Flying hamster (6.99 EUR)
Armstrong and the alien scumbags (6.99 EUR)
WTF: who's that flying
Futurlab's shooter
Alien Invaders 2
I don't like so many shooters at the same time to be honest.
Damn, So many side scroller shooters!!!!
(28 posts) (11 voices)-
Posted 1 year ago #
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Laughing Jackal's blog says the price of Ace Armstrong is 5.99 EUR, not 6.99. It's $6.99, though. Going by that exchange rate, I'm guessing that the 6.99 EUR The Flying Hamster is going to be at least $7.99. :( I'm not unhappy about having several scrolling shooters in the Minis program, even launching simultaneously, as long as they're all good and unique. However, the pricing pattern is a little disturbing. You'd think that concurrent competition would keep prices low.
Incidentally, Futurlab's game is going to scroll vertically, not horizontally. Speaking of which, I wonder if it will have you hold the PSP vertically.
Wasn't Alien Invaders 2 supposed to be out at the beginning of the year? I don't think it's coming anymore.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I just watched some iPhone gameplay footage of Alien Invaders 2. If it never does come to the PSP, I will not be disappointed. Seemed pretty generic, with awful music to boot. Well, I guess they could fix those issues in a PSP version. But, not a good first impression.
I, too, would rather Minis prices stay less than or equal to $5.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Yeah, that price screams "Hey let's overcharge the PlayStation users for a few months before we go $0.99 or $1.99 on the iOS", especially since they've already announced plans to release the game on other platforms. Kind of similar to when Rockstar announced Chinatown Wars for PSP and iOS. PSP version launches at $40, while the iOS launches a few months later at $12, quickly reduced to $6 all while the PSN copy was $30.
Posted 1 year ago # -
And Chinatown Wars, is still sitting at 30 bucks (went on sale for 15 for a week, which is when I purchased it). I'm no fan of side scroller shooters, so this is a big let down for me. There is very little variety with the mini's, your mainly stuck with, puzzle games, or now, side scroller shooter's.
Give me a Tony Hawk rip off, or a H.A.W.X. rip off. I'll take all the rip offs you can give me, if it'll get developers away from puzzles, and side scroller shooters. I really want to support the minis program, but there isn't very much out there, that I want to play. Asides from NOVA, I'm really not interested in much of anything mini related right now. :( Announce Young Thor 2, and then we'll talk!
Posted 1 year ago # -
Rein
MemberSo there's a tendency to overcharge PSP users it seems while other Platform users (Nintendo excluded) get the same games for a smaller price. Either the PSP versions must be top nudge quality-wise (not too sure about that though) or game companies are really just screwing PSP owners over. I'm voting with my feet and won't pick up any Minis over 5 euros - it's a principle.
Posted 1 year ago # -
It just feels so weird cuz 6.99 is one EURO less than the price of a psn exclusive. We are talking about: super stardust portable, savage moon, Gravity crash, bejweled 2, EVEN PATCHWORK HEROES. And aside from that it's 2 EUROS more than a normal psone classic. Minis are already expensive enough. But I know myself, I buy things pretty fast. But I have my principles!
Posted 1 year ago # -
Brand new games aren't cheap to develop don't forget. Games that aren't direct ports do take time and effort, and ultimately more money!
Posted 1 year ago # -
Rein
MemberBrand new games aren't cheap to develop don't forget. Games that aren't direct ports do take time and effort, and ultimately more money!
Does that reflect prices on the apple store also when compared to the PSP ditto? I mean, are games specifically developed for the iphone more expensive for apple owners than for PSP owners who get a ported version of the same game? My question is sincere since I don't own any apple products and don't bother to read about them either. So I'm genuinely curious since I thought PSP owners were always getting the short end of the stick.Posted 1 year ago # -
The most outrageous in terms of gouging consumers are companies like EA, and Gameloft (read: Ubisoft). Both simply released ports of their mobile offerings (EA with Tetris, Sudoku, and Monopoly. Gameloft with Let's Golf and Hero of Sparta) for at times 5x the prices on other platforms. Both already owned devkits, and both could easily handle rating board fees. The Rockstar example I used is great. Rockstar has PSP devkits, and previously submitted Chinatown Wars to be rated. Yet they charged full price for a port on PSP, and went $12 on iPhone. At least they weren't surprised when Chinatown Wars PSP's first month in physical sales in the US was less than 10,000.
