s say for whatever reason your system isn’t connected to the internet? You’re red-ringed. Plus, it’s pretty obvious the developers didn’t put all of the content available in the game. They kept most of it in reserve to release it as downloadable content, at extra cost. The original game takes about 15 hours to plow through. The downloadable content is what keeps it going. Without that, all you have is 1/4 of a game.
Meanwhile, you can buy the Special Edition of Fallout 3 new for $79, and get all the goodness that goes with it.
This is my logic at the store: I can buy the Special Edition for $13 more, but at that price, I might as well buy Guitar Hero: World Tour Complete Guitar Game for $99, but at that price I might as well buy the complete set for $199 or so, but at that price, I could buy groceries for the next three weeks. That’s why I didn’t end up buying anything.
And people wonder why there’s a Recession going on.
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