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The price hike for next-gen games in australia is absolutely insane. Price hikes of up to $50.

SuperBanana

SuperBanana

Member
Oct 28, 2017
3,745
Edit: $129 Aud = $92 usd.

I might be LTTP for this but this shocked me.

Prices vary in Australia more than the US but generally, a new game these days will launch at between $69 and $79.

As seen here:
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So how about next-gen? People on Era have been upset by the $10 price hike in the US. I expected it to be the same in Australia....nope!

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This is ridiculous. Some games are a bit less at $99 but it seems all the major releases are in the upper range. A $50 price hike for next-gen is some of the worst price hike bullshit I've ever come across. Makes me not want to even buy a next-gen console for a while longer.
 
everybody_lies

everybody_lies

Member
Nov 19, 2017
196
It's a big jump for sure. I think this is partially a launch thing though, if you go back to PS4/XO launch you wouldn't find $79 new releases...at least I think that was the case
 
Irrotational

Irrotational

Prophet of Truth
Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,173
Is that across all stores etc? I thought miles morales was an cadd on" game so more like a 30 or 40 us bucks as opposed to the full fat 60 bucks*

Those look like crazy prices!

*Using current gen pricing standards.
 
Spark

Spark

Member
Dec 6, 2017
2,542
Meanwhile Godfall is $89 on PC.

Console gonna remain exclusive machines until this is is sorted.
 
OP
OP
SuperBanana

SuperBanana

Member
Oct 28, 2017
3,745
remz said:
PC gaming boutta take off in aus
Click to expand...
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Seriously. I wanted a PS5 soon but I think I'll hold off for a while and stick to PC until something big comes out.


Irrotational said:
Is that across all stores etc? I thought miles morales was an cadd on" game so more like a 30 or 40 us bucks as opposed to the full fat 60 bucks*

Those look like crazy prices!

*Using current gen pricing standards.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

JB is normally the cheaper of the retail stores...
 
lvl 99 Pixel

lvl 99 Pixel

Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,739
Yep, same deal in NZ. We have always had to pay more, but this is just stupid.
Demons Souls is 140NZD rrp, but i can get it for 130 which is still stupid.
 
TheForgotten

TheForgotten

Member
Oct 27, 2017
566
Its not a $50 price hike. Its a $25 hike. Its just Amazon or JB never sold at rrp which has been at $99 since the ps3 gen. Prices will drop over time. When the ps4 launched prices went up to rrp again and took a year or so to drop back down
 
ramyeon

ramyeon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,535
It's terrible. I really hope things change post launch. I managed to cop the standard version of Miles Morales for $79 on Amazon AU but that's since gone up to $89 on their site as well. And that's a game that would've been $59 or so last gen.
 
jobrro

jobrro

The Fallen
Nov 19, 2017
1,626
Yeah wonder if they will last.

I'm pretty sure in early X360 gen games RRP was around $120.

I don't think I will pay those full AU prices for any game. If I want digital I will buy on my US account or just wait for a sale.
 
Grug

Grug

Member
Oct 26, 2017
4,645
Happy to pay 129 for Miles Morales Ultimate as it is basically one and a half games (and I haven't played the original), but yeah, that's rough on the rest.

All non-exclusive games will be played on my PC rather than my PS5.
 
RedSonja

RedSonja

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,131
This is silly and it's saying pre-order price and if it drops before release day. It should do. I'd like to think that not many people will pay these prices.
 
NekoNeko

NekoNeko

Coward
Oct 26, 2017
18,453
wow games were extremely cheap last gen for you then. the price hike is about the same as we* pay for games next gen.

* not american
 

callamp

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,481
Amazon is cheaper than that. Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty are under $80. Long-term Amazon, Big W and JB will all track similarly.

Also one of your examples is an ultimate edition so that's a bit misleading.
 
NekoNeko

NekoNeko

Coward
Oct 26, 2017
18,453
Irrotational said:
Is that across all stores etc? I thought miles morales was an cadd on" game so more like a 30 or 40 us bucks as opposed to the full fat 60 bucks*

Those look like crazy prices!

*Using current gen pricing standards.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

the miles morales version in the OP is the one that comes with the first Spiderman. it's full price whatever that means in your country ($70 in the US).
 
Aarglefarg

Aarglefarg

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,068
The RRP for PS4 Cyberpunk Day One Edition is $109.95 but there you see it going for $79. That is why the price increase looks so significant: because we have competition on prices, we haven't been paying the full price for years.

But, there will likely continue to be competition on price and that will bring these prices down too.

All through the PS2 generation, PS2 games were $109 and $119, and at the very start of the PS3 generation they were $130.
 
matrix-cat

matrix-cat

Member
Oct 27, 2017
10,284
The PS5 launch lineup is particularly insane. Assassin's Creed Valhalla is $69 for the PS4 version with a free upgrade ($79 for the native PS5 version), while Demon's Souls is $125; two AAA games coming out on the same day for the same system.

I'm hoping that prices will stabilize after launch when consoles are more plentiful. Amazon and Big W are already doing the $125 RRP games for $109. The days of $69 games on day one might be over but I can't imagine the $100+ prices lasting all generation.
 
Catalyst

Catalyst

Member
Oct 6, 2020
1,440
callamp said:
Amazon is cheaper than that. Assassin's Creed and Call of Duty are under $80. Long-term Amazon, Big W and JB will all track similarly.

