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[lukilladog]

This is the reason why Sony doesn't need to raise the price of the PS5 in the US. The strong dollar means they're earning more yens with every PS5 sold even with inflation.

That doesn´t fly for other regions like Mexico.

 

[RCU005]

They are doing this because they are feeling all-time, godlike powerful with how demand has been outpacing supply.

It’s a terrible move, but they are betting people are willing to pay for it. Inflation is only their excuse to try to get on those scalpers’ money. Why can they sell so many consoles at high prices and they can’t?

If supply had been stabilized with demand, they would’ve never raised the price.

I bet 1 million internet points that they even feel fortunate or even “blessed” by this situation.

Microsoft can’t raise the price even if they wanted to because they haven’t even got their targeted sales (although is in a comparable pace than 360).

Sony is being arrogant again, and this move comes after the stupid decision of making every game cross gen more than 3 years after release (because 2023 games will still be cross gen).

Had they switched to PS5 only games sooner, this move would be even accepted by many.

 

[NickFire]

So I guess we should stop pointing out Apple pricing practices etc. it is all okay as they provide “great” hardware. It is all okay. Yes we are dealing with inflation, energy price spikes (just to note energy companies, oil companies are reporting record profits, so it is not like they were on verge of losing money). It is more like them checking where is the line, first £70 games, now price increase where most of competents are cheaper than they were 2 years ago. Remastering remakes and selling it again and again. Shitty practices.

I directly responded to "How the f*ck, why the f*ck people here are defending price increase? It is not normal customer behaviour."

I was not trying to prevent discussion of anything, so I'm not sure why you are asking me if we should stop discussing things.

Also, I can recognize a response to inflation while still being pissy at Sony for other things.

 

[nominedomine]

I don´t think that´s a good metric to measure the success of a product. But from the steam survey we know that nvidia has had a hard time convincing gtx 1000 and rtx 2000 owners of replacing their gpu´s. https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/videocard/

PC players playing on old PCs? Tale as old as time.

 

[TGO]

Because the US dollar is stronger than ever so there's no immediate need to do a price hike. They also want to beat Xbox.

Regardless it's still less then the Pound Sterling, always has been even on it's worse day..
the only real reason is probably because they remembered what happened last time they charged the US the same as the UK has been paying for decades.

 

[phil_t98]

This is the reason why Sony doesn't need to raise the price of the PS5 in the US. The strong dollar means they're earning more yens with every PS5 sold even with inflation.

1 Pound sterling equals
161.41 Japanese Yen
25 Aug, 18:07 UTC · Disclaimer


so the uk should not be seeing any increase in prices?

---

More about GBP/JPY

 

[Jigsaah]

Disc based consoles were $40 to $50 for games. That was one of Sony's selling point to the PSX/PS2. (You pay more for carts).

When the 360 was launching, it was announced that 3rd party games would be $60 (to cover the $10 licensing) and their first party would remain $50. Which it did the first handful of games, until Halo 3 happened and it was $60 from there on out.

Damn, you're right. Just found this post that quotes from Electronics Gaming Magazine and adjusts for inflation. So if this is the case, $70 two gens later isn't necessarily out of the ordinary, save for the fact that other, arguably more profitable, monetization options exist now.

System (year)	Game cost in USD at system launch year	Adjusted for inflation as of December 2010
NES (1986)	29.99-49.99	59.79-99.65
SNES (1991)	49.99-59.99	80.17-96.21
N64 (1996)	49.99	69.60
PS2 (2000)	49.99	63.41
Xbox 360 (2005)	59.99	67.10

11 years ago

 

[lukilladog]

PC players playing on old PCs? Tale as old as time.

Not the reason, Pc gamers recognize good fairly priced cards and ownership jumps within months on that survey.

 

[ManaByte]

Damn, you're right. Just found this post that quotes from Electronics Gaming Magazine and adjusts for inflation. So if this is the case, $70 two gens later isn't necessarily out of the ordinary, save for the fact that other, arguably more profitable, monetization options exist now.

System (year)	Game cost in USD at system launch year	Adjusted for inflation as of December 2010
NES (1986)	29.99-49.99	59.79-99.65
SNES (1991)	49.99-59.99	80.17-96.21
N64 (1996)	49.99	69.60
PS2 (2000)	49.99	63.41
Xbox 360 (2005)	59.99	67.10

11 years ago

This isn't accurate. N64 games started at $59.99 in 1996. There might have been a rare one at $49, but the majority were $60.

