they put weeks of time into making the engine portable and months in graphics that are the top of all appstore games. compare it to the start price of chaos rings
yeah why would they charge less than Chaos Rings unless its just a demo? I think they are either going to surprise and charge 99 cents, or something like 14.99 - 19.99
Where's the fighting? Discussion =/= fighting. Not at all, every multiplatform engine has weaknesses, UE3 is no different. You only need to look at the development blog of the recent Mortal Kombat titles on the engine and the huge reworkings / sacrifices made to see how ill-suited split framerate dependent titles are for the engine. That's bloody Mortal Kombat, not a highly complex animation / framerate system like seen in Monster Hunter. Again, there is a very good reason people are disappointed the next Devil May Cry is on UE3 and contrary to popular belief it has little to do with how Dante looks. As for this, even you must realise how different action games can be. The likes of Monster Hunter, Devil May Cry, Street Fighter are on a whole other spectrum with regards to how the animation / framerate plays into the mechanics, when compared to the likes of God of War, Gears of War, etc. Anway, as for potential prices, assuming the scope of the title is fairly substantial, it should be 9.99 or above and people should want it to be this way. People want the major titles but how else is the market for the App store going to expand into major titles unless large scoped, major titles are bought at a price that justifies the huge investment? If it succeeds it means more developers will be encouraged to invest in similar wares. I know people are fans of 0.99 to 2.99 but it's utterly surprising that some can be so dogged towards these price points, even when they know that at such low prices it won't encourage large investments.
You are possibly the most stupid person I have ever seen. I'll do the maths. If this game is sold for $15 and makes say 1 sale an hour (which would never happen but please follow) but in an alternative universe is sold for 99c and makes 10 sales an hour (thus selling 10x the amount) ...the $15 version would make more by selling 10 times less. I know you may not look at the top grossing chart (heck, you may not even know what grossing means) but if you did you'd know Angry Birds is not always top - games like COD Zombies, which cost $10 are far above the birds. And for the developer profit is their main aim - selling something like 3/4 of what Angry Birds sells a month which is probably realistic but at $10 more would still bring in a larger profit.
yea and it will sell much more cause it will actually be a badass game from EPIC! the prices must go up if we actually want to see real games on appstore
This sort of math might work if you are an indie dev developing games exclusively for the appstore. If you are a major multi-platform/console dev like Epic, you do not think in these terms. Your math is small-time patatoes. Someone thinking about revenues in terms of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Epic is thinking of their revenues in terms of millions, And this sort of "math" is not going to equate to millions of dollars in profit. There is a ceiling for the amount of total money you can gross when you cap you game at such a low price point. Even if it sells well, you are still looking at the low end in terms of your profit margin. Epic is a company that thinks in terms of selling a console game for 59.99 and moving between 2 and 3 million copies. Whatever the total gross profit that Angry Birds has amassed, this number to a company like Epic is a joke. Epic expects to be able to pull that much money out from underneath their couch cushions.
Not with this release. This'll be a pivotal release, to test the market and see whether developing massive million dollar games is worth it for iPhone.
Believe me, I am quite sure when I say that Steve Jobs will allow Apple to ensure this title sells very well. Whether it be through the Appstore promotions or through device ads. There has to be some new precedent from the September keynote through current day. Gamecenter is aimed squarely at the gaming crowd and Apple now touts the companywide foray into gaming, firing warning shots at old guard leaders Nintendo and Sony. Apple had courted Epic and vice versa. There is a lot riding on this release, so you can bet your bottom dollar Apple sure is looking at this title as their gaming crown jewel. An exclusive showpiece unseen on handhelds and more so rivaling the likes of exclusives on the home consoles. Therefore, Apple will ensure this title does not go unnoticed and will use it as a pivotal strategic piece of the gaming pie, also as the first of many reasons why people should game on idevices vs. The competition.
Yeah but the problem is the buyers. I'd gladly pay $30 for this but most of my friends in school say that $5 is too much for COD: Zombies, even though it comes with all 4 maps for that price now. What makes you think they will buy this?
I agree, because this game HAS to be successful to ensure the future of support from devs like Epic on the iPhone.
Do these people work? Assuming not, since you mentioned school. Do they come from a family with a disposeable income? Unknown. Here are the basic AppStore dynamics as I see them and this concerns your point. People with a bankcard or a job, like myself have the readily Available funds to splurge on a top tier title if we see that the price, graphics and gameplay is justified. The problem with your friends assumed situations, I would hypothesize are iTunes cards. Seeing that iTunes cards come in denominations of set amounts, most people probably purchase the 15-25 dollar cards, or receive those as gifts. I am guessing that when having a cap on spending, people often try to stretch the available balance and are far more discretionary in their purchases. Therefore people would more often than not see a game and say it is overpriced, based on the implied iTunes cards limits. The itunes cards, while wonderful, I feel devalues the apps in the store. If you have a fifteen dollar limit lets say, and a game costs five dollars, you are either going to scrutinize the app more or hold out for a sale, because your ceiling is so low. Get what I am saying? I would also like to know if your friends own either a ds, psp or a gaming console? If so, why do they justify a ds or psp price or even own a game which retailed for 30 dollars? Yet balk at five dollars on the AppStore? I would bet that the difference is lack of their own funds and the beloved iTunes cards.
Whilst what you say is true, its also misleading as profit is relative to the investment you make. Gears of War 2 reportedly had a budget of $12m. That budget will probably be 10x (or more) that of Infinity Blade. As such, it doesn't need to sell as many copies or make as much revenue to be very profitable. If you look at it in terms of profit margin I reckon you'd find that percentage is quite similar.
If not, it's game over outside the I die niche scene. Apple is putting sly it's fruits into one basket kinda like swear did back in the day with final fantasy.
