Thanks for the new mog station items!

[HyoMinPark]

I have a weird question for the people who support the outfit. Some of you say the value is subjective. But we clearly have a baseline for what a dollar gets in digital content. This is not something new video games are decades old. A full game is worth $XX.XX. That seems like a pretty good baseline. How do you ignore what a dollar gets in other games to defend the pricing? I don't care you bought it. I care you think the pricing is ok.

The thing is, however, there is no true baseline for games. When you look at all the different games available, rarely do you find a base price for them. Some are $20. Some are $30. Some are $60. Some have shiny collectors editions that are $50. Others have shiny collectors editions that are $200. And games vary in cost per country and per currency as well. There's no pure "baseline" when it comes to pricing of just video games in general.

And shinies and bonus content can always be expected to have the potential to exceed the original price paid for any game because the people that supply said bonus shinies know that there are hardcore collectors out there that will pay anything for them. And this brings us back to the "value is a subjective measure" argument. Example: I wouldn't pay $200 for the Stormblood CE. Completely not worth it in my opinion; completely overpriced. Because I could care less about the shinies; the mini artbook, if I really wanted it, I could buy off of eBay for 1/4 of the cost or less. Don't care about the statue or the box either--and I definitely do not have the space to display or store them. However, I have 3 friends that gladly shoveled out the money for it without a second thought.

I think the price of glamour items on the Mogstation could be toned down quite a bit. However, there is nothing I can do to make SE cut back the prices. People can say to boycott, but for every individual not buying from the cash shop, there are probably ten that do. Boycotting wouldn't solve anything unless it was an incredibly massive boycott. Which seems unlikely for this game.

To the people who think any pricing is ok. My question to you is do you not live in a socialist country? The idea to just allow companies to do whatever and think free market will fix it just seems foreign to me. http://blog.peerform.com/top-ten-most-socialist-countries-in-the-world/

Since a lot of people (inb4 I'm accused of generalizing, please note how I said A LOT , not everyone) posting on the English forums tend to be from NA or EU, no, we do not live in a socialist country. Most countries in the NA and EU are capitalist. And, again, see what I said about boycotts. That would be the only thing that could possibly prompt companies to stop overcharging for merchandise, but there is no realistic way for a boycott of SE over Mogstation pricing to ever get so large that it would make any difference.

I did not say they are wrong, I said they do not understand the value of a dollar. Meaning it is likely people like that do not understand the struggles some go though to eat or live paycheck to paycheck. I have no issue with people buying it because it makes them happy or whatever, I have issues with people saying the pricing is fine just because it is optional. I have issues with people thinking the price is fine because they can't look outside themselves and know what others go though. That is why I said people that think the pricing is fine do not understand the value of a dollar. I am confidant anyone that does understand the value of a dollar, will agree the pricing is too high.

And you really have no place to make any such claims. You don't know anything about the people that post here. You don't know that they could be millionaires, or they could be college students living off of Ramen and student loans. You don't know if they once barely had money to scrape by, or if they were born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

I have been there. I had a time in my life where I lived pay check to pay check; now, I do not. Yet, I still have extreme periods of stinginess with my money. This outfit was the first thing I bought that wasn't with a gift card in several months. Yet, according to your post, I know nothing about what it's like to live in such a way, or about the value of money. Who are you to say such thing about strangers on the Internet, whom you know zero about?

[Moonlite]

snip

You were missing what I was trying to get at. But thank you for response. I don't object to the price just the defense. If people came on and said its a dumb price and they get my money. I would understand. Also to the US thing. I see lots of examples in the new where the population has the mind set it is ok for companies to do whatever. I live somewhere if companies decide to up rent by 25% government will step in and make them justify it and stop it. Not just because they can.

snip

See you see it as no true baseline. Of course the world has no true baseline. Name one item in the world that has a uniform price? But when it comes to digital content not sure if developers agreed on it or not but games have a pretty static price. While you can quote outliers on the pricing scale. I could probably find thousands that are in some sort of pricing structure.

[Valinis]

The thing is, however, there is no true baseline for games.

Except there pretty much is. Here in Australia the average retail price for a game at release is between $80-$100. Most falling on the $80 end of the spectrum.


I'd also like to add that as it stands, I do not purchase items like this from the mogstation simply because I think they are priced too high (miles too high). If they were priced more reasonably I would absolutely make purchases, so SE have lost sales from me and many others I'm sure.