 

[adamsapple]

"It's only okay when we do it." - You

Kind of like MS and India a month ago as well. I know why you do this.

 

[TheMan]

Not a huge jump but wow. I still miss the days of significant price cuts after 2 years, here we are going in the wrong direction.

Also, it’s good to see such a busy thread here. Not often you see 1k+ replies in less than 12 hrs anymore

 

[DeepEnigma]

 

[adamsapple]

Not a huge jump but wow. I still miss the days of significant price cuts after 2 years, here we are going in the wrong direction.

Also, it’s good to see such a busy thread here. Not often you see 1k+ replies in less than 12 hrs anymore

Game announcements like FF13 to 360 don't really hold that much merit these days with both major next gen console manufacturers making games for their rival platforms.

It's only stuff like this that acts as the "megaton news" of the week.

 

[coffinbirth]

I also don't forget MS ushering $60 in the 360 era, where prior it was $50 and below.

Why do you do this?

You mean EA, Activision, 2K, etc?

 

[DeepEnigma]

It's only stuff like this that acts as the "megaton news" of the week.

All we do is focus on the negative, more and more in this polarizing world.

You mean EA, Activision, 2K, etc?

No shit... Due to MS's $10 licensing fee with the 360.

Disc based consoles were $40 to $50 for games. That was one of Sony's selling point to the PSX/PS2. (You pay more for carts).

When the 360 was launching, it was announced that 3rd party games would be $60 (to cover the $10 licensing) and their first party would remain $50. Which it did the first handful of games, until Halo 3 happened and it was $60 from there on out.

 

[00Magnum Gaming]

Companies are not our friends, never...

MS has save me more than $600 with all these GP games theyre my friend lol

 

[00Magnum Gaming]

You mean EA, Activision, 2K,

 

[DeepEnigma]

MS has save me more than $600 with all these GP games theyre my friend lol

Tell us you have no friends, without telling us you have no friends.

Gotem

 

[nominedomine]

Not the reason, Pc gamers recognize good fairly priced cards and ownership jumps within months on that survey.

So the people playing with the older cards aren't PC players? Hum...

 

[Ezekiel_]

Feel free to quote me if/when MS follows suit and marks up the Series consoles. I'll gladly eat crow and admit to being an asshat if I'm wrong. A global economy effects everyone, but the way a corporation adjust thier operational cost, debt management and product pricing is up to them. There's a number of measures a company can take to hedge losses or retain earnings. Digging deeper into the customer's pockets should be the last one imo

https://www.republicworld.com/techn...sed-by-8-percent-to-rs-37990-articleshow.html

 

[DeepEnigma]

https://www.republicworld.com/techn...sed-by-8-percent-to-rs-37990-articleshow.html

 

[Jigsaah]

This isn't accurate. N64 games started at $59.99 in 1996. There might have been a rare one at $49, but the majority were $60.

This is what I remember as well. Specifically when I went to Target one day and saw MK Mythologies Subzero for $80 I was thrown back cuz had a little more than 60 in my pocket to cover tax.

 

[rofif]

All we do is focus on the negative, more and more in this polarizing world.


No shit... Due to MS's $10 licensing fee with the 360.

microsoft had 10$ licensing fee for disc based games on 360?
I know patches cost a lot of money on 360. Or was it debunked?
I loved the 360. I still think it was the best gen ever

 

[DeepEnigma]

This is what I remember as well. Specifically when I went to Target one day and saw MK Mythologies Subzero for $80 I was thrown back cuz had a little more than 60 in my pocket to cover tax.

That was the cart tax. Hence the selling points of disc based consoles.

microsoft had 10$ licensing fee for disc based games on 360?
I know patches cost a lot of money on 360. Or was it debunked?
I loved the 360. I still think it was the best gen ever

Yes. That was the reasoning behind the increase of $10 for third parties and MS "promised" they would not do it for first party since they didn't have to pay their own licensing fees. Then the hyped as fuck and great game I will add, Halo 3 happened. And it was $60 from there on out.

 

[Panajev2001a]

do you know the profits of the whole of Sony as a company?

Sony FY2021:
Net Income ¥882.2 Billion which is ~$6.46 Billion at today's exchange rate (out of ~$72 Billion in revenue).

MS FY2021:
Net Income is $61.2 Billion, just ~10x... (out of ~$168 Billion in revenue... so well, you can see the comparative margins there).

coarse I know what revenue and profits are, according to you guys Microsoft is loosing money because of gamepass

MS is investing money in GamePass, so?

but when we talk about Sony having profits and increasing price of the console its Sony need bigger profits and yes that is quoting you from earlier

I know... and?

