http://www.computerandvideogames.com/ar ... ?id=236550

, and presumably there's points involved

The games industry in terms of distribution needs a serious kick up the arse as the pre owned market is killing developers.

Not necessarily. If a game becomes locked to a console or computer then its second hand value becomes zero, and then the buyers will be come exceptionally selective for new games. If they cannot sell on the game, then the price of new games will have to come down, in order to off set the zero resale value that would have enabled the games to recoup some of the cost. While that may encourage some more sales it may discourage others.

A market for pre owned games gives buyers an opportunity to pass on the game if they have completed it or it is not of their liking. It also discourages piracy. If you can get a legit copy cheaply then why get a pirate copy of download?

I tend not to buy pre-owned games to be honest. They're either too expensive (Game 2nd hand pricing is a joke), or I want it so bad I'll buy it when it comes out new on the day, or its a game I think 'meh, I'll play it one day' in which case I'll wait for the price to drop on Play or The Hut.

That wasn't what I was suggesting. The issue I have is that all these extra sales the developers/producers see nothing from, they companies concerned see 50c/$ or 50p/£ profit from the games sold. It's how these companies make their money.

The suggestion I proposed on another forum was introduce a new code that can be redeemed in the box, this gets you achievements/trophies, online play, 0 day DLC etc.
This person can sell on the game fine, however the next buyer would be unable to redeem the code so would not be available, this could then be offered as direct DLC to the player at a nominal price (say £5/400points/other method of measurement). This means the original developer gets a cut of the pre-owned sale if the player deems the game to be worth the extra content.
This would admittedly reduce the price of used games (not a bad thing) but it would also have the benefit of being a positive reinforcement against piracy.

Take Trials 2 as an example, they released on torrent a gimped version of the game before release, missing one feature any competitive player wants, a leaderboard. They saw good sales and also had those that downloaded the game ending up buying it because of this additional feature, the developers need to reward those that buy new. EA (strangely enough) seem to have cottoned on to this, with 0 day DLC for ME2 and BC2, this IS available to 2nd hand players but they have to buy it. I think this is a clever approach as it doesn't take away from the used market and gives an incentive for buying new.

Im not for or against pre-owned but I dont care that the devs dont make money on pre-owned sales. I dont really see why they should. If tomorrow I sold my TV, Blu-Ray player, car and sofa the manufacturers would not see a penny. They took their cut when I bought the item in the first place.

You are buying a service with a game, not a physical product for the most part.

You can't utilise the services of a prostitute, then sell that same service you received onto someone else.

People bitch and whine about the price of games sales, it's because developers don't receive anything from people that buy pre-owned. That includes people buying the game a week after launch who see the title as slightly cheaper pre owned and get that instead. That initial price has to be for them to receive their revenue, if they received a steadier revenue stream they could reduce the cost of games to the consumer.

Its only one example - and maybe an extreme one - but CODMW2 generated millions in sales revenue. Despite this and the fact it was one of the most anticipated games in years the RRP something daft like £50.

I'd bet my right bollock that if the 2nd hand market disappeared overnight then games would still cost the same.

I know few people who buy pre-owned games I have to say, mostly cos there's so little of a price difference in stores. I personally buy loads of pre-owned games off eBay for about a quarter of the RRP, though it's often months (sometimes years) after release

Potentially as revenue from DLC would be lost as people may not buy the game. The Call of Duty games are bad examples as they are retained for a long period of time and hold their value as a flagship game. But the alternative I suggested wouldnt require the elimination or even any adjustment to companies in the 2nd hand market, it would sort itself out as the value would drop on most games. It could also reduce the cost of the game initially.

Don't think that the £50 RRP is anything new. PS1 and N64 games did cost this much once upon a time. Banjo Kazooie on the N64 was RRP £49.99

Have to say though, if you're paying any more than £35 for a new PS3 game online (for talk's sake), you really are getting ripped off

Also, developers/publishers might want to have a talk with the stores, online mostly, over the price cuts that are now happening so quickly - not that that would suit me, or maybe even legal

At the end of the day, the developers/publishers are gonna have to work around it themselves and change their processes if need be, otherwise they could wind up in the same situation as the music industry

Same here, but if you buy a game pre owned and it is missing features because the previous owner took them that screws up the pre owned market.

All the games I buy require the CD to be in the drive to be played. I can't be arsed with pirate copies so have the original discs. If I sold them on I could not benefit from being able to play them anyway. Plus some of the games have expansion packs which get the developer revenue.

While some games may cost £50 they still offer good value when you consider that you can play them for days on a per hour of entertainment basis they are still better value than the cinema or any other form of paid for entertainment.

On the rare occasion I buy a second hand game, I love the look on the Game staff's faces when I ask to examine the disc first

Game is a big pile of crap, their prices for new AND second hand are a disgrace. Plus considering how much profit they make from second hand games....which must be vast....they still don't drop the prices to "reasonable". Compare this to the DVD market. After a few months on sale, the price usually drops to less than a tenner. Yet I still see games like COD4 for the PS3 selling at £40 brand new, £38 second hand!

As for Asda and Tesco, no surprises there. They use the more profitable side of the business to subsidise the new ventures; phones, insurance, games etc. Then once their competitors are weakened they can level with the rest of the market.

Yes but Game operate from small retail premises on the high street which are hardly cheap and the rents on them are probably very high. That pushes their needs for really high margins simply to cover the rent. If government had not pushed up property prices through low taxation the prices in the stores would probably be much more competitive.

They don't need high margins when they have a huge footfall and customer conversion rate. Most people that go into a shop like that are either buying or selling.