In the company's latest earnings call, GameStop president Tony Bartel revealed the results of their research on what price gamers expect to pay for AAA titles and what price they actually pay. Interestingly enough, both prices are lower than what you'd expect.
"Recent research with gamers indicates that the average price being paid by a customer rate full game triple-A download is $22," said Bartel. "When asked what price a game expected to pay for a recently released full game digital download, the answer in these surveys was approximately $35."
Of course Bartel is speaking of the game's average price over its lifespan, factoring in the game's launch price of $60 or so and its subsequent price reduction(s). Apparently, the majority of players prefer to wait for the price cuts.
Bartel also revealed that "over $100 million worth of games have been digitally delivered for free in hardware bundles" so far in 2014. This might be a good thing for gamers, but Bartel fears that it is devaluing games in players' minds.
"We want to help ensure that our industry does not make the same mistake as other entertainment categories by driving the perceived value of digital goods significantly below that of a physical game," he warned the audience.
