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General discussionRegional Priced Games on GOG(2343 posts)(2343 posts)
(2343 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted November 07, 2014
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HypersomniacLive: Eating is overrated. ;-P
On that note, I think that I have to tear myself from the computer and cook dinner. I've been hitting F5 on this thread far too much today.

Thanks to everyone who has posted. I'll keep thinking about the things you've told me.
Posted November 07, 2014
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RocketBearGames: Hi there, I'm the dev for this game.
This seems to be a touchy issue around here. Not something I expected, to be honest.

I'm curious about why you feel so strongly about this. It seems like you feel that regional pricing is unfair. I'm willing to listen.
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Ghorin: Coming from idealistic point of view, the Internet is a place where we like to feel equal, regardless of our location, nationality, gender, or whatever. If you use regional pricing, regardless of the reasons behind it, the net result is that you are charging different people different prices for the very same product in the very same store. I think it's quite natural it might rub some the wrong way :)

Furthermore, technically the Internet is just one whole, and any barriers on it are purely artificial. If you start to divide your customers into better and worse, they will try to cheat on you and avoid the barriers you put to be in the 'better' group. (read: using proxies, or having a Russian friend gift/trade them the game). This can of course can be combated (and is on Steam) by regional locks of different sorts, which, similarly to DRM, tends to negatively affect honest customers, who eg. simply travel around. All around, lots of bad blood back and forth, which can be just avoided.

As for the actual reasons you mentioned:
VAT has already been questioned; GOG as an European company charges VAT one way or another (I think right now they do charge Cyprus VAT for US-based purchases as well?), so regional pricing doesn't change a whole lot. If you really are set back by the VAT surcharge, you could simply increase the base flat price to some sort of weighed average to cover for it - you know, just to be the good guy :)

And Russians paying less because of a lesser mean income? Well, come on. It is said that women have lesser mean income than men. Would it be "fair" for women to pay less for games than men do? The same argument could be made for eg. black people or any low-income group of your choice.
Why are you OK with it for everything else in life but not for games?
Posted November 07, 2014
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realkman666: Why are you OK with it for everything else in life but not for games?
Pardon? Ok, wasn't for me, but made me curious, so do explain why you said that...
Posted November 10, 2014
Another Witcher game becomes regionally-priced.
Posted November 10, 2014
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Grargar: Another Witcher game becomes regionally-priced.
A shame, that, especially as it's the Galaxy flagship title. Glad I got it for free when it was available as such.
Posted November 10, 2014
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IAmSinistar: A shame, that, especially as it's the Galaxy flagship title. Glad I got it for free when it was available as such.
It doesn't seem to be free.

" If you were taking part in the beta-test program for this title, you get a special (non-stackable) 40% off discount, valid until December 27."
Posted November 10, 2014
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Grargar: Another Witcher game becomes regionally-priced.
I wonder what's their excuse this time. Don't think there will be a retail version.
Posted November 10, 2014
More and more regionally priced games come here...
I thought they would really try to keep the amount low, fight for their ideals, but now it appears to me that every publisher just has to say "No, we want regional pricing!" and they say "Well, okay."

Obviously I have no real idea about these certainly very complex negotiations, but it still annoys me a great deal.
Every new regionally priced game here makes GOG a little bit less attractive for me.
Posted November 10, 2014
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Grargar: Another Witcher game becomes regionally-priced.
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IAmSinistar: A shame, that, especially as it's the Galaxy flagship title. Glad I got it for free when it was available as such.
It's not free. You only have the beta version but for full version you have to pay 5.99$ with 40% discount since you were one of the beta testers. Unfortunately CDRED is jumping on the regional pricing wagon as usual.
Post edited November 10, 2014 by Matruchus
Posted November 10, 2014
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Grargar: It doesn't seem to be free.

" If you were taking part in the beta-test program for this title, you get a special (non-stackable) 40% off discount, valid until December 27."
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Matruchus: It's not free. You only have the beta version but for full version you have to pay 5.99$ with 40% discount since you were one of the beta testers. Unfortunately CDRED is jumping on the regional pricing wagon as usual.
Son of a biscuit, you guys are right. I just have the beta version on my shelf. I would have sworn that GOG said that all beta participants would be able to keep the game when it was released. I guess I didn't notice the fine print that we'd be keeping only the beta.

Well, no sale for me.
Post edited November 10, 2014 by IAmSinistar
Posted November 10, 2014
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RocketBearGames: ... I'm curious about why you feel so strongly about this. It seems like you feel that regional pricing is unfair. I'm willing to listen.
My argument is always that it feels like discrimination which I don't like a lot. Geography doesn't automatically mean that someone is rich or poor. It's more like skin color or sex - something you cannot help but it doesn't mean one should be judged by it. I'm happy to pay taxes on top and said so several times but even then it's just so unfair to see that some people in some countries are benefitting from it and others from other countries are paying the price.

For example: When going to a store I don't expect to pay twice for the beer just because I live in the East End and not in the West End of the town. It would seem a bit unfair and arbitrary, wouldn't it.

All in all it just seems to have more disadvantages for the customer than advantages and end in less competition and higher prices on average - something we want to avoid.

For the devs it might sound good at least in the beginning. But in the end maybe not so much if customers loose trust in the publishers/devs. If a game is regionally priced this is a negative attribute for me and makes me less wishing to buy the game.

Also customers are not stupid and if they see that one get buy a game three times cheaper somewhere else, they will want that too and will maybe not buy it anymore.
Post edited November 10, 2014 by Trilarion
Posted November 10, 2014
I'd sure like to know what their excuse for the pricing of this one is... Other than someone high up at CDP having decided at some point that they were the good guys long enough and it's time to bleed any goodwill left for GOG and the Witcher games for all it's worth while they up at corporate become like all other big players.
Posted November 10, 2014
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Cavalary: I'd sure like to know what their excuse for the pricing of this one is... Other than someone high up at CDP having decided at some point that they were the good guys long enough and it's time to bleed any goodwill left for GOG and the Witcher games for all it's worth while they up at corporate become like all other big players.
I'm curious as well. Since this is strictly an online and digital product, it's not like it needs to be regional priced to matched in-store boxed prices in various countries. I can't pull the various prices at the moment because a change in the GOG gamecard format broke my script, but I'd like to know if the regional prices are roughly equivalent to the same base price plus VAT, or if they are among the more egregious pricing differences that we've seen with other titles.
Posted November 10, 2014
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IAmSinistar: *snip*... but I'd like to know if the regional prices are roughly equivalent to the same base price plus VAT, or if they are among the more egregious pricing differences that we've seen with other titles.
I would also like to know the differences in regional pricing, this is certainly quite disconcerting and makes me wonder whether GOG is still committed to strive for flat pricing when even CDPR can't adhere to it with an online only game.
Posted November 10, 2014
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IAmSinistar: *snip*... but I'd like to know if the regional prices are roughly equivalent to the same base price plus VAT, or if they are among the more egregious pricing differences that we've seen with other titles.
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stg83: I would also like to know the differences in regional pricing, this is certainly quite disconcerting and makes me wonder whether GOG is still committed to strive for flat pricing when even CDPR can't adhere to it with an online only game.
Is it online only the gamecard says it has single-player.
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionRegional Priced Games on GOG(2343 posts)(2343 posts)
(2343 posts)