14 DAY TRIAL // Yet another high-profile video game creator has attacked the concept of an used game market, saying that it is making it harder for teams to create high-quality games because of the higher risks now involved in the creation and sales process.
Speaking to Gamasutra, David Braben, who is responsible for the creation of Elite and Kinectimals, has stated, “The real problem when you think about it brutally, if you look at just core gamer games, pre-owned has really killed core games.
“In some cases, it’s killed them dead. I know publishers who have stopped games in development because most shops won’t reorder stock after initial release, because they rely on the churn from the re-sales.”
He added, “It’s killing single player games in particular, because they will get pre-owned, and it means your day one sales are it, making them super high risk. I mean, the idea of a game selling out used to be a good thing, but nowadays, those people who buy it on day one may well finish it and return it.”
Braben believes that the used games market also keeps prices for retail titles up because it cuts both publishers and developers off from a revenue stream and a potential group of clients.
The developer seems to suggest that the used games market might serve a purpose as long as those stores that sold them would be required to hand over a portion of their earnings to video game companies.
In order to limit the extent of the used game market, publishers like Electronic Arts, Ubisoft and THQ have introduced incentives for those who buy new games and have limited the access for second hand buyers to some content.
There are also rumors that Microsoft is including a new feature in the next generation of the Xbox in order to make it impossible to play used games.