• Cashing in on the Western Audience

    by
    Jiro
    Published on 10-01-2012 07:25 AM
    2 Comments Comments
    Last month we brought you some info on an iOS rhythm game from Square Enix and iNiS - the guys behind Elite Beat Agents. Demon's Score looks like another enjoyable rhythm based game, perhaps an attempt to revive the genre. But Square Enix also seems to be using it to screw over its Western fanbase.


    We're shocked and disappointed too, Cloud.

    While the initial $6.99 price tag for Demon's Score looks relatively affordable -- especially compared to the ~$19.99 price in Japan -- it is actually a trap. Cue Admiral Ackbar. The actual version released to western audiences is heavily scaled back, with a number of DLCs required to actually unlock the full game. Japanese customers are saved the hassle in their one-time fee, but western gamers are going to be forced to buy $2.99 and $3.99 DLCs if they want the same experience, totally somewhere around $40 for the same package.

    It isn't hard to think that different cultures might react differently to various sales methods. Japanese customers might be more willing to spend $19.99 on an iOS game, or are hostile towards DLC. Western audiences, on the other hand, might prefer to get a game for cheap and only buy DLC if they're enjoying it. But at the very least Square Enix should try to balance the pricing so that we're not paying twice as much as the home-grown fans.

    Source: The Escapist
    This article was originally published in forum thread: Cashing in on the Western Audience started by Jiro View original post
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    Comments 2 Comments
    1. Loony BoB's Avatar
      Loony BoB - 10-01-2012, 05:01 PM
      What's the standard cost of a game in Japan and the equivalent in America? I do wonder how tax etc. contributes to all of this. I know when I buy things online they adjust the tax rate depending on where I am / what currency I use.

      EDIT: I also wonder if they are considering the low audience there might be in America for something like this compared to Japan. I'm not 100% certain, but I think it's normal for companies to sell things at a low price in areas where they expect something to fly out the door, while in places where they expect sales to be fewer they end up putting a premium on them. Not sure why this happens as I'm no economics major, but yeah.

      EDIT: Not defending anyone, merely playing Devil's Advocate and wondering why this might happen, rather than jumping to simple conclusions of "Well it costs more, it must be SE's fault."
    1. Raistlin's Avatar
      Raistlin - 10-01-2012, 11:37 PM
      Maybe my perspective is a bit skewed because I don't play a lot of non-free games on my phone, but $40 for a full version of the game seems insane. I agree that that's a bit of a rip off, but I'm not sure Squeenix is really fleecing US customers. SE probably had to lower to basic price for the US in order to be able to sell the game at all here. And how many people would actually pay the full $40? Or would most just pay the basic price and then buy a couple of DLCs is they like it enough?

      That's not to defend the pricing disparity, which is still high. It'd be nice if they offered a full package for a similar price, to give buyers that option.

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