 

[rofif]

That was the cart tax. Hence the selling points of disc based consoles.


Yes. That was the reasoning behind the increase of $10 for third parties and MS "promised" they would not do it for first party since they didn't have to pay their own licensing fees. Then the hyped as fuck and great game I will add, Halo 3 happened. And it was $60 from there on out.

And they introduced paid on-line.
And I loved the 360 because of amazing games, ui (THE BLADES) and how awesome it just felt.
But I was a teen... I was not "financially aware" of everything... aka I pirated some... a bit.... Of course I've bought all the games as an adult (or at least on steam)

 

[DeepEnigma]

And they introduced paid on-line.
And I loved the 360 because of amazing games, ui (THE BLADES) and how awesome it just felt.
But I was a teen... I was not "financially aware" of everything... aka I pirated some... a bit.... Of course I've bought all the games as an adult (or at least on steam)

For context on the Halo 3 boost in price.

Microsoft confirms September release of ‘Halo 3’

The Master Chief's return now has an official date: Sept. 25, 2007.

www.networkworld.com

Microsoft is treating the "Halo 3" debut more like a movie release than just shipping a new game, and perhaps correctly so.

Unlike cinema tickets, which cost about $10 each, "Halo" game sales are boosted by a price tag of $50 to $60 per copy.

 

[Kagey K]

When I think about how much profit some of these companies have made off me (not just in gaming,) It's insulting to see them gouge and pass costs on, in the name of more short term record profits, instead of eating some of these margins during this (transitory ) inflation.

I will go out of my way to support companies in the future that chose to not chase short term profits now at the expense of the consumer. The ones that did, and gouged the hardest will never see another dime from me, as long as I have an alternative.

 

[coffinbirth]

All we do is focus on the negative, more and more in this polarizing world.


No shit... Due to MS's $10 licensing fee with the 360.

Microsoft added additional licensing fees to peripherals not software.

This can actually be attributed to Call of Duty 2.

https://www.theringer.com/2020/10/2...ces-70-dollars-call-of-duty-ps5-xbox-series-x

"Mat Piscatella, who’s now the executive director for games at market research company the NPD Group, was working for Call of Duty publisher Activision when the sequel launched. “That was a big debate, was whether we would go to $59.99 on Call of Duty 2,” he says. “[CEO] Bobby Kotick came in and said, ‘We’re going to 59 on Call of Duty 2.’ And no one else really followed at first. It took a few months for games to start following, but once they did everyone kind of jumped on board that train.”

 

[Jigsaah]

For context on the Halo 3 boost in price.

Microsoft confirms September release of ‘Halo 3’

The Master Chief's return now has an official date: Sept. 25, 2007.

www.networkworld.com

 

[coffinbirth]

microsoft had 10$ licensing fee for disc based games on 360?
I know patches cost a lot of money on 360. Or was it debunked?
I loved the 360. I still think it was the best gen ever

Nope.
Nope.
Yup.

 

[DeepEnigma]

I will go out of my way to support companies in the future that chose to not chase short term profits now at the expense of the consumer.

Microsoft revises prices for Xbox Series X in India again; Increased by 8% to Rs. 37,990- Republic World

www.republicworld.com

PC only then? Without nVidia? Or...?

 

[009EspadaSageJay]

Jim ryan is getting employee of the month after this decision in the long terms this wont effect sony or jim or play station i already saw people 5 month, 1 year, 2 years back talking about how they paid $850, 900, 1,000 for the system and it wasnt even some worth while gamestop bundle it was some thrown together bundle by some 3rd party seller with a 15% markup on the base console prince alone. People were already paying an arm and a leg for a "$500.00" console so sony decided to pull a NVIDIA and AMD with ryzen and just up the price to take some of the extra profits. This wont change scalper prices so anyone hoping that they fall off a cliff wont happen.

 

[phil_t98]

Sony FY2021:
Net Income ¥882.2 Billion which is ~$6.46 Billion at today's exchange rate (out of ~$72 Billion in revenue).

MS FY2021:
Net Income is $61.2 Billion, just ~10x... (out of ~$168 Billion in revenue... so well, you can see the comparative margins there).

MS is investing money in GamePass, so?


I know... and?

So Microsoft so far is willing to eat the cost, Sony who are still making billions in profit would rather take more money off people. Consumer friendly

 

[CrustyBritches]

Brutal. Meta just did this with the Quest 2.