Also one of your examples is an ultimate edition so that's a bit misleading.
Click to expand...
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Miles Morales Ultimate Edition is $70 in America. It's the ultimate edition of a "budget" game, that evens out to full price.
 
Dr. Doom

Dr. Doom

Banned
Oct 29, 2017
1,509
I just can't believe they're charging ÂŁ70 for games.

70 fucking pounds.

As far as I'm concerned, games should be capped at 50 GBP and not a penny more.
 
ninnanuam

ninnanuam

Member
Nov 24, 2017
1,956
At the start of 360 gen RRP was $120 essentially double the $60 USD. Which if you consider where the dollar was in 2006 is reasonable. (Especially when our GST is included in that price).

Most places reduced prices as the AUD increased and places like JB started selling big games at a discount at release. However it was still common to see some stores sticking to 100+ AUD at release.

Now we have the double whammy of the AUD losing quite a bit of value in recently and an increase to prices.

I'm not happy about it and I'm hopeful that places like JB continue to cut prices on day one for big titles but I did expect this.
 

callamp

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,481
Catalyst said:
Miles Morales Ultimate Edition is $70 in America. It's the ultimate edition of a "budget" game, that evens out to full price.
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I purchased Miles Morales Ultimate Edition for $109 or ~US$78.

If the US price is $70 before tax then it will be roughly the same after tax. So physical media isn't meaningfully different.

Now digital purchases that is an entirely different thing and every Aussie should be complaining about that.
 
Lucifonz

Lucifonz

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,133
United Kingdom
Jonneh said:
It's also around $90 us in the UK with our bump to ÂŁ70
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I legit feel this is an under-discussed issue... But maybe I'm in the minority. The thought of forking out almost ÂŁ450 for the box then having to add an additional 210 for 3 games is just insane to me. A digital console just seems completely unappealing with those prices. It also makes Game Pass even more appreciated that's for sure.
 
Bishop89

Bishop89

What Are Ya' Selling?
Member
Oct 25, 2017
34,709
Melbourne, Australia
callamp said:
I purchased Miles Morales Ultimate Edition for $109 or ~US$78.

If the US price is $70 before tax then it will be roughly the same after tax. So physical media isn't meaningfully different.

Now digital purchases that is an entirely different thing and every Aussie should be complaining about that.
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Yeh digital prices have been shit forever and I'm very disappointed that they are staying the same still...
 
Rust

Rust

Member
Jan 24, 2018
1,229
Okay, lots to unpack here.

Firstly, direct currency conversion doesn't work. We have 10% GST baked into the price, whereas the US has it added ONTO the price depending on which state they're in. Mathed correctly, it's not all that different surprisingly.

Second, you're comparing sale prices to RRP. Cyberpunk is $109 RRP.

Aussie retailers typically sell new release games at a deep discount on day-1 as loss leaders. A lot of new release games are sold either close to or BELOW the cost-price to entice people into the store and buy other product. When you see Big W or Harvey Norman selling a copy of FIFA or Call of Duty for $68 day one, they're typically losing money each sale and recouping it with other transactions. That's why KMart dropped out of selling games (and Target nearly has as well); the profit margins are way too thin. It's why EB has gone heavy in the merchandise route, and JB typically has their games and DVDs at the back of their stores (so you can see the OTHER stuff on sale before you get to it). You've even seen game sections in supermarkets shrink because they could put up a rack of clothes and make more money than a shelf of games.

I wouldn't be surprised if a few retailers are testing the waters on PS5/XSX game prices and see if they can make them closer to RRP. The competition in Australia has gotten way too bottom-barrel, and there's no profit in it at all to make it worthwhile.
 
leng jai

leng jai

Member
Nov 2, 2017
15,119
OP is comparing RRP of the the new $70 price tag to the street price of the old $60 one so it looks a little worse. Not sure how $70 goes all the way to 125 though, that doesn't add up. Expect the street price of the $125 games to be 100-110 which is still go awful. Australia actually had it good with $60usd games being $69 launch day, that's cheaper than the USD conversion before you add the tax on top some states have to pay.

From a value for money perspective it's ludicrous to by a digital only console in Australia.
 
Mechaplum

Mechaplum

Enlightened
Member
Oct 26, 2017
18,844
JP
Amazon usually comes in lower not too long after launch but yeah I have preordered exactly zero games for the PS5. I'll go through them once i finish Judgment, GoT again, Sekiro, FF7R, P5R, Nier R, Aegis 13....

Holy shit PS4 has a lot of games lol.
 
panda-zebra

panda-zebra

â–˛ Legend â–˛
Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,737
TheForgotten said:
Its not a $50 price hike. Its a $25 hike. Its just Amazon or JB never sold at rrp which has been at $99 since the ps3 gen. Prices will drop over time. When the ps4 launched prices went up to rrp again and took a year or so to drop back down
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That's exactly what it is and the OP frames the situation wrongly. It's new gen full price tax, over time it'll ease off, but it just feels bad coming from discounted day one games in one gen to price-hiked and RRP games in the next.
 
Xando

Xando

Member
Oct 28, 2017
27,374
It's crazy how everyone except americans is getting shafted next gen but there is barely any mention of it on ERA or english speaking media
 
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