Ubisoft To Confront Used Game Sales

jjohan355851d ago

I will support it if they offer free DLC, maps, etc for those who buy their games new because they're finally offering a good incentive to buy their games new (instead of never offering a single incentive while whining about feeding their children).

I will NOT support it if they TAKE AWAY features for buyers of used games, ie removing ONLINE play (I'm looking at you EA).

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winlonghorn5851d ago

They just don't get it in the industry apparently. Punishing the paying customer will NOT stop pirating! Someday they will have to learn that!

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winlonghorn5851d ago

Ubisoft isn't worth a damn anymore! They don't care about the customer, so I will steer clear of their titles until they decide to care! :)

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FanboysWillHateMe5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

Live...I have to pay another $10 for every game that I want to play online? Gamefly is my primary source for playing videogames, so this is definitely a major concern for me. As much as I love Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon, if they're really gonna follow through with this, I'll stick to single-player campaigns, thank you very much. That, Uncharted 2's multiplayer, and Final Fantasy XIV. Not our fault you guys don't put out enough games that warrant a full $65 purchase.

DJexs5851d ago

You do not like DRM?

I feel like we are getting to that point with ubisoft. That russian reversal point. You do not play ubisoft games. Ubisoft games play you.

Welcome to the DRM from hell

t-dizzle5851d ago

I'm sorry but that game is amazing and I am not going to gripe over things like this to the point that I am going to avoid a blockbuster title like that.

I do think that it is a silly practice (how many used books do Ubisoft execs have on their bookshelves), but still it is one thing to say in the heat of the moment "I'm going to pass on their games", and then actually doing it when the game comes out with a 9 out of 10 review average. Or did you mean you were going to skip on the next 20 iterations of Raving Rabbids, because if so than I joined your boycot years ago...

Proxy5851d ago

I have been skipping their games. I skipped AC2. I decided to look into RUSE, so I loaded up the steam page and scrolled down to the developer and DRM information first, saw Ubisoft names, hit the back button, never have looked at the game again. I was interested in Far Cry 2 as well, but skipped it. I'll always remember what was said in a Far Cry complaint thread, "Ubisoft, I'll keep my money, you keep your game, and we'll see who comes out the loser."

I'm not so desperate for entertainment that I can't find something else to do for the 30 hours I would have spent on one of their games.

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princejb1345851d ago

it may have been amazing to you
but i used to owned both titles
and it gets real boring quikly
i was expecting a big differnece in ac since they said no more repetitive missions but still ended up dissapointed

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+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 5851d ago

DarkSpawnClone5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

wtf,why do they need to make money on used games, imo they already got there money off the first guy who bought it.we need to stop this madness!!if there going to make money off used games can the lower the price on new games?!?! to like 40$, i pay about 60$ 70$ as it is right now

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SilverSlug5851d ago

for buying a game, the guy that buys used will get the complete game, minus the FREE DLC that was yours.

I see no issues here.

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hazelamy5851d ago

so long as they don't follow ea's example and take game modes away from preowned buyers then i agree.
rewarding new buyers is one thing, but punishing preowned buyers is going too far, if they take the next step like ea have then it will be a big issue.

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Enate5851d ago

They are ripping maps and other fun things out of the game before launch and offering them as incentives. Lets get real here we know that's what they are going to do. Its the same thing they are doing now with day 1 DLC and pre order bonuses.

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winlonghorn5851d ago

Greed! If they can make even a penny more on games, they are going to do so. That includes taking advantage of customers.

BYE5851d ago

If the "additional content" will be equal to lackluster DLC like Battle of Forli, no thanks I buy Ubisoft games used.

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fan_of_gaming5851d ago

I'd expect most every publisher/developer, certainly the large ones, to start implementing a program either the same as or similar to "project 10 dollar"

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webeblazing5851d ago

im surprise yall care it been happenin the whole gen the been doing thing like this dlc, paying for online, buying things that was on the disc, drm, now this gamers these days love getting raped and say my console better then yours without looking at the picture

MajestieBeast5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

They should confront that horrible DRM system. They go bitch about used game sales but when they cut corners just so they can cash in on DlC *battle of forli* the gamer should just take that crap. I only own 2 ubisoft games this gen rainbow six vegas and oblivion and i dont think i will expand that, maybe buy AC2 but used just to piss them off.