On the subject of game prices: Many games were already selling at $59.99 and $69.99 in the 16-bit era, contrary to what some people are saying.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Nope.
Nope.
Yup.

Yup. (all 3 charged licensing for software)
Yup. (see link below, they stopped in 2013 along with Sony)
Yup.

Microsoft no longer charges developers to patch their Xbox 360 games

UPDATE #3: Microsoft has provided Eurogamer with a full statement regarding its decision to drop charges for Xbox 360 g…

www.eurogamer.net

 

[lukilladog]

So the people playing with the older cards aren't PC players? Hum...

For nvidia and amd they are more like customers.

 

[John Wick]

Well dont defend it then. You dont have to attack your fave comapny if you dont want to, just dont fucking defend it. Just for once some of you look at this from our perspective, the consumer, not billionaire companies.

Defend what? Prices increasing is a reality. It's only going to get worse. If the consumer gave a fuck they wouldn't buy it. If they price hike bothers anyone don't buy it.

 

[DeepEnigma]

So Microsoft so far is willing to eat the cost, Sony who are still making billions in profit would rather take more money off people. Consumer friendly

Microsoft revises prices for Xbox Series X in India again; Increased by 8% to Rs. 37,990- Republic World

www.republicworld.com

Select regions too. Maybe more will follow, who knows.

Defend what? Prices increasing is a reality. It's only going to get worse.

Sad, but true. I wonder if some gamers live in another reality, and not see the cost of EVERYTHING that went up the past 2 years. A dollar store isn't even a fucking dollar store anymore. It's $1.25 store now. Car prices, gas prices, food prices, clothing, insurance premiums, housing, etc...

 

[coffinbirth]

Yup. (all 3 charged licensing for software)
Yup. (see link below, they stopped in 2013 along with Sony)
Yup.

http://[URL]https://www.eurogamer.n...rges-developers-to-patch-their-xbox-360-games

[/URL]

Those are post release patch fees, not licensing fees to put a game on a platform. You have no clue what you are talking about.
Stop spreading misinformation.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Those are post release patch fees, not licensing fees to put a game on a platform. You have no clue what you are talking about.
Stop spreading misinformation.

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit.

 

[Panajev2001a]

So Microsoft so far is willing to eat the cost, Sony who are still making billions in profit would rather take more money off people. Consumer friendly

man, you are really disingenuous here. You do you…

 

[Benniewise de Clown]

LOL, you can't just mention the sanctions off-hand without delving into the reasons as to why the sanctions happened in the first place. That's like complaining that a dog mauled your leg without mentioning that you jumped into a fenced enclosure that says "Warning, this dog is vicious".

The sanctions are meant to crash western economies and nothing more.

The EU wants to replace our monetary system with a digital european currency.

The Ukraine-Russia conflict is a non-EU issue that's being used as an excuse with Russia being the scapegoat.

Don't people think it's weird that sanctions crash western economies, but Russia profits from it?

 

[coffinbirth]

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit.

IRONY AT IT'S FINEST.

LOL


"Microsoft eliminated fees for Title Updates on Xbox 360 Arcade games in April 2013," a spokesperson said, reiterating what Hryb and Whitten announced below. "We're constantly evaluating our policies and implementing feedback.

"While our development policies are confidential, and will remain so, we're pleased to say that this is just one of many ongoing changes and improvements we've made to ensure Xbox is the best place possible for developers and gamers."

UPDATE #2: Microsoft's director of programming Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb and Xbox corporate vice president Marc Whitten have both confirmed the dropped update charges on Twitter.

Both stated, "Microsoft eliminated fees for Title Updates on Xbox 360 Arcade games in April 2013."

"You forgot to tell people," Phil Fish responded.

UPDATE: Fez developer Phil Fish is looking into whether Microsoft's new policy is retroactive, so he can finally patch Fez for free. Previously, it would have cost the indie developer "tens of thousands of dollars."

"I will get in touch with them and see if their new policy is retro-active," Fish tweeted.

"But honestly, I feel it's kind of a long shot. Something tells me it won't be," he added.

Fish also noted that "You have no idea how much trouble I got into for talking about this. And you never will. So I'm pretty glad there's a happy ending here."

He then continued to rail against Microsoft for not promoting the game or even getting its digital box art ready in time for release.

ORIGINAL STORY: Microsoft no longer charges developers for Xbox 360 title updates, Eurogamer has been told by multiple development sources.

Microsoft made the policy change on the quiet earlier this year after charging developers tens of thousands of dollars to patch their games.

