PixelJunk creator disappointed by cheap gamers

by Andrew Yoon on Jan 16th 2010 8:16AM

Q-Games' Dylan Cuthbert doesn't like you, cheap gamer. When quizzed by Develop, the PixelJunk creator described one thing that disappointed him most about the industry: gamers that refuse to open up their wallets. "Gamers complaining about our games being too expensive at 10 dollars. I'm not sure this is an industry problem, but it seems ridiculous that people complain about that price point." Cuthbert seems particularly sensitive about this issue, noting the rampant piracy of PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe on PSP earlier this year.

The naysayers seem few and far apart, though. PixelJunk Shooter went on to become the second best-selling game on PSN in December. Some members of the Joystiq community have even suggested the game is worth "more than $10." Obviously, the studio is doing well enough with its PSN endeavors, as Cuthbert confirms that "more PixelJunk is definitely in the pipeline." With PixelJunk Dungeons and presumably PixelJunk Shooter Encore in the works, the indie studio clearly has a lot to work on at the moment.

Source

Tags: dylan-cuthbert, pixeljunk, pixeljunk-shooter, q-games

Reader Comments (147)

Its not my fault his studio didn't have the foresight to know that a UMD release of the game in Japan would result in piracy :/

You're right, it's not your fault that they didn't have foresight about that..
However, it is your fault that sales are down because you pirated it..

"What!? It's not my fault that I got an F in English, Lee Harvey Oswald was framed for shooting JFK!"
Your argument makes about as much sense.

lol, you assume much, as I don't even have CFW on my PSP.

that didn't have anything to do with it. there could have been no UMD release at all, and it still would have been pirated like crazy. being on the PS store only doesn't protect a game from piracy.

I got Shooter, and it's definitely worth the 8 euro I paid. Thinking about getting Eden, but I hear it's kinda frustrating, should I get it?

You should play the demo, it can be frustrating that you're helpless when you fall because you expect to be able to grapple.

Finally bought Shooter and well worth the $10 price tag. $10 really isn't that much to afford. Some fast food joints charge close to that for a damn meal and it isn't even the most expensive item anymore. As for Eden, I really enjoy it. Frustrating? Heck yes, but still fun and relaxing to play once you get past the bit of frustration.

Eden isn't really frustrating, it's just hard.

When you're falling to your death (though falling doesn't kill you, it's just a figure of speech) it's your fault. You didn't do something right, you didn't calculate the angle right, didn't dodge the guy, didn't wait for the thing to sway just the right way.
Again, it is pretty difficult... and definitely do NOT get it for its trophies, you will NOT be getting them, or you will, but after spending a couple hours for just a bronze.

Haha Hydrophobicfish, your description of Eden sounds a lot like Demon's Souls. As long as Eden isn't unfair I'm ok with the difficulty. Thanks for the feedback, I think I'll get it, but I have to get one of those dumb cards first.

I've had Eden since release and I think I've only made it through the third or fourth garden. That said, I was happy I picked it up. It's a great experiment that is beautiful executed, and quite a bit of fun once you figure it out.

Eden is enjoyable unless you aim to get all the spectra in every garden (which I, the completist, felt compelled to do). It's not too rough at first, but once you reach Garden 7, you will be in pain from there through the end (Garden 10). In fact, Garden 7 is really the hardest one, and it's the only one where I had to use a map (thank you to the guy who created it! What an undertaking that must have been!) to find all the seeds. The latter half of the game was so rough that I decided not to get Eden Encore. Difficulty aside, though, it is a game well worth its price and is good fun (incidentally, I happened to be playing Garden 7 right when they released the patch that made the game easier by making the large crystals refill 1/2 time, rather than 1/3; I think I may not have been able to complete that garden without the patch).

Anyway, about the Trophies, I have all of the non-Encore ones except the no-wasted-pollen one, which my attempts to get failed. It took me a couple of months to get through the game, but I didn't snag my most recent Trophy in it until a year after purchase, when I finally had 3 players to get the ping-pong and 15-pollen-prowler ones.

Eden was one of my favorite games of 2008. The level design is just fantastic.

Eden is a ton of fun. I'd recommend playing multiplayer. I can be frustrating, but multiplayer helps to nullify some of the repetitiveness and in some ways makes it easier.

I usually shy away from PSN games that go over the £10 mark, don't know why i do but i just do. I'll impulse buy most games under that mark but over and I probably wont, maybe it's cos after i'm done with it there's no resale value.

Anyway I'll probably get voted down for not supporting studios and whatever

Yeah here in the states they charge about 20 just to see a movie and then you waste some more on food crap for just 2 hours of joy ( if anything) so 10 for a game that can entertain you for 4 hours is not bad imo.. then again the setting is not the same but oh well cant always have everything

I still don't understand how people complain about $10 and $15 games, when the number one complaint this generation seems to be that the vast majority of $60 games can't justify that price with content and replayability... And then add extra $10 content on every few months to extend the package.

