Over the last several decades the gaming landscape has changed in just about every conceivable way. We went from having nothing more than several blinking dots on a black screen, to having semi-interactive environments that utilized the 8 bit graphics that had taken the gaming industry by storm. Then came the advent of side scrolling adventure games, which led into the 64 bit era which represented the transition into the next generation of gaming. And as we all know it didn't end there-ÃÂ nowadays there are expansive, interactive environments that mirror the real world in ways designers could only dream of in years past.
Aside from the graphics and realism, the games we play have also grown more challenging and immersive over time.ÃÂ But we can't forget about the other thing that has changed over time concerning the games we enjoy so much.
Their prices.
With each new generation of PCs and consoles, the cost of gaming appears to have risen along with the quality of the games themselves. While this is to be expected (more complex games require more powerful equipment, which happens to be more expensive), it still forces one to ask the question:
Is there a trend here, and if so how far will it go?
To answer this question we need to look back to roughly 35 years ago, a point from which we can work our way back to the present. In 1977 the Atari 2600 (mentioned earlier) was available to consumers for $200, and its games usually ranged from $10-$20 (with some exceptions). In those days there was no true uniformity concerning pricing, and as such the cost of games varied much more than is the case in the current generation.
Fast forward to 1985, and the North American gaming community is introduced to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) which retailed at $200 (including controllers and Super Mario Bros.), and had games generally priced around $50-$60.
Now if we look at these two consoles alone, things don't seem too bad. We're talking about nearly 10 years going by without a change in price for a newly released gaming system. The difference here is the cost of the games themselves, which comes as no surprise given their immensely increased complexity on the NES compared to what was available on the Atari.
A decade later the gaming public received two consoles that were met with considerable success: The PlayStation (which retailed at $299) and the Nintendo 64 ($199 at release). Despite the PlayStation's heftier price tag, its compact disc games were available at $40 while the N64's cartridges ranged from $50-$60. The cost of the 64's games at this point came as a direct result of the added expense of using cartridges. As such, it's unsurprising that the N64 was the last Nintendo gaming console to utilize cartridges.
Moving ahead another 10 years we arrive at the present generation (skipping over the PS2 and Xbox, both of which retailed at $300 with $50 games) where we currently enjoy Sony's PlayStation 3, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii U. This generation is easily the priciest in terms of the consoles themselves, with the PS3 launching at $500 or $600 (depending on hard drive space) and the 360 at $300 or $400 (again based on buyer preference). The Wii U's recent launch had Nintendo's newest game system priced at $300.
On paper this seems like the continuation of a disheartening trend for gamers, but upon closer examination we can locate some positives. New games available for the PS3, 360 and Wii U are all priced at $60. That exhibits a modest increase over the $50 we spent on games for the PS2 and Xbox, and it actually represents a lighter price tag than what we experienced while purchasing N64 games in 1996 (when you factor inflation into the equation). Following that same line of logic, the current generation of consoles' games are cheaper than they were in 1991 on the Super Nintendo and even in 1985 on the NES.
If you're wondering what this all adds up to, it can be broken down to two points.
With each generation of new consoles, we've been given more capability and power, usually (and understandably) coupled with a higher price. But the games themselves have not become so expensive as to represent a cause for concern. In fact, one could argue that they have grown marginally cheaper over the years.
It's possible that this stems from console technology being able to do more with less as it progressed- or it could simply be a result of systems utilizing cheaper formats (CDs and DVDs for instance) than those used in the past. However regardless of the reasons, there is no disputing the fact that the price of a console only constitutes a one-time expense; it's buying the games to accompany the game systems that can get very expensive, very quickly (anyone who has assembled a game library can attest to this).
Luckily, based on the trends of the past and the developments of the present we can safely assume that while consoles might come with bigger price tags in the future, the games we play on them won't exceed reasonable costs.
With all of this in mind we can feel free to move forward into the future of gaming... without fearing the price of admission.
Aside from the graphics and realism, the games we play have also grown more challenging and immersive over time.ÃÂ But we can't forget about the other thing that has changed over time concerning the games we enjoy so much.
Their prices.
With each new generation of PCs and consoles, the cost of gaming appears to have risen along with the quality of the games themselves. While this is to be expected (more complex games require more powerful equipment, which happens to be more expensive), it still forces one to ask the question:
Is there a trend here, and if so how far will it go?
To answer this question we need to look back to roughly 35 years ago, a point from which we can work our way back to the present. In 1977 the Atari 2600 (mentioned earlier) was available to consumers for $200, and its games usually ranged from $10-$20 (with some exceptions). In those days there was no true uniformity concerning pricing, and as such the cost of games varied much more than is the case in the current generation.
Fast forward to 1985, and the North American gaming community is introduced to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) which retailed at $200 (including controllers and Super Mario Bros.), and had games generally priced around $50-$60.
Now if we look at these two consoles alone, things don't seem too bad. We're talking about nearly 10 years going by without a change in price for a newly released gaming system. The difference here is the cost of the games themselves, which comes as no surprise given their immensely increased complexity on the NES compared to what was available on the Atari.
A decade later the gaming public received two consoles that were met with considerable success: The PlayStation (which retailed at $299) and the Nintendo 64 ($199 at release). Despite the PlayStation's heftier price tag, its compact disc games were available at $40 while the N64's cartridges ranged from $50-$60. The cost of the 64's games at this point came as a direct result of the added expense of using cartridges. As such, it's unsurprising that the N64 was the last Nintendo gaming console to utilize cartridges.
Moving ahead another 10 years we arrive at the present generation (skipping over the PS2 and Xbox, both of which retailed at $300 with $50 games) where we currently enjoy Sony's PlayStation 3, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii U. This generation is easily the priciest in terms of the consoles themselves, with the PS3 launching at $500 or $600 (depending on hard drive space) and the 360 at $300 or $400 (again based on buyer preference). The Wii U's recent launch had Nintendo's newest game system priced at $300.
On paper this seems like the continuation of a disheartening trend for gamers, but upon closer examination we can locate some positives. New games available for the PS3, 360 and Wii U are all priced at $60. That exhibits a modest increase over the $50 we spent on games for the PS2 and Xbox, and it actually represents a lighter price tag than what we experienced while purchasing N64 games in 1996 (when you factor inflation into the equation). Following that same line of logic, the current generation of consoles' games are cheaper than they were in 1991 on the Super Nintendo and even in 1985 on the NES.
If you're wondering what this all adds up to, it can be broken down to two points.
With each generation of new consoles, we've been given more capability and power, usually (and understandably) coupled with a higher price. But the games themselves have not become so expensive as to represent a cause for concern. In fact, one could argue that they have grown marginally cheaper over the years.
It's possible that this stems from console technology being able to do more with less as it progressed- or it could simply be a result of systems utilizing cheaper formats (CDs and DVDs for instance) than those used in the past. However regardless of the reasons, there is no disputing the fact that the price of a console only constitutes a one-time expense; it's buying the games to accompany the game systems that can get very expensive, very quickly (anyone who has assembled a game library can attest to this).
Luckily, based on the trends of the past and the developments of the present we can safely assume that while consoles might come with bigger price tags in the future, the games we play on them won't exceed reasonable costs.
With all of this in mind we can feel free to move forward into the future of gaming... without fearing the price of admission.