Eiffel5851d ago

I wouldn't count Oblivion as a Ubisoft game, it was just co published with Bethesda for Europe release.

MajestieBeast5851d ago

Well that makes it one game then thanks for clearing that up^^

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electricshadow5851d ago

Add this with how bad with their DRM sucks, man, this will be LOADS of fun.

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kindi_boy5851d ago

I bought Convection on the PC from Steam, it had so much bugs that I couldn't play the game. Guess what was the bug? Wrong key mappings on the xbox 360 controller I hit B the game thinks am hitting A... How could they release a game with a bug like that.

Now I reached a conclusion that says never buy any Ubisoft game, always pirate them and see if you finish the game with no problems then buy it.

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CzarPickles5851d ago

Here's the problem with this, most people try out used games because they arent sure if they want the game or not. If they like the game they will most likely buy the next one, if not then make better games. I manage a gamestop and have over 30 used copies of assassins creed 2. people rarely buy it used because they simply dont want it. EA got pissed because they found that more used copies of dead space were sold then new..guess what dumbass, now everyone wants dead space 2. People are now going to buy it because they liked the first one. If you have a bunch of consumers that buy your game new and dont like it, do you really think they will ever buy another game from you again. no, they wont. one of the reasons bad company 2 sold so well, in addition to MW2 sucking, was because they liked the first one and the beta.

so what did we learn from all this you retarded publishes.

- DONT MILK STUFF (ACTIVISION WITH YOUR 3 COD GAMES IN 2 YEARS AND UBI WITH YOUR SEQUEL TO THE SEQUEL ASSASSINS CREED)
- DONT PUNISH PEOPLE FOR BUYING USED. ITS THEIR DECISION. BUYING USED GIVES ME THE ABILITY TO TRY A GAME OUT. WE CANT BUY EVERY NEW RELEASE SO WHEN WE MISS ONE AND GO BACK, WE KNOW TO BUY THE SEQUEL
- MAKE GAMES THAT DESERVE DAY ONE BUYS, DONT LEAVE DOUBT IN THE CONSUMERS MIND. (BETA THE SHIT OUT OF IT, DONT BE STUPID LIKE ACTIVISION WITH MW2. GIVE US DEMOS, IF WE DONT LIKE THEN TOO BAD)

AT THE END OF THE DAY WE WILL FIND A WAY TO SCREW YOU BACK. JUST REMEMBER WHO GIVES YOU THE MONEY.

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thelifatree5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

Um that's a bad example. As MW2, sold more than anything else by ubisoft or activision.

As well as Assasins Creed 2 selling 9 million.

But I don't agree with them taking away used sales. Because used sales, allows the people that buy new games to have more money to buy other new games. Now that's why you have to make good games.

GamerPS3605851d ago

pretty soon they will have DRM like PC that you can only use 1 system (with few exception) with 1 copy of game.

webeblazing5851d ago

told ya they was gonna be next

moodymofo5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

yea i have 2 teenage kids who have their own acounts in adition to mine ,i dont feel like i should buy 3 copies of a game or pay an extra 20 bucks for them to use the extra content, and i have bought so many map packs and other dlc that im done with that probably equals a couple of hundred bucks,what am i suposed to do with that? and you want me to care that YOURE loosin money, well so am i so dont expect for me to show concern for your little problem.and if it wasnt for me bein able to trade my games in i couldnt buy so many new games so it kinda balenes out

hesido5851d ago

This will get real silly if they don't adhere to the usual psn rules of DLC. EA's current "lock to EA id" is not good at all. We should enter a code and download things right from PSN, and PSN restrictions should apply, all people who use the PS3 should be able to use that content.

vhero5851d ago

The irony of the used market.. If devs dropped game prices instead of increased (Activision) they would sell more games new rather than used and this wouldn't be a problem. Games go up with every generation and used games sales rise with every generation its not exactly great Maths to put together why is it?? Most gamers simply cannot afford to pay full retail price of new games or maybe they can buy the odd 1 game every few months the problem is games are that short these days they don't last long enough to get you onto your next purchase so you need something to fill the gap.

People say games need to be that expensive thanks to development costs but if they dropped prices they would sell more so they would still make just as much profit in theory and less games would be sold used.