It shouldn't be a rare and momentous occasion when a downloadable game sells 1,000,000 copies, it should be almost guaranteed.

I enjoyed Pixeljunk Shooter, I'd buy a sequel, but my expectations for a PSN/XBLA title have been colored somewhat by my tendency towards renting. I can go rent a game and get 8-15 hours of entertainment for $10, or I can buy a PSN/XLBA title for $10 and get anywhere from 2-6 hours of entertainment. Something like 'Splosionman feels like the right amount of content for the right price, whereas PJ Shooter left me thinking "What, over already?" It definitely felt like another layer or two of levels wouldn't have been *too* much to ask.

I don't mind paying the price for a good game over the £10, where I refuse to go is to the £60 mark, I don't give a hoot if its the greatest game of the year, I can wait till it drops in price. £40 is the most I'm willing to go

Ive yet to see any game thats been £60. hell, Uncharted 2 was £35 - £40 the day it came out! Most games are £35 - £40 the day they come out and only a few are £45

@ Pirate - Modern Warfare 2 was £55-60 at launch, was a pretty big deal. Still the MSRP, though most retailers discount it.

GAME is the culprit -_- I've been in there a number of times to see new games, only to be horrified with a £60 price tag. Though its only done for games that have been hyped into oblivion, they still do it. In any case, Game usually is overpirced for everything, I was a Gamestation person until GAME bought them out too. Prices have evened out now, though saying that, I don't think I've ever seen anything reach £50 in Gamestation let alone £60 unless it came with something.

Yeah I haven't bought anything at game in years, I always buy online or second hand from CEX.

For me there had to be a good deal going
in GAME for me to even go into the place.
PLAY.com, Amazon.com and gamestation thank you.
And CEX when I can be bothered to go to that side of town.

Saying that ASDA and Tesco are very competitive nowadays.
They are worth a look-in.

i am going to slot shopto.net in there as well :)

I have never saw a game ever sold for above £50, in shop or online. Never. £45 is the highest.

I want a Euro key :[

He's kind of right. People complain whenever a PSN game eclipses the $5 price point. Gamers will shell out $60 for absolute crap, but when something quality comes out at a sixth of the price, they bitch and moan like the developer is trying to eat their young. When a game is the same price as two meals at a fast food joint, don't bitch!

As for the piracy, well, yeah, welcome to reality.

If PSN had demos for all of their content, they might find people more willing to drop $10 than feeling like they wasted their money if they don't enjoy it.

Look into it... Demos actually hurt sales of those type of games.

Even if it's a really good game, people will say "meh, it didn't wow me" after playing the demo. Or they feel they got a good enough dosage of the game... or this, or that.

I myself have very rarely gone on to purchase the full version of a game after playing the demo.
That said though, I have over 50 PSN games, so, I don't think I'm really too much to blame for what's going on here. :)

Oh man, I wish there was a demo to Frogger. I'm sure regretting that right now. Atleast the new Matt Hazard game wound up being good.

I completely agree with Captain Slender. I haven't bought a ton of XBLA games, but of the 5-8ish I have, there is not one of them that I didn't download the demo for.

PSN games? Haven't bought one. Give me a level... half a level... 2 minutes of timed gameplay before kicking me off... something, and I'll be more likely to buy a game after trying it as opposed to an impulse of, "Hey, this game has a cool logo or interesting name - I think I'll buy it right now!"

I agree with Captain Slender. If PSN games had demos then maybe more people would buy games like PJS. Just as an example, last year there was this game that came out on XBL that I never had heard of called Trials HD and I played the demo. I enjoyed it so much I bought it. And so did over 300,000 other XBL gamers. So Mr. Cuthbert maybe you should spend some time making a demo for your game instead of calling us cheap bastards? Just a suggestion....

Demos are a great tool for increasing sales. The people who get demos and don't buy the game wouldn't have bought it anyway. I have about 10 PSN games and only Flower did not have a demo that I played. And it has to be a good demo leaving you wanting more.

I refuse to buy downloadable games like this without a demo. What if it looks great, and I end up playing it and not liking it? That's $10 down the toilet. I don't mind spending $10 on a game like this if I like it, but I'm not going to blindly throw my money at any game and just expect it to be my cup of tea.

I don't see how 10 bucks is to much for a game. My biggest complaint is games that sell for 60 and don't offer near enough content. In my opinion, only a very few games are worth $60 such as Oblivion because of all of the content on the disc. Other than that, games like MW2, while fun, are not worth $60 (mainly because it was made for multiplayer)

But to some people, it is worth the $60 (especially if they only play multiplayer). I think the game was well worth it and I don't even play multiplayer and didn't care for spec-ops.

