Sunday, April 1, 2012

Value of Entertainment





How much a game is worth? And how should we measure this value? From time to time I see many people complaining about paying for a game and that the game is short in length. They put a lot of value on how long  the game can keep them busy, like the only objective of playing them is to fill empty spaces in their schedules.

So, when a game like Journey comes out and last just something like 2 or 3 hours, many feel cheated, that the value of the game is overpriced based in length alone. A movie ticket is between $10 and $15 and will keep you busy by the same stretch of time. So, why is OK to pay $15 for a two hour movie that you cannot see as many times you want while the same value for a game, that you can keep and play as many times you wish, is not OK?

If Journey was a two hour $60 retail game, than maybe I would accept the logic, but it is not. And most games will keep you busy for 8 hours or more.  But many of those hours are filled with walking from point A to B, back tracking, repetitive side-quests and attempting to receive that trophy/achievement. It is not good, fun, play time. It is the developers stretching the game to fill an arbitrary length to justify the price tag.

I think game prices need to be justified by quality. In my eyes, a 4 hours game who is incredible to play is better than a 100 hours game who is boring and mindless.

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