Quote Originally Posted by AamesxDavid View Post
Everyone wants to pay less for everything.. it's not a good reason to actually charge less for it.

No, I think it's pretty easy. If you've been playing the game and have enjoyed it enough that you'd like to continue playing, and on top of that, care enough that you'll complain on the forums trying to get the price dropped for illegitimate reasons, you care enough to pay - whether you say that you'll pay or not. If the game means so much to you that you'll get up in arms over the idea of not being able to play, it's worth your $12.

How many people play over 12 hours a month? I'd say even among the complainers, it's the vast majority. That means you'd be paying under $1 an hour. If the game isn't worth $1 an hour, you shouldn't be playing it.
This is the Fallacy of the Excluded Middle. Or put another way, a False Dilemma.

You're trying to frame this so that there are only two extreme possibilities: Pay full price or leave, without allowing for any reasonable third option.

We're not asking for a lower rate just because we like to save money.

FFXIV probably has almost the same operational costs no matter how many players are playing it. It would be as though you could sell an infinite amount of watermelons, and all you had to do was name your price. Would you rather sell 10,000 watermelons for $13 or 30,000 watermelons for $6?

Businesses do these sorts of calculations all the time. There's a "sweet spot" where the right price can bring in more revenue than just charging as much as you think you can get away with. Given the extraordinary circumstances of this game, this may actually be a valid third option that both casts a wider net and brings in more revenue at the same time.

You could be overlooking a better solution by sticking with your "pay full price or leave" attitude. It makes no sense.