Developer Calls Pre-Owned Sales a Bigger Problem than Piracy on Consoles

stealth toilet said:

And to top it all off, they make it sound as though they're being robbed. Buy a used copy and your stealing EA's well deserved money, even though charging $60 for annual franchise installments is stealing from the customer. In principle, yes, EA should be paid for each published product that sells. In actuality, they're published products are not worth what they're charging for them. Nobody wins. Except Gamestop.

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Bingo, it's about the bottom line, $.

Grindspine said:

Oh, I'm not ignoring bargain shoppers at all. I got my PS2 used from a friend for $45 with three games and also have a pre-owned xbox. But, when buying DVD based media, I prefer to get it new since so many used copies have scratches. I will buy used, if the item is in good condition. But I try to buy games in the best condition possible. When I have had games for years, they still show little wear or evidence of handling and I expect the same of even used games I buy.

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I prefer new over used too to a certain degree I'm not going to buy a used copy at $37 instead of paying $40 for a new one. Awhile ago I got a used copy of Shin Megami Tensei Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army from gamestop rather then a new copy from game crazy because game crazy's computer system never bothered to drop the price it was the difference between paying 7.99 and 39.99 and the gamestop disc had acouple of small scrathes which I got buffed out.

Although this new policy does make me suscipous from what I have been reading alot of xbox 360 and ps3 have needed patches in order to work right I had before assumed that because dlc was becoming readily available that game developers and manufacturers where simply rushing production figuring the glitches could be fixed later. Now I'm thinking it might be intentional what better way to insure that people will pay the extra money for dlc then including a patche that you need so the game won't crash or freeze up on you.

EA Sports Locks Out Multiplayer Modes On Used Sales

EA Sports is going after the used game market.

Starting with the release of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, the publisher will introduce a new Online Pass, a one-time registration code included with each brand new copy of the game. The code allows players to access "online services, features and bonus content."

Those who purchase the game used can buy an Online Pass for $10 or sign up for a free 7-day trial. The pass will be implemented for NCAA Football 11, NHL 11, Madden NFL 11, NBA 11, FIFA 11, and EA Sports MMA as well. The pass offers different features for each title, however, players will not have access to basic multiplayer features if purchased used.

"You will be unable to play multiplayer online game modes or use your downloaded content in online game modes," EA says. Online leagues, dynasty and franchise modes are also only available with the Online Pass. The break down for each title can be seen on the publisher's official website.

"This is an important inflection point in our business because it allows us to accelerate our commitment to enhance premium online services to the entire robust EA SPORTS online community," said Peter Moore, President of EA SPORTS.

Despite being the leader in used game sales, retailer GameStop, which acknowledged it plans to focus on digital content in the future, supports Electronic Arts' new direction.

"GameStop is excited to partner with such a forward-thinking publisher as Electronic Arts," said Dan DeMatteo, Chief Executive Officer of GameStop Corp. "This relationship allows us to capitalize on our investments to market and sell downloadable content online, as well as through our network of stores worldwide." :

Re: EA Sports Locks Out Multiplayer Modes On Used Sales

I think I'm gonna merge this to the whole used sales worse than piracy thread...

EA is just after money... BLEH.

And really, I hate searching through bargain bins and finding that a good 60% of the games are sports games that are re-released every year with one or two features tweaked... LAME!

I like sports games especially like playing NCAA football a lot, I am eagerly awaiting 2011, I like the game updated even with just a few tweaks. The rosters from http://www.gamerosters.com/ were very good. Highly accurate, makes me appreciate the game even more.