Steam prices! Grey key sites! and the I love/hate developers thread - Enter if you dare!

[Musty Pie]

OK guys!

I didn't really want to start another thread on this, but in order to keep the "PC Gaming Deals" thread clean and on topic I am doing this so that the people who wish to continue to discuss this topic have a place to do so.

For those who don't know, and don't wish to re-read another thread this topic was started when a copy of the new Tomb Raider game for PC was available through a loophole in the windows 10 Store.

People could purchase the game for under £7 which was accepted by many as being a good deal, yet frowned upon by others.

Examples below:

I honestly think grey market key sellers should be banned from this thread and this entire forum.

Everybody that buys a key from these places is screwing over the guys who made the game.

And also potentially receiving goods acquired with stolen cards, etc.

I honestly don't know why OcUK allows it.

Do you have any research to back this up? A digital game is not going to have high distribution cost, so selling 1 million copies at £5 each is surely better than selling 100,000 copies at £20 each...

They are just codes, so the more they sell the better and the lower the price the better they sell. It isnt like they are selling anyting at a "loss" in a traditional sense.

I don't feel in one bit bad for buying Tomb Raider for £6.70 from Microsoft, because that is all it was worth to me. I would have just waited 6 months until it was that price and bought it then. I would never have paid full price for it.

If anything, they get the money i was willing to pay earlier, and i get the game earlier. Win win.

In fact, i will very, very rarely buy a game at full price/on release anymore as within months they are always siginifcantly cheaper.

Besides, the army of people who like to have their trousers pulled down by Steam release prices always seems quite large so they always have them

In short some people feel that buying keys on the "grey market" and via loopholes like the above they are not showing love to the developers of the games, and thus ruining the gaming industry!

So have it out ladies.

Do you think buying at the best price through sites like G2A and CDkeys etc. is upsetting the balance?

Do you feel that buying at full RRP is the only way to give back to the Devs/industry?

Lets see what the general opinions here are! Also if anyone has any factual info on how digital game distribution works in situations like this (in terms of who gets a cut of what etc?) that info would also be welcomed.

 

[Musty Pie]

But we are not talking piracy here are we?

We are mainly discussing shopping about for best prices, and how this effects the Devs!

 

[Musty Pie]

I am not discoutning it completely. In truth no one really knows. All i know, in my head i just simply wont by most games at the full UK price and will wait till they drop to a reasonable amount ( which is normally in a matter of months these days) - if i can see it cheap on a cd key site/different region i will buy it earlier.

This sums up my point really.

In my mind i set a price on a game. When it hits that price I will buy it.

If TR was not available for £7 I would wait. Its called self control.

 

[Musty Pie]

Hard to think that in this day and age people put a price their own price on something they wish to buy isn't it?...

Although in reality its essential with today's costs for essentials growing daily.

I personally decide a price on things I wish to buy (talking luxuries here) And will only take the punt when i think its financially worth it.

 

[Musty Pie]

Do you feel the same way about people who buy second hand console games ?

Of course he doesn't!....

PC master race and all that

 

[Musty Pie]

Re the MGS5 code. It was an nVidia code. Bought in the UK with a purchase of a UK graphics card.

It was actually more expensive than most of the games I've bought from Steam, being close to the £30 I consider full retail price.

Happy now?

Or is that the same as buying it for £10 from Brazil? I'm sure you'll say it is.

surely your money went to the seller on e-bay though right..?

 

[Musty Pie]

I admit its a complex issue.

this is why I thought it interesting to start the topic.

If people more in the know can offer information then it might change peoples opinions on how they purchase the media.

 

[Musty Pie]

Exactly, the money goes to the developer either way unlike piracy.

Piracy is not the discussion here though....

 

[Musty Pie]

I go to bed early and come back to this! Good work every one

As for foxs request go close the thread I hope this does not happen... Some interesting points from nearly everyone in here!

 

[Musty Pie]

A pack of 12 cans of coke costs £3.55 in Tesco, that's 30p/can (actually 29.5, but lets round it up for simplicity)
A single can of coke costs 68p

So, question:

Say Tesco started opening up the multi-packs and selling the cans inside for 35p.

The cans do say on the side "From multipack, not for individual resale" or similar, so this would be against the manufacturers conditions, however, it's not illegal. So basically the same as grey keys.

Would people be OK with this? After all you're getting a 50% discount on on your can of coke.

Do we think that there would be over twice as many cans of coke sold?

Do we think there would be no effect on the manufacturer's revenue?

Whilst i am no business expert I hardily think the 2 are comparable.

Physical goods have completely different cost calculations to take into account. Storage costs/logistics costs etc. to name a few.

Remember we are talking digital media here!

 

[Musty Pie]

How does manufacturing/transporting/storing 12 individual cans of coke cost more than twice as much as manufacturing/transporting/storing 12 cans of coke in a single box?

I don't know mate, I was hoping you could tell me!

Although to make a point I can always find a local store selling a single can of coke (not MP can) cheaper than the bigger retailers.

Kind of like the key sites in question here vs Steam/etc.

In short - regardless of what I am buying I will always shop around and get the best deal I can for my hard earned pennies.

 

[Musty Pie]

Or just 00000 as the postcode, the rest of the address could be your own, and yes as you said, no vpn. You just had to change the region in settings on your PC.

Yep 100% correct

No VPN required - as if there was a requirement to do this I would not have bothered.

 

[Musty Pie]

Once these loopholes are closed and they actually start prosecuting people for doing it (or at least blocking access to the games they bought in this way) it'll stop and regular key code deals are the only option all will be right in the world again

.

Yep, and until they do the cost conscious masses will continue to buy the cheapest they can find!

 

[Musty Pie]

Get on a plane, fly to Russia, buy game, come home.

Expensive but surely you could have come to the same answer ?

but would he buy his tickets direct from the airline at full price?

Or would he hunt about for a cheaper better flight deal?

After all, we wouldn't want anyone losing out now would we

 

[Musty Pie]

I don't recall saying you should buy from the most expensive UK retailer. Perhaps you could show me where I said that.

And if you can't, perhaps you could stop posting tripe.

Perhaps you could show me where I said "most expensive".

I'm sure I used to words "direct" and "full price" did I not? I think my ironic post might have been lost on you...

You clearly have a bee in your bonnet about this topic, and rightly so! Everyone is allowed an opinion after all. Just try not get your knickers in a twist about it when others disagree and are willing to discuss why.

 

[Musty Pie]

Foxeye isn't bothered about non-transferrable clauses. He buys Nvidia bundled game codes cheap on ebay

HAHAHA!

And before you pipe up Fox no I had nothing else useful to add - but Jono8 beat me to the mark on this one and i wanted to show my appreciation

 

[Musty Pie]

I'm not placing you in that camp at all my friend. That might be your assumption - but believe me I am /well/ aware you do not agree with the grey market keys as you have let us all know with continual concrete counter arguments!

I am merely amused by the fact you tried fruitlessly to argue the fact that buying an Nvidia code via e-bay is different to a grey market key. Then only to later use an example of OAP ticket prices/reselling to prove a point.

Tickled me somewhat.