After the introduction of PS Plus and Xbox Game Pass, the need to buy games has shortened, unless you want to get full access to the game for a lifetime. Video game prices are a subject of complicated discussion. For some, it might be cheap, but for others, it is costly. Nonetheless, the Capcom president decides to be on the former team.

Per the President, the game prices are not as expensive as they should be, considering the development costs. While the argument sounds valid from the capitalistic point of view, there are more details to it. Let’s hear from the man himself.

Capcom President compares the game price and development cost

In a recent interview at the Tokyo Game Show 2023, Haruhiro Tsujimoto spoke about his thoughts regarding the game prices. Since last year, many big gaming companies have started selling their titles at a stipulated price point of $70.

This trend started with Gotham Knights and God of War Ragnarok. Now, in 2023, Capcom is still selling titles at less than the typical price point; for example, Street Fighter 6 costs $60. That’s why the president thinks the prices of the games these days are “too low.”

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He has expressed that “development costs are about 100 times higher than during the Famicom era, but software prices have not gone up that much,” by which he referred to Nintendo’s hugely successful 8-bit console from the 80s. He thinks the prices of games really need to be hiked, as it is the only option to compensate for the increased wages of the employees all over the industry.

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He also thinks that recessions or layoffs are never an excuse for lowering a game’s price. He thinks that in crisis situations like these, the game prices should be higher to make up for the loss. No matter what, sources state that people will still buy quality games. But will the future of gaming be hampered through capitalistic demands?

What will be the fate of video game prices in the future?

It’s a no-brainer that it costs way more to make a game today than in the early 80s. Today’s games are way more complex, requiring extra people, time, exposure, and technology. In that way, Tsujimoto is kind of right. Because, compared to the older days, game prices have never seen that much hike. Hence, development costs have to be encountered.

Also, today’s games are always online-based, with a number of options to spend money on in-game items, be it gun skins in Valorant or soccer packs in soccer simulation titles. This microtransaction has become a way of revival for the developers.

But still, as earlier mentioned, this might be able to fix the development cost to some extent, which many think is the necessity of the hour. To tackle the gradual rise in expenses, a rise in game prices is inevitable. Because, as the days go by, new demands are gathering. To fulfill these demands, bigger risks have to be taken. And for that, game prices will go up, no matter what.

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