While I understand where Dylan is coming from, I can't say I don't understand why gamers, here in Australia, pirate, seeing as a titles usually sell at the one hundred dollar mark.

Of course great digital medium titles are worth their weight, especially the said title at a mere $10 USD. But, seriously, at $100 AUD for an Australian retail copy, it's a bit too much! Having said all that though, I don't condone piracy, in fact, I usually wait for months for a title to lower in price before picking it up, or I get them from overseas at a much lower price including postage, on release too!

I know some folks whom have never ever shelled out for anything they have on their consoles... it's really, really sad, and they'll complain about the prices too, no matter how cheap.

It Ain't cheap unless it's pirated to them, I guess. :(

Secondhand or pirate, right?

Actually a 10USD game can be too expensive. Or it can be too cheap, or it can be just right. What I'm trying to say is that no one so far has bothered to explain how they evaluate a game.

Example:
For myself, a 10USD game requires to give me 4 solid hours of entertainment (at the very LEAST) in order to qualify as something that I would considering purchasing. I use the same measuring stick for all games: 2,50 USD paid for each hour of solid entertainment. I've found that downloadable titles are more often more equipped to hit that target than full priced releases.

Note: exceptions are made (e.g. Flower)

Sincerely,
Federico Figueredo
http://www.dropthedice.com

I have no problem paying 10 bucks for awesome games like shooter and flower but I do have a problem paying for garbage. If there's one thing that makes me not feel bad about pirating games it's hearing a guy who OWNS A VIDEO GAME COMPANY crying about it. For some reason I doubt he's struggling to put food on the table...

As everyone knows, independent game companies that sell $10 downloadable games bathe in cash every night.

I think the problem is that 10 dollars is too expensive for a game someone doesn't really want. I think a lot of gamers will buy an indie/experimental game at 5 bucks, but unless they're really falling in love with a game, they won't shell out for it. I think VVVVVV getting a lot of press and selling for 15 dollars will really show if gamers will buy at a higher price point.

I Really want VVVVVV, but I tought it was going to be sold at 10 bucks price point...
I think now im gonna wait some reviews ...

If you haven't seen the Quicklook for it, here's a link for it:

http://www.giantbomb.com/quick-look-vvvvvv/17-1878/

I played flower because of all the great reviews it got of its beautiful graphics simplicity and soundtrack blah blah whatever. it was a great game and it was definitely something that i enjoyed.

i havent played a game like that in forever in which i mean, i havent played a game that has just been pure fun and not stressful like CoD MW2 where i die over and over again.

but one thing i will say (and im not speaking for the pixeljunk guys game cuz i havent played it) IS THAT $10 FOR FLOWER IS TOO MUCH. $6.50 maybe? idk but that game is wayyyy too short for $10 i paid it though and it was an enjoyable experience but i will never play that game again because after the first run its the same thing...im sure a few friends will like playing it though

The way I look at it is this: I have no problem paying 10 or even 15 dollars for a good downloadable game that'll give me hours upon hours of enjoyment. I've done it quite a bit. However, the fast majority of games out there just don't offer that kind of value. You can argue "Oh, it's only 10 dollars", but that's also 10 dollars I can save up to put forward to a full retail title that will give me months if not years of enjoyment.

$10-50 is my range to pay for games. $60 isn't a bad price, but something about 2 games = $100 resonates with me better.

Not to mention the lack of games that have content beyond 10 hours. It's not always a price thing...sometimes it's a content issue when it comes to paying for games

The problem with these digitally distributed games is that they have to compete with retail games, which **actually go down in price over time**

Now that we're a few years into this gen, there are hundreds of full fledged retail games for $10 or less to compete with, and the value just doesn't compare.

I agree with Jenks. PSN titles cannot compete with "full" games that have dropped enough in price to be comparable with PSN titles.

It is very odd seeing an older PSN game (or older downloadable PSP game) that has not adjusted it's price, except through limited time offers. I realize that their price point does not offer a not of wiggle room, but maybe shave a dollar or two off of old PSN titles. I'm sure sales would go up for the titles as well if their prices adjusted over time.

That may not be what Jenks was alluding to, but that is my opinion on the subject.

The gaming populace as a whole is idiotic these days. Look at the games that sell and those that fail.

People buying popular mediocre games like Modern Warfare 2. People not buying excellent games like Valkyria Chronicles and Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts. People ignoring a game that costs $15 and instead buying their 3rd copy of a game on Steam because it was discounted. People not buying Bionic Commando Rearmed because there wasn't a jump button. People buying the PC version of a game just because the graphics are a little better. People basing purchases on review scores. Fanboys who are blind to the truths behind their platform of choice...

No, there really is no hope for gamers, just as television, music, and movies have been ruined, so shall videogames.

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PixelJunk creator disappointed by cheap gamers

Reader Comments (147)

Posted: Jan 16th 2010 11:20AM Darkpen said

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