Discount promotions are a great thing for game collectors. Just not when you already own the game. A discount promotion for Shadow of the Tomb Raider drives players on Steam to the barricades.
Many players do not jump in right at the release of a major game. Those who do not have the necessary money or simply want to skip the turbulent launch phase with possible bugs buy a game months later when the price has dropped.
For this, special Steam sale events are a good option.
But while one side of the players rejoices that a game is available at a lower price just weeks after launch, another part of the gaming community feels cheated.
After all, they bought the game shortly before at full price or even pre-ordered it. This “trust advance” in the developers is trampled by an early price reduction.
How a discount promotion ruins reviews
The currently most prominent example is Shadow of the Tomb Raider. The game was released on September 14, 2018, a clear full-price title with plenty of “special editions”. The so-called “Croft Version” even cost around €110, included the season pass and cosmetic extras.
Just a month after release, there is already a discount promotion on Steam, where the “Croft Version” was reduced in price by 47%, costing less than €60.
The fans’ response came promptly: Shadow of the Tomb Raider was inundated with negative reviews on Steam starting October 16, the beginning of the discount promotion. The rating dropped from “Positive” to “Mixed” and only 66% of the reviews are positive.
Other developers have also struggled with this decision. For example, Bungie made the purchase of two DLCs unnecessary shortly after many players had bought them in preparation for the first expansion “Forsaken”.
Blizzard implements a similar policy with World of Warcraft. Just before the launch of a new expansion, the old expansion becomes part of the base game. Those who buy right before this time feel cheated out of their money.
This raises the question: When is it actually permissible for games to go on sale?
Developers and publishers are also caught in a dilemma here. On one hand, they do not want to alienate loyal players who may have pre-ordered, on the other hand, game sales continue to decline over time and games become less interesting. Those who entice earlier with a discount promotion find more customers as long as the game is still “hot” and in the media.
There probably isn’t a perfect timing for this. It seems impossible to satisfy all fans. But at least in the case of Tomb Raider, it can be said: 4 weeks is definitely too early.
When do you think a game should first be reduced in price? What is the golden mean to not alienate players who may even have pre-ordered?
