Will Consumers Buy $70 Games or Wait for Sales?

It’s impossible to talk about a large, diverse collection of people as one collective. That said, I’m going to address a concern that will eventually impact most of the gaming community. It appears that gamers are staring $70 in the eyes as we enter the next-gen console era. There are a lot of things to love about the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Will fans actually pay for $70 games though? It might depend on the game and the gamer.

Hardcore gamers are comfortable buying something immediately, no matter the price. We see this happening now as the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S launch with incredibly lackluster launch libraries. Sure, backward compatibility makes dozens of games playable on these consoles. Neither really has a major console exclusive hardware-seller at this point though. Still, publishers are calling for a $70 price tag on next-gen games given the effort and work that goes into these new projects.

This comes at a time when nearly every major game has some sort of microtransactions involved in its experience. Even single-player games are adding DLC story expansions and skins that players seem to feel okay with if it extends the playtime. With that extra cost all but guaranteed to continue, I don’t know how many will continue to buy games at full price. Some will, but there’s a good chance we end up seeing a dip in day-one buyers.

It’s common for me to wait a few months to buy a new game for a $20+ discount. I know a lot of people like that in my social circle as well. My guess is that approach draws in more as the price tag for games increases. It’ll all depend on the game and what sort of money each gamer has. I just can’t imagine sales on day one staying the same when you ask $70+ for a game with the understanding that microtransactions are on the way. Let me know what you think in the comments!