dutchman55555
Posts: 139
Joined: 4/21/2013 Status: offline
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ORIGINAL: thewood1 Achtung Panzer is as complex, but they completely screwed up distribution and patching. For a while you could get it for $5. It has actually stabilized where all the DLC comes to about $110. If you buy it at full price. I acquired the whole thing (minus the DLC released in the last couple of days) at a Christmas sale for (I kid you not) $10. What are the chances Matrix will put Command on sale for $10 in the next few years, or ever? quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 Again, not as broad as Command, more on the scale of CMBN. Sales are less frequent now that they have only a single distributor. There's that single distributor thing again. I agree that it's terrible for sales, so why has Matrix adopted it? (And the AP series has at least two distributors, and their own site.) quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 The ATF series. There have been a few sales and bundles, but all up running over $100. They have done a little discounting, but not much on a 10 year old product. Strategic Command 2 with all the addons and sequels is probably running about $80 now. They were discounted recently when some of the addons came out and there is a lot of bundling also. But note they have now come over to Matrix. I have to assume that is one of the reasons why. I have no knowledge of these, so I'll take your word for it. I do note that ATF is Shrapnel Games, and from the look of their site the company is all but dead (most recent forum posts are several years old), and there's the All American: The 82nd Airborne vapourware fiasco, so I'd hardly consider it a viable or credible model for a business, especially when their discounts are infrequent (although there's one wrapping up right now). quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 ARMA 2 took 2 years to discount. I got ARMA 2 and all the expansions for $75. That was sold through multiple channels, but until Steam, it held its price. They went to Steam after a couple years. But even after Steam, it was not too cheap to get everything. If you want to wait a few years, that is the model to follow. It's new version is what drove it pricing. But the point is that Arma did discount, and not after 3 or 4 years. And while they had incredible luck with that zombie mod catching on, if they hadn't had wide distribution and a decent price point they would never have lifted off the ground. quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 Steel Beasts - $115, now down from the original $125. It has been around that price since I can remember, plus they charge $20-$30 for upgrade. Just before 3.0 came out they lowered the entry price to $80, but 3.0 upgrade was $40. Now the overall price is back to $115. Steel Beasts is less hobbyist, and more cheap alternative training for 3rd World nations. Certainly not massive sales. Poor example. quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 I think Histwar Grognards is still running over $70 for download only. A lot more for boxed. They are hardly a frequent or noticeable contributor. Not exactly a business success, or likely to breathe life into the hobby. Beautiful looking games, though. quote:
ORIGINAL: thewood1 I don't count Wargame:European Escalation and Total War. These are low fidelity mass market games, not what I define as wargames. They are more RTS with a war flavor. Agreed. They are, however, immensely successful, frequently on sale, and show no signs of lagging sales. One month of the sales of just one of them would surely add up to several years of Matrix sales. The Wargame and TW RTS series are not the future of the hobby, at least not if we wish the hobby to remain history focused (I know I do). But the fear that many in the community have is...is Matrix the future? Are massively uncompetitive prices the way to attract new blood, or keep current blood involved? Again, I see lots of posts here from customers wishing the developers luck, but it's too rich for their blood. They. Are. Not. Buying. Solely due to price. I'm of the same opinion. How does this phenomena foster the hobby?
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