While visiting Valve this past week to pop zombie heads in Left 4 Dead 2, we took the time to sit down with marketing VP Doug Lombardi to chat about two subjects very close to my heart -- used games and piracy. While Valve has used Steam as a great way of dealing with such issues, we wondered whether the studio's retail games suffered at all, and what they made of the whole used game debate. Lobardi's answer was quite refreshing.
"We always see these overall numbers, like how much money GameStop's making per year off of used game sales," he says, "but we really don't have a breakdown of details for those. I don't personally know, after being at Valve since Half-Life 1, how many copies of our games per year are sold used, and on the PC versus the 360, so I think there's a certain amount of information that's missing, sort of like piracy. I think a lot of folks cry piracy when a game fails to hit their forecast and it may or may not be part of the problem, and it may or may not be all of the problem, but I think to throw any one reason at any problem is probably a mistake, considering the lack of information on both fronts.
"Having said all that, though, I think that it's probably true to say that gamers tend to have affinity for the games that they like, so if you're doing your job and making a good game, and providing a high level of service for that game at the time of release and post-release, I'm guessing you're probably less of a victim of piracy and trade, because people want to have the full copy, the legal copy, and have all the updates.
"I think there are ways of curbing both piracy and used game sales by providing a higher level of service at the time of launch and post-launch. And I think what we're seeing, as platforms become more and more connected, that this problem will become less and less an issue as the idea of offering a service post-launch becomes more and more en vogue."
It's always good to see a developer that doesn't stomp its feet and have a trantrum because GameStop's exploiting the same free market that they exploit. I'm totally with Doug on this one -- people keep games that they like, and that they feel they can get their money's worth from. If your game wasn't made to be worth keeping, you shouldn't whine and moan when it's sitting on a GameStop shelf a week later.
Contest:
10:00 AM on 07.31.2009
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Publishers HATE me.
I would just like to thank you for all the L4D2 coverage. This is a highly anticipated game for me and anything I can read on the subject is appreciated.
Debate:
@ Br0th3rGr1mm: Valve currently does this with every piece of PC software they sell, albeit that desirable piece of content is the ENTIRE GAME.
Jeez, London is expensive (but worth it)!
That and the fact that I only go out to buy games I actually want(very few these days) and Id rather pay a couple extra bucks and support the developer than some retailer, who constantly hounds me to buy things when I walk into their store.
Of course if there is a game that I want but I dont support the developer/publisher for whatever reason, Ill buy it used or borrow it from a friend.
That's probably not Valve's fault you know. And there was an update just a week ago.
Piracy, on the other hand, seems to be an art that will never fade.
Sign up for GameStop's newsletter and they constantly send you %25 off used games coupons via email. This discount stacks with the 10% you get from the Edge card. So that's 35% off a used game (up to 3 games). I only buy used from GameStop with these discounts, so you really save a lot.
*charges $60 for content that was promised for free to flesh out a barebones game*
Although I like your analogies, the problem isn't on Valve's end. Nothing's free on the 360. They can't release the updates at the pace they are made, as they are forced to release through XBox Live. By the time MS finishes tacking on charges, it'll be like $30 extra. Easier to release a lot of stuff in one big update.
Also, LOL at all the people that support Valve but pirate everything else, you're still a thief no matter how you look at it and you aren't sticking it to anybody because you think the game isn't good for you to buy(yet I imagine you still complete it.)
@ gamadaya-
Is that right? Then why do we see so much praise for EA regarding Burnout Paradise's free content? Should we be praising MS instead since apparently they make all the pricing decisions? It's funny how nobody can seem to decide who is responsible for DLC pricing. When people want to like a company that is releasing overpriced DLC, they blame MS...but yet we can praise the devs of Burnout Paradise for all the free content that supposedly they do not have the authority to decide upon a price for in the first place?
...which they then provided free-of-charge, shortly after release. Oh, and they also threw in another game mode with that same update.
If I buy L4D2 at all, it will probably be used, months after release. Then maybe all of their maps will be playable in multiplayer.
@Sharpless - If by "shortly" you mean "months" then yes, you are correct. After most people had had enough.
Correct me if I'm wrong but aren't there also updates to Burnout Paradise that cost money?
Looking at them now there really appears to be vary content difference and no real standard: "Bikes are free, toy cars aren't. New online game modes are free, offline party mode isn't". In fact from the looks of things the free updates stopped in 2008. I'm not suggesting that some of the new updates aren't huge, such as Big Surf Island, but at the same time there appears to be no consistency other than time.
I'm not trying to be offensive or anything despite brewing up a good can of worms here. Ultimately Microsoft has the last say on pricing for DLC so it begs the question "Is there a standard now to free DLC? (on the 360 at least)" is it based on Release time? Size? Sponsor? I'm not saying I know the answer but I personally do thing the issue of pricing DLC has gotten at least a little out of hand.
Actually, judging from the large numbers of people who still play L4D on a regular basis (on both PC and 360) I'd say that very few of them have "had enough."