Microsoft has always charged a fee when developers first submit their games to Microsoft's certification process so they can be approved for release, and the company normally grants developers one title update free of charge. This remains the case, but sources have told Eurogamer that subsequent re-certification as a result of a title update is now free. This applies to Xbox Live Arcade games and full retail games.

There are caveats, we understand. If a developer is deemed to be making an excessive number of re-submissions due to an update failing certification, for example, Microsoft reserves the right to issue a charge. But the changes should make critics of Microsoft's closed platform happier - and align the Xbox ecosystem more closely with the likes of Steam.

Microsoft's title update fee was designed to encourage Xbox developers to spend as much time as possible making sure their games were up to scratch before they were released. The change comes over seven years after the Xbox 360 was released.

A number of developers have complained about Microsoft's patching costs over the years. In July 2012 Fez developer Polytron decided to re-issue a patch that corrupted a small minority of player's save files because fixing it would require the very costly process of getting the game re-certified.

At the time Fez developer Phil Fish praised Steam, explaining that the PC platform's model would have alleviated the problem. "Had Fez been released on Steam instead of XBLA, the game would have been fixed two weeks after release, at no cost to us," he said. "And if there was an issue with that patch, we could have fixed that right away too!"

Fish declined to comment when contacted by Eurogamer about this latest development.

All eyes now turn to Xbox One, due out in November, which many developers hope will be a more open system than the Xbox 360."



Point to where they are NOT talking about title updates aka patches here...

Or you can triple down on being wrong, your choice.

 

[Benniewise de Clown]

Just a small reply here since it's off topic, but the western economies were collapsing before the war even started. Many news reports about inevitable recession (or worse) way before, even the major banks chimed in.

For sure, banks and governments fucked up way before and covid made it worse.
Covid and Ukraine are a distraction from the Western world trying to create a completely new economy, because they just completely fucked up western economy.

But to get back ontopic, this increase in pricing is a result of all of the above.

 

[johnjohn]

This gen is reminding me more and more of the 360/PS3 gen lol.

 

[DeepEnigma]

IRONY AT IT'S FINEST.

LOL


"Microsoft eliminated fees for Title Updates on Xbox 360 Arcade games in April 2013," a spokesperson said, reiterating what Hryb and Whitten announced below. "We're constantly evaluating our policies and implementing feedback.

"While our development policies are confidential, and will remain so, we're pleased to say that this is just one of many ongoing changes and improvements we've made to ensure Xbox is the best place possible for developers and gamers."

UPDATE #2: Microsoft's director of programming Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb and Xbox corporate vice president Marc Whitten have both confirmed the dropped update charges on Twitter.

Both stated, "Microsoft eliminated fees for Title Updates on Xbox 360 Arcade games in April 2013."

"You forgot to tell people," Phil Fish responded.

UPDATE: Fez developer Phil Fish is looking into whether Microsoft's new policy is retroactive, so he can finally patch Fez for free. Previously, it would have cost the indie developer "tens of thousands of dollars."

"I will get in touch with them and see if their new policy is retro-active," Fish tweeted.

"But honestly, I feel it's kind of a long shot. Something tells me it won't be," he added.

Fish also noted that "You have no idea how much trouble I got into for talking about this. And you never will. So I'm pretty glad there's a happy ending here."

He then continued to rail against Microsoft for not promoting the game or even getting its digital box art ready in time for release.

ORIGINAL STORY: Microsoft no longer charges developers for Xbox 360 title updates, Eurogamer has been told by multiple development sources.

Microsoft made the policy change on the quiet earlier this year after charging developers tens of thousands of dollars to patch their games.

Microsoft has always charged a fee when developers first submit their games to Microsoft's certification process so they can be approved for release, and the company normally grants developers one title update free of charge. This remains the case, but sources have told Eurogamer that subsequent re-certification as a result of a title update is now free. This applies to Xbox Live Arcade games and full retail games.

There are caveats, we understand. If a developer is deemed to be making an excessive number of re-submissions due to an update failing certification, for example, Microsoft reserves the right to issue a charge. But the changes should make critics of Microsoft's closed platform happier - and align the Xbox ecosystem more closely with the likes of Steam.

Microsoft's title update fee was designed to encourage Xbox developers to spend as much time as possible making sure their games were up to scratch before they were released. The change comes over seven years after the Xbox 360 was released.

A number of developers have complained about Microsoft's patching costs over the years. In July 2012 Fez developer Polytron decided to re-issue a patch that corrupted a small minority of player's save files because fixing it would require the very costly process of getting the game re-certified.

