Video Game Value
Aug. 27th, 2009 03:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
major_kerinaI still want to do a post on Irresponsible Captain Tylor but I wanted to get out this thought I had when vacuuming. It goes together with some things Nina had said relating to video games with AURA and other things.
I was thinking from when I was playing Professor Layton that the game is good but it would be at the best value if it was twenty bucks or so. So that got me thinking.
A review might be served if they had a value index like a "buy stock" index or something I always heard on business reports and stuff "if a stock goes below X price this week...I recommend you buy it". I was thinking the same thing. A reviewer evaluates the time and enjoyment that a player could get out of a game and then gives the reader a "buy at" price. Sometimes for games like San Andreas there is such use to get out of it that the recommendation might be "full value return at launch price" but other games like The Conduit I might way "best value when bought at 30 bucks". So figure price to value there would need to be a fairly consistent index system that takes hours of play, uses maybe a semi-tangible term of "quality hours of play" to get rid of padding and all that and that would be a multiple of hours. Then design and quality and all the other metrics would come into play to with price and there would be a system to resolve "at a certain price this game would be worth your investment". Stock brokers count those variables, I'm sure there can be a system for games too. It seems like it would be over my head math-wise but it seems doable if you impose maybe a few biases into the system but critic to critic can tweak that.
I'd really love to see a system there you get to money-wise where a game would have the most value in a purchase so far as potential return on investment.
^_^ *tells everyone to buy Professor Layton at 19.99 or in six months if the price doesn't drop that low. And to buy Metroid Prime at launch value because of limited supplies and massive hours given in content for a good price...assuming they don't already own the series*.
There's a little example. Of course, I went and bought Layton at launch anyways and from Gamestop X_X *frickin 5 buck price boost over everyone else*...bad idea. But there you go ^^.
I was thinking from when I was playing Professor Layton that the game is good but it would be at the best value if it was twenty bucks or so. So that got me thinking.
A review might be served if they had a value index like a "buy stock" index or something I always heard on business reports and stuff "if a stock goes below X price this week...I recommend you buy it". I was thinking the same thing. A reviewer evaluates the time and enjoyment that a player could get out of a game and then gives the reader a "buy at" price. Sometimes for games like San Andreas there is such use to get out of it that the recommendation might be "full value return at launch price" but other games like The Conduit I might way "best value when bought at 30 bucks". So figure price to value there would need to be a fairly consistent index system that takes hours of play, uses maybe a semi-tangible term of "quality hours of play" to get rid of padding and all that and that would be a multiple of hours. Then design and quality and all the other metrics would come into play to with price and there would be a system to resolve "at a certain price this game would be worth your investment". Stock brokers count those variables, I'm sure there can be a system for games too. It seems like it would be over my head math-wise but it seems doable if you impose maybe a few biases into the system but critic to critic can tweak that.
I'd really love to see a system there you get to money-wise where a game would have the most value in a purchase so far as potential return on investment.
^_^ *tells everyone to buy Professor Layton at 19.99 or in six months if the price doesn't drop that low. And to buy Metroid Prime at launch value because of limited supplies and massive hours given in content for a good price...assuming they don't already own the series*.
There's a little example. Of course, I went and bought Layton at launch anyways and from Gamestop X_X *frickin 5 buck price boost over everyone else*...bad idea. But there you go ^^.
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no subject
Date: 2009-08-28 12:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-08-28 03:25 am (UTC)Dollars aren't the only way that one can measure the worth of a game, or the number of hours invested in it. Especially for older games, rather than just looking at the cash, it might also be worthwhile to look at the amount of time or effort that would go into finding the game.
*ponders the math involved in a starting system as you describe* I don't think it would be all that bad, actually. The problem will arise in definitions, but I think that could be worked out as well. And that would allow the reader to choose a site that has similar definitions for "worthwhile hours" and so forth...
no subject
Date: 2009-08-28 03:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-08-29 03:29 am (UTC)Also so far as stock analogy...yeah...it has problems but it works in a lot of ways like someone may not like a company and there may be established blue chip games like (Mario and etc) who don't lose value as much or at all...rare print games like Nippon Ichi limited works and that would need to be taken into consideration. Gaming is a business though so I feel that some of the aspects of business sense can be used to give gamers the best enjoyment for their costs.
At least I'd like to hope it's doable. And with people not spending as much on games, finding best values and knowing when to go after them seems like a service...if I could find a way to provide it...which would be in demand for a website. I'd love to especially highlight freeware games and bargain/older games in particular.
The key problems I see towards making something like this real would be coming up with a proven system for evaluating games I can teach or show anyone...and then having a forum for putting it out there. Still just an idea but this feels like it could have a lot of potential.