Why you think the casual market is booming right now?? $7 a game???

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aaron58295851d ago

they should play the sales quantity game.

dizzleK5851d ago

amen. if they dropped prices to $30 or $40 i could buy 3 or 4 new titles for the price of 2.

unfortunately gamers themselves bear alot of the blame for development costs by poo-pooing anything that doesn't have bleeding edge graphics.

DJKGBYF5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

Yeah well I stopped buying stuff from Ubi along time ago. I'm not paying $60 for a PC game, and I'm not going to play a single player game that requires a constant internet connection. Anyone with half a brain would realise that by buying their products you are just telling them it's alright to continue their practices, but then again when their stuff doesn't sell they just blame it on pirates and increase the DRM on their software. Have fun everyone when next gen all console games cost $70 and all PC games cost $60.

xDaRkModEx5851d ago

What am I suppose to do if I don't like the game? Keep it and let it collect dust or sell it and buy a better game cheaper. Hmmmmmmmm what to do.....

Theo11305851d ago

I encourage companies to do this, as long as they reward the customers. It's not like they are taking anything away, as long as you buy the copy new or pay up for being cheap it's alright

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DJKGBYF5851d ago

Oh okay, I guess it's not okay to buy a used car, a home from anybody besides a home builder, and anything else that has been used.

Skynetone5851d ago

A} none of your friends have "never" bought a used game, and if they did your hanging around with scum

B} Your some sort of rich kid how things every one has money to spend on games

funny think is my cousins are millionaires and when there kid demanded a new car for his 18 birthday, they said "NO" so he had to go out and get s++ty job like everyone else and could only afford a second hand piece of crap car after two years of work, Do you thing hes scum for buying a second hand car

jagstatboy5851d ago

they are taking something away. Read what EA is doing starting next month with Tiger Woods. If you want to play online and bought it used, you have to pay an extra $10. They are taking away the ability to play online with their sports games.

Theo11305851d ago

How is that taking something away if you buy the copy new, it's not about rewarding the used buyer, it's about not punishing the valid customer. Try buying PC games where you can't trade them it, or buy anything but new. It's really not that bad, it's just like pirates trying to justify stealing pc games.

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DelbertGrady5851d ago

Give me one good reason as to why I should fork out $60 dollars on an average game with no online like Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands instead of getting it used?

Funny thing though, I rarely buy used games cause most titles that aren't big hits can usually be found for half the price 4 months after their release.

Corrwin5851d ago

Why would you buy it used for a couple of dollars cheaper?

Most games (depending on the publisher and popularity) drop to half price after couple of months.

What's so wrong about waiting for a non-multiplayer game to drop to a reasonable price, and buy it new?

Skynetone5851d ago

i think it will effect sales, you pop to the shops to pick up a bargain are two, if you know theres no bargains to pick up, you wont make the trip and potential sales will drop

A lot of games sell by word of mouth, and i think companies have forgotten that, i woundnt have known about cod if my friend didnt pick it up cheap, Which means i woundnt own mw1 or mw2

champ215851d ago

Game rentals will get screwed with this.

Ubisoft 1st screwed over PC gamers increased prices and implemented a bad DRM.

Unless all of us dont stand together and dont boycott their games, every platform will get screwed. Too bad these msgs wont get to most of the gamers around.

AssassinHD5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

I would hazard a guess that a person who is renting a game does not really have a vested interest in DLC for the game anyway.

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Corrwin5851d ago

Confront their half-assed attitude to games?

Sidewinder-5851d ago

Used to like Ubisoft, but no, now theyre just another Corporation, with corporate intrests.
Their wouldn't be pirates (IMO) if their games were good, VERY HIGH QUALITY, that were made to LAST. This is the problem with major modern game companies. They rarely make a full game. They make half a game, with about 5 sequals in mind down the line.
When you look at a game like Deus Ex, that game just had heart and soul put into it making a work of god-given art. Why? cus they were not thinking about , sequals, DRM, second hand, or any of that shit! (and yeah when they tried a sequal u get Invisible War)

It's all excuses, don't listen to them. Don't play the 'proverbial' corporate game. Don't buy their titles till it get's to the price YOU want to pay, cus that's YOUR right! Cus in the end it'll still be the same pile of mediocre crap. Least this way, you will be able to buy the whole damn series of mediocre titles (that is including its sequals) for maybe the price of two of them - for the cost of if they were BRAND FUCKIN' NEW.