[Belhi]

Except there pretty much is. Here in Australia the average retail price for a game at release is between $80-$100. Most falling on the $80 end of the spectrum.


I'd also like to add that as it stands, I do not purchase items like this from the mogstation simply because I think they are priced too high (miles too high). If they were priced more reasonably I would absolutely make purchases, so SE have lost sales from me and many others I'm sure.

Their pricing structure might be worth them reassessing. The additional sales quite likely might make up for a price reduction. Hell I would consider buying some pieces if they were cheaper.

[HyoMinPark]

Except there pretty much is. Here in Australia the average retail price for a game at release is between $80-$100. Most falling on the $80 end of the spectrum.

To respond with US, games here range anywhere from $19.99 to $59.99. For just normal editions. Collectors can range even higher. That isn't a baseline; it's a range. And it's a far wider range in the US than it is in Aus.

Perhaps the Mogstation items are overpriced, but a lot of people here tend to not ask for them to be lowered; they ask for them to not be added at all. Or to be added in-game for free. And this is something I take issue with because a lot of the new glamour items (Chinese outfits and the Korean outfit) had to be be bought in their respective countries, but people here demand them basically for free. I don't know if the Fuga items were part of a promotion, but I know the recent Eastern attire were. I don't understand why people are okay with asking for things for free when other players in Japan or China had to pay for them.

[Bourne_Endeavor]

To respond with US, games here range anywhere from $19.99 to $59.99. For just normal editions. Collectors can range even higher. That isn't a baseline; it's a range. And it's a far wider range in the US than it is in Aus.

Perhaps the Mogstation items are overpriced, but a lot of people here tend to not ask for them to be lowered; they ask for them to not be added at all. Or to be added in-game for free. And this is something I take issue with because a lot of the new glamour items (Chinese outfits and the Korean outfit) had to be be bought in their respective countries, but people here demand them basically for free. I don't know if the Fuga items were part of a promotion, but I know the recent Eastern attire were. I don't understand why people are okay with asking for things for free when other players in Japan or China had to pay for them.

This is an important factor. Notice the difference in response when people ask for something to be added to the Mogstation or have already existing items lose their restricts? This is something the devs can take back and convince the corporate side it's worth investing in. On the other hand, when people clamour for everything to be in-game without any cost or one exceedingly low as though it may as well not exist won't convince anyone of anything. People forget that despite all the wonderful platitudes we hear about customer loyalty, video games remain a business first and foremost. Those calling the shots, so to speak, are investors and publishers whose only concern is profit.

So what is our recourse to overpriced items being added to the Mogstation? Simply don't buy them. With enough pushback prices could be lowered or, more likely, a sale comes up. Just don't expect they will suddenly appear in-game for free or that we'll get happy little events gifting us everything.

[Reinha]

To the people who think any pricing is ok. My question to you is do you not live in a socialist country? The idea to just allow companies to do whatever and think free market will fix it just seems foreign to me. http://blog.peerform.com/top-ten-most-socialist-countries-in-the-world/

I live in one of those top 10 socialist countries and I still think any pricing for Mog Station items is ok, because it's a luxury. I support socialized healthcare, education, welfare and other things which ensure good living conditions for all my countrymen. I also support economic regulations where the safety of consumers, workers or natural resources are at risk otherwise (food production, work conditions, nature preservation etc). Digital goods fall under none of those and the company has every right to make money in whatever way they deem fit. If I started my own gaming company and tried to make a living with it I wouldn't want someone else setting a cap on my earnings.

[Recruiter]

I don't understand the point of this thread.

People are making threads and raising the issue that cash shop items are too expensive hoping to either cause future items to cost less or have an alternative way to obtain via playing the game you pay a sub for. Both benefits all of us, the players. That includes you OP.

I mean sure... if you want to support the game just buy more accounts and pay their subs. Why are you against the rest of us trying to get more bang for our bucks, buddy?

[SpookyGhost]

Ey just so everybody's aware: You can actually take the money you spent on a costume or an emote and buy an entirely new game with it. Just throwing that out there.

[Skyrior]

Not only are people arguing that fact with me, but harassing me because I have the view saying it was overpriced. (And how this thread was made to mock people that have such views) Apparently I am blacklist dodging just because one account is post capped and I should not be listened to calling it overpriced because I point out the slow responsiveness of the game.

Omg are you paying for 2 accounts just to post on the forums more