3 ms·

The author makes the point that consumers purchasing used games deprives the studios of revenues that can be put towards future titles. But the same could be s

The author makes the point that consumers purchasing used games deprives the studios of revenues that can be put towards future titles. But the same could be said of used books, used furniture, used anything! The only difference is that, with games, it is now technically feasible (I'm sure IKEA would love it if you couldn't resell their furniture second-hand, so everyone had to buy directly from them). It really angers me that this approach is even legal.

lclarkmichalek 15y ago
Well the main difference between used physical goods and used games is that there is loss of quality between buying a used game and buying a new game, meaning that a game could be sold and traded in many times before being undesirable, which is not true for the vast majority of books.
- catchthewheel 15y ago
  There is a loss of quality with games---the discs still get wear and tear. One of the reasons I'm wary of buying used games is that the disc is almost always badly scratched.
  - smithzvk 15y ago
    Admittedly, I am not an expert with video game issues, but I would say that the biggest loss of quality between a used game and a new one is the amount that graphics and game play technology have progressed in the time it takes for the game to become available used. Perhaps a way that game developers can combat the sale of used games undercutting their current offerings is to make games that are so good that people don't want to part with them so quickly.
  - Trezoid 15y ago
    I have several thousand dollars worth of second hand games (for xbox 360), I've never once come across a scratched disc. While I'm sure it could potentially be a problem in high-churn stores like gamestop, most places do have a replacement policy on discs that are scratched at purchase.
ssdsa 15y ago
While we clearly see that there is a huge market for used games (see GameStop), there isn't any comparable market for used books and used furniture, at least not here in Germany. Every avid reader I know likes to read new books and cannot stand to read used books coming from some unknown pre-owner, because you never know how dirty his hands were when he was reading the book. Ever tried to sell used books on eBay? Don't bother, even if you put them up for 1 EUR starting price, you end up having more work to do (communication, check payment, shipping) than you'll earn. And don't get me started on used furniture. While new furniture can be really expensive, when you try to sell your previously expensive furniture, nobody wants to buy it.
- tomgallard 15y ago
  In the UK at least there's a decent market for 2nd hand books via 2nd hand bookshops and charity shops (not on the scale of the used game market though I think). We always try to buy furniture 2nd hand- for the price of a chipboard IKEA wardrobe you can normally get a big, solid wood, Victorian one which is quite likely to last a lot longer!
- hartror 15y ago
  That certainly isn't the norm here in Australia, second hand books, clothing and even furniture are actually cool in certain circles. I myself own more second hand books than new ones.
- dazzawazza 15y ago
  I frequently buy used book from Amazon here in the UK. They are cheaper and it's good to recycle. I have a large collection of electronics books which are often expensive and electronics is only a hobby for me so it's hard to justify the cost. Sometimes you have to buy second hand books, many of the definitive Z80 books are out of print. I started buying second hand books as a child. I wanted books on philosophy and this was the only way I could own works about Descarte, Locke et al without begging my parents for tens of pounds (my income way about £1 a week back then). I've even come to like seeing other peoples notes in the margins. I often wonder "What are they thinking?" when they highlight different sections of the text.
- 15y ago
hythloday 15y ago
I thought the more novel and interesting point the author made is that the presence of used games distorts the market away from easily onsellable games and towards "evil" features like one-time DLC codes and egregious multiplayer modes. AFAIK that doesn't happen in books or furniture (or any other industry that I know of).
soup10 15y ago
There is no wear and tear with digital goods, which makes them a different beast. Even though the author is obviously biased, the article posits some valid points I think. -If gamestop really is strongly pushing used games over new, that's messed up and definitely hurts game developers and enriches gamestop(the useless middleman). It causes titles to have less longevity, which means studios end up caring less about time-less quality and more about releasing sequels. -Piracy and used game sales have had negative effects on the quality of games. This is pretty obvious, many games now require an always on internet connection to play, many games now do DLC and micro-transactions, less single-player games, no LAN in starcraft 2 :(, less AAA pc games. I think the model is fine if it's like what steam games do. You have an account, and purchase a non-transferable non-revokable license to play the game. Of course the lock-in with steam isn't great. Ideally there would be a "global" service that tracks games you've purchased in different digital stores.
- icebraining 15y ago
  There is no wear and tear with digital goods, which makes them a different beast. The games he's talking about are sold in DVDs, and Gamestop can't exactly clone them, so yes, there's wear and tear. Pure digital game sales are usually not resealable anyway.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
barrkel 15y ago
Consumers selling games gives them revenue they can put towards buying new games. I think the economic incentives aren't so negative. There are many games I would not want to sell at any price that is less than for the game sold new (perhaps in the bargain bin, with age); the replay value is just too high. Good games with replay value are exactly the games I want to buy, and they also happen to be the games I wouldn't want to sell. An anti-used game policy would really help (a) linear, low-interactivity experience-based games, and possibly (b) duds. I'm not a fan of either.
rbanffy 15y ago
I think IKEA (and others) solve the problem by making their goods fragile. If your couch falls apart, you won't be able to resell it.
- ryandvm 15y ago
  And if you don't by some games new, they don't work quite as well. I don't see the problem here. If you don't like what a company is doing, don't buy the product.
  - superrad 15y ago
    Most games will function identically to a new copy if both purchased at the same time. Only recently have publishers started introducing schemes where you get a first purchase unlock code/card.