At the time Fez developer Phil Fish praised Steam, explaining that the PC platform's model would have alleviated the problem. "Had Fez been released on Steam instead of XBLA, the game would have been fixed two weeks after release, at no cost to us," he said. "And if there was an issue with that patch, we could have fixed that right away too!"

Fish declined to comment when contacted by Eurogamer about this latest development.

All eyes now turn to Xbox One, due out in November, which many developers hope will be a more open system than the Xbox 360."



Point to where they are NOT talking about title updates aka patches here...

Or you can triple down on being wrong, your choice.

You are conflating two different arguments into one.

 

[Eddie-Griffin]

No, MS announced the price increase for the new gen.

In fact, I remember the conference clear as day since I was all in on Xbox back then. They announced $60 for third party (to cover the $10 licensing fees) and "swore" their first party would never be higher than $50... then Halo 3 happened and they raised their first party to $60 with that game going forward. Which a lot of us said would happen back then.

Why do you do this?

Nintendo actually aimed for it first, and they both aimed for $60 at the same time, but people like to pretend Nintendo doesn't do anything for some reason.

With that said, at least there was an arguably good excuse to be made for $60 games when you compare the difference in games that gen to the previous.

You can't really say the same now with $70 games, which are not only in many ways worse, and with many problems not resolved, but there's less game content, a further push for MTX, and casino like drops. I'm not seeing a reason for the $70 increase.

Where $50 for Tekken Tag and $60 for Gears of War, a ton of new game design features, Online, and HD at least made sense, I don't agree with it but it at least made sense. On the 360 and PS3, not the Wii, Nintendo had no excuse for that.

 

[SlimySnake]

They are doing this because they are feeling all-time, godlike powerful with how demand has been outpacing supply.

It’s a terrible move, but they are betting people are willing to pay for it. Inflation is only their excuse to try to get on those scalpers’ money. Why can they sell so many consoles at high prices and they can’t?

If supply had been stabilized with demand, they would’ve never raised the price.

I bet 1 million internet points that they even feel fortunate or even “blessed” by this situation.

Microsoft can’t raise the price even if they wanted to because they haven’t even got their targeted sales (although is in a comparable pace than 360).

Sony is being arrogant again, and this move comes after the stupid decision of making every game cross gen more than 3 years after release (because 2023 games will still be cross gen).

Had they switched to PS5 only games sooner, this move would be even accepted by many.

Not that I disagree, but do you think the insanely expensive $3.2 billion Bungie acquisition also forced their hand? That money has to come from somewhere, and they are clearly passing down the cost of the purchase to the consumer. Just like they did with the higher budget of their games.

Jim Ryan's Bungie purchase probably bought them protection from the CoD acquisition, but it clearly came at a cost. They paid under $300 million for Insomaniac in 2019, and refused to pay $300 million for Tomb Raider. Crystal Dyanmics and Deus Ex Montreal devs and IPs.

Jim Ryan is the root cause of this. Every move he's made just reeks of greed.

-$10 upgrades when nearly everyone else was offering next gen upgrades for free.
-$70 next gen games
-Killing off Sony Japan Studios as a cost cutting measure in the middle of a record year of profit ($3.2 billion from PS division)
-Holding back industry leading studios like ND, SSM, PD and GG by forcing them to make cross gen games in 2022 for 10-20% of extra sales on day one.
-Cutting costs by closing down Vita and PS3 stores.
-Hiring and acquiring new studios to do PC ports for quick cash while refusing to create PS5 SKUs for games like TLOU2 that sold 4 million in 3 days.
-And now increasing the hardware costs to consumers in 2022 while posting profits every year and refusing to release PS5 only first party games.

TBH, if Sony were the only publisher releasing next gen only games with Matrix quality visuals, destruction, and new physics then i wouldnt have minded paying $70 a pop or a higher price tag. But like you said, this move wouldve been accepted by more people if that was indeed the case especially with third parties and Microsoft taking this year off.

 

[Mozza]

Because ebay is but one of many places to sell scalped consoles, think facebook marketplace, craigslist or local alternatives in many countries. Many of these are more suitable for reselling consoles specifically because scalpers want to sell lots of consoles in a small area.

These websites certainly encourage scalpers, but they have no reason to care. More traffic is more traffic.

So no evidence whatsoever, so I will stick with my initial assumption that scalpers will go for a massive worldwide site like E-bay to re sell their consoles.