Oh but no... EA have stollen my thunder by saying you now can't get the full game if u buy it pre-owned. DUH!!! "You need to buy an online pass dude!" Shit..you really cant spell 'Great' without EA.

Bullshit.

cpuchess5851d ago

Right, nobody would steal cars if their quality was good...

jagstatboy5851d ago

Next up, Honda to announce new technology that will allow them to disconnect the a/c and windshield wipers in a car if you buy it used.

AssassinHD5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

That is not really the same thing at all. Under this system nothing is being taken away from used game purchasers. New game purchasers are just getting something extra.

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jagstatboy5851d ago

nothing is being taken away? you mean like the ability to play EA sports game online?

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Deios5851d ago

The Rise and Fall of EA and UbiSoft.

AssassinHD5851d ago

Personally I think offering free DLC for new buyers is a brilliant strategy. People who buy the game new get something for free, and people who buy used games to save money still get the core game. They just get a little less content, but still have the option to obtain the content.

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Sidewinder-5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

Not when they throw it in your face for people who don't buy the game 'new'.
This is a really branching issue to me in fact. It's not just the pre-owned game crack-down. It's DLC, Pre-order bonuses, Limited Edition ONLY content. The buyer of the original game (non preorder, non limited edition) will have to pay extra to get the content. That should be ok in theory right? Limited Editions cost more, so you get more.
YES it should, BUT...the companies are abusing this method terribly. If you get the original game, they make you feel that you are missing out. And you feel it in your gut that your missing out on 'something' be it shit or not. And more often than not, it should have been there to begin with.

Dragon Age - in-game ads
Assassins Creed 2, intentionally holding back chapters for DLC ( i did not buy)
Splinter Cell Conviction - Blatant early release that they have to say "we'll give u some DLC every week" (Didnt buy cus UBI pissed me off with what they did with it)

Limited editions used to just be a fancy box, the game and a funky T-shirt and you could be happy with that as a collectors Item. Weras now, sections of game are ransomed off.
Truth in short, it's a mess. I'll put it into perspective. (I've used this example a lot cus many could relate to it)

Take yourself back to the 90's only this time around, DLC etc is around in the shape and form we have it now. (I know PS1's had no internet but suspend your disbelief)
Crash Bandicoot 3 on the PS1 has just come out but here's the deal. Two coppies to chose from:

1)Crash Bandicoot 3
2)Crash Bandicoot 3 Warped Edition

You won't get the bazooka unless u get the Warped edition or pay to download it. RIDICULOUS! Is it farfetched? Hell no, cus it's happening with games today here and now.

NicSage5851d ago

EA has done it 100% right with BC2,they added the VIP code system to combat used game sales & rentals. Nothing has been taken away except the fact that you can not play some maps.

Ubisoft on the other hand has done wrong, with removing chapters from the game and releasing them as DLC? That is just aweful, I am so glad I did not purchase AC2. Something has been taken away with this style of DLC.

These two companies are great examples of what to do and what not to do with DLC & VIP(online) codes. I have no problem with a company saying buy our products new or you will not be able to play multiplayer online.

The soul reason for all this code stuff is money, game companies are loosing money big time from rentals and gamestop, I call out gamestop because we all know they are the biggest company for used sales.

crematory5851d ago

sony charge 10 euro for second hand modnation racer (psp)to go online, CHECK EUROPE STORE

t-dizzle5851d ago (Edited 5851d ago )

Ala Saboteur?

JumpNPlayBon5851d ago

Chief Financial Officer Alain Martinez had this to say on the matter: "We are looking very carefully at what is being done by EA regarding what we call the '10 dollar solution,' and we will probably follow that line at sometime in the future."

And this is what I have been ranting about. Any gamer that supports this has got to be out of their mind. To be clear, I have NO problem with companies offering free or exclusive content to new buyers, they SHOULD be rewarded for spending $60 bucks on a game that's only worth $45 bucks at most.

However, I take issue with companies that PUNISH the used consumer by withholding what amounts to half of the content you legally paid for. I am so tired of reading post with the same naive comment " I buy new so blah blah blah". Eventually they will find a way to rape you too. Period.