The problem with higher priced Minis is that they begin to compete with full PSP games in the consumers mind. If Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess is $5, may make a buyer look at LocoRoco 2 for $8. Both are fantasticly charming platformers, but one has a lot more value.
I had no issue dropping $5 on M(P)SMP because it was an original title. I have a harder time justify the higher priced Minis when it's already been announced to be going elsewhere, or is a port.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Good point Takao. I feel the whole reason minis had such a slow start, was that Tetris was priced at $9.99 when it was released. Come on, $9.99 for Tetris! That was just ridiculous. Kind of made the whole minis program, look like a joke.
You start to ask yourself, why pay that for a mini, when titles like Patchwork Hereos, are being released on PSN for the same price? They could have easily charged at least $14.99 for Patchwork, but the fact that they didn't, raises a few eyebrows as to why some minis are being priced at $6.99 at launch.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I'm only talking about PSP minis exclusives.
I think it's a joke how cheap the iphone apps are compared to the minis but the market is probably a million times bigger on iphone!
Posted 1 year ago # -
Each platform has its own ecosystem. Coconut Dodge on minis has value at £2.49, but if we were ever to take it to iOS for example, it would never sell at that price. We'd have to drop it significantly.
That's just the unique market Apple have created on the AppStore. XBLIG has its own set of parameters too. No developer or publisher sets out to rinse their customers unfairly, but they are forced into making decisions like this by the market conditions of each platform.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I think what we're seeing is a phenomenon similar to comparing the Japanese market to the US market. In Japan, a DVD/Blu-Ray disc (and, years ago, LD/VHS) is much more expensive than the corresponding American product, usually between $60-$80 each; sometimes, it can go over $100, and a $30 product counts as budget pricing. That's just how the market is, while the US market would never support that kind of pricing. So, the iDevice market is like the US market, and the PlayStation market is like the Japanese market. The big difference here is that these virtual markets cover the same geographic locations, so this is a case where the market differences are easily visible to all participants of both markets. The end result: participants of one market consistently feel punished in pricing.
But, my original complaint about pricing was limited within the Minis scope. Regardless of what the iDevice market prices are, I'm disturbed to see Minis with prices noticeably higher than the current average. To be honest, looking only at these two games alone, I think that if Ace Armstrong and The Flying Hamster have the content to support their prices, that's fine; I mean, I'm a guy who paid around $50 to import DariusBurst. If they weren't Minis, I probably wouldn't be saying anything. My concern is in the effect these prices will have on the Minis market in general. If a few titles manage to sell well at higher prices, then there will be a tendency for later Minis to get priced higher as well, regardless of whether they have the content to back up their pricing (after all, to the eyes of the consumer, it's just a Mini; there's no obvious delineation between "big" Minis and "small" Minis, between "worth more" and "worth less"). At some point, there may be too many Minis priced higher than their contents' perceived worth, and the average consumer would just decide, "Minis cost too much for what they're giving me."
Minis are just now pulling out of their image problem. I'd hate to see this progress hampered by a sudden rise in prices.
Posted 1 year ago # -
@ FuturLab
The thing is, no PSP consumer, really wants to pay the price for higher minis. We want the choice to refuse the price, just like iOS and Live users, but we just don't get a say in it, no matter what. It's not like our complaints are few and far in between, ALL developers know, we don't want these higher prices, but titles still get released at higher prices.
I'm not saying, sell them at iOS prices, but just try to keep $5.99 as the cut off price. Were not even getting any sort of network functions with these games, leaderboards, nothing (though that was Sony's fault). As much as people try to say otherwise, Sony is showing more PSP love, and when I can get some pretty decent full PSP titles for $9.99, I'm sorry but, the minis price advantage, isn't as grand as it was 11-12 months ago.
The more I talk about, the more I realize...I may just be a cheap person! :D
Posted 1 year ago # -
volcane
MemberWith Coconut Dodge, FuturLab demonstrated that they understand what game mechanics make for a fun and engaging video game.
I can't wait to see what their interpretation is on the classic SHMUP genre - I wonder how the teleport puzzle mechanics will be blended with fast-action vertically scrolling shooter action?
Posted 1 year ago #
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