lclarkmichalek 15y ago

Well the main difference between used physical goods and used games is that there is loss of quality between buying a used game and buying a new game, meaning that a game could be sold and traded in many times before being undesirable, which is not true for the vast majority of books.

catchthewheel 15y ago
There is a loss of quality with games---the discs still get wear and tear. One of the reasons I'm wary of buying used games is that the disc is almost always badly scratched.
- smithzvk 15y ago
  Admittedly, I am not an expert with video game issues, but I would say that the biggest loss of quality between a used game and a new one is the amount that graphics and game play technology have progressed in the time it takes for the game to become available used. Perhaps a way that game developers can combat the sale of used games undercutting their current offerings is to make games that are so good that people don't want to part with them so quickly.
- Trezoid 15y ago
  I have several thousand dollars worth of second hand games (for xbox 360), I've never once come across a scratched disc. While I'm sure it could potentially be a problem in high-churn stores like gamestop, most places do have a replacement policy on discs that are scratched at purchase.

ssdsa 15y ago

While we clearly see that there is a huge market for used games (see GameStop), there isn't any comparable market for used books and used furniture, at least not here in Germany. Every avid reader I know likes to read new books and cannot stand to read used books coming from some unknown pre-owner, because you never know how dirty his hands were when he was reading the book. Ever tried to sell used books on eBay? Don't bother, even if you put them up for 1 EUR starting price, you end up having more work to do (communication, check payment, shipping) than you'll earn. And don't get me started on used furniture. While new furniture can be really expensive, when you try to sell your previously expensive furniture, nobody wants to buy it.

tomgallard 15y ago
In the UK at least there's a decent market for 2nd hand books via 2nd hand bookshops and charity shops (not on the scale of the used game market though I think). We always try to buy furniture 2nd hand- for the price of a chipboard IKEA wardrobe you can normally get a big, solid wood, Victorian one which is quite likely to last a lot longer!
hartror 15y ago
That certainly isn't the norm here in Australia, second hand books, clothing and even furniture are actually cool in certain circles. I myself own more second hand books than new ones.
dazzawazza 15y ago
I frequently buy used book from Amazon here in the UK. They are cheaper and it's good to recycle. I have a large collection of electronics books which are often expensive and electronics is only a hobby for me so it's hard to justify the cost. Sometimes you have to buy second hand books, many of the definitive Z80 books are out of print. I started buying second hand books as a child. I wanted books on philosophy and this was the only way I could own works about Descarte, Locke et al without begging my parents for tens of pounds (my income way about £1 a week back then). I've even come to like seeing other peoples notes in the margins. I often wonder "What are they thinking?" when they highlight different sections of the text.
15y ago

hythloday 15y ago

I thought the more novel and interesting point the author made is that the presence of used games distorts the market away from easily onsellable games and towards "evil" features like one-time DLC codes and egregious multiplayer modes. AFAIK that doesn't happen in books or furniture (or any other industry that I know of).

soup10 15y ago

There is no wear and tear with digital goods, which makes them a different beast. Even though the author is obviously biased, the article posits some valid points I think. -If gamestop really is strongly pushing used games over new, that's messed up and definitely hurts game developers and enriches gamestop(the useless middleman). It causes titles to have less longevity, which means studios end up caring less about time-less quality and more about releasing sequels. -Piracy and used game sales have had negative effects on the quality of games. This is pretty obvious, many games now require an always on internet connection to play, many games now do DLC and micro-transactions, less single-player games, no LAN in starcraft 2 :(, less AAA pc games. I think the model is fine if it's like what steam games do. You have an account, and purchase a non-transferable non-revokable license to play the game. Of course the lock-in with steam isn't great. Ideally there would be a "global" service that tracks games you've purchased in different digital stores.

icebraining 15y ago
There is no wear and tear with digital goods, which makes them a different beast. The games he's talking about are sold in DVDs, and Gamestop can't exactly clone them, so yes, there's wear and tear. Pure digital game sales are usually not resealable anyway.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

barrkel 15y ago

Consumers selling games gives them revenue they can put towards buying new games. I think the economic incentives aren't so negative. There are many games I would not want to sell at any price that is less than for the game sold new (perhaps in the bargain bin, with age); the replay value is just too high. Good games with replay value are exactly the games I want to buy, and they also happen to be the games I wouldn't want to sell. An anti-used game policy would really help (a) linear, low-interactivity experience-based games, and possibly (b) duds. I'm not a fan of either.

rbanffy 15y ago

I think IKEA (and others) solve the problem by making their goods fragile. If your couch falls apart, you won't be able to resell it.

ryandvm 15y ago
And if you don't by some games new, they don't work quite as well. I don't see the problem here. If you don't like what a company is doing, don't buy the product.
- superrad 15y ago
  Most games will function identically to a new copy if both purchased at the same time. Only recently have publishers started introducing schemes where you get a first purchase unlock code/card.