I hear people who aren’t in the gaming industry talk a lot about gaming piracy both on websites and in conversation and, well, here’s what I think.
Champion of Gaming Industry: PIRACY IS WRONG!
Me: Okay. Sure. Why though?
CGI: Because it takes money away from gaming companies! Duh!
Me: Okay, but actually there isn’t really any proof that the people who pirated those games would pay for them, is there? And besides, game companies make tons of money every year. Look at games like World of Warcraft or Call of Duty. They sell millions of copies and make millions more in subscription fees.
CGI: You are only talking about big game companies! What about small game companies?
Me: Oh! Okay, small game companies. I guess that’s true. It is definitely harder for small game companies, but what about Braid, or Super Meat Boy, or Bastion. Those were all made by small companies (very small) who put together an excellent product and marketed it well, and are still in business because of it. Piracy didn’t kill them.
CGI: Uuuuuuh…
Me: Let me ask you something. Do you buy games used?
CGI: Yeah, sometimes.
Me: You know that videogame companies don’t get money for those copies you bought, right?
CGI: Zuh?
Me: Game companies make no money off of re-sold games. If you buy a game from Gamestop or another used game store, the company that made that game is not going to get any part of that profit. Gamestop may choose to buy from that company again because of the potential high resale value for the games that company makes, but the actual company that made the game won’t see a dime. In essence, you just bought that game without paying the company who made it. Isn’t that like stealing?
CGI: But I paid for it! I’m part of the economic process. A transaction was made and like you said, Gamestop will probably buy more from that company in the future.
Me: Yeah, probably, but they don’t have to. And there’s really no telling if they will or not. Also, that’s in the future. Speaking of the future. Do you ever wait for a game to go on sale? Like when games go on Amazon Gold Box or things like Black Friday or Clearance?
CGI: Yeah, I got this one game for like 3.99 at Best Buy during the holidays!.
Me: And what was the MSRP?
CGI: Like 59.99. Such a good deal!
Me: And how long ago did that game come out?
CGI: Like a year ago, but whatever. It’s still a great game and I got an awesome deal.
Me: Awww, bummer, dude.
CGI: What do you mean? I just said, it’s a great game and I got an awesome deal. How is that a bad thing?
Me: Hate to break it to you, but… See, when that game came out, it didn’t make any money - even though it’s a “great game,” like you said. And because it made next to no money for the first year that it came out (due to people selling it used and people being unwilling to pay full price) the publisher considered the game a failure and closed the studio that made it. The entire development team was left unemployed, but some of those people were lucky enough to get jobs at other game companies and a few are even making this new game. It looks great.
CGI: Awesome. How much is it?
Me: 59.99.
CGI: I’ll just wait or get it used.
Me: Or just pirate it, if that’s your attitude.
CGI: That’s stealing!
Me: To be honest, used game sales probably hurt the gaming industry more than piracy.
CGI: How do you mean?
Me: Used games are bought by people like yourself. People who don’t want to pay full price, but also don’t want to steal a game. If used game stores didn’t exist, those people who buy used games wouldn’t steal, they’d probably just wait for the game to be on discount (which would still give companies more money than used games do - which, remember, is none).
CGI: That’s stupid. You can’t just say that if used game stores didn’t exist, people would buy more games new!
Me: But people like you can say that if piracy didn’t exist, people would buy more games?
CGI: …
Me: The fact is that used game retailers are the only ones who make money off of those used game sales. If piracy didn’t exist and all of the people who pirated bought used games instead, the industry would NOT be better off at all. They’d be making no money - ever. However, if those used stores didn’t exist and people had to buy new copies of a game, the gaming industry WOULD make more money because any and ALL sales would be new sales. Besides, there would probably be a lot more GOOD discounts at retail stores. Without needing to compete with used game sales, one publisher could actively work with a retailer to lower the price of its titles to compete with another publisher’s titles (knowing that they would still make money on every copy sold). So you, the consumer, would get a new game (i.e. No scratches, new game smell, pretty pretty pretty, mine mine mine) for as cheap as they go used at Gamestop (scratched up, smelling like something, name scrawled across it in Sharpie, with a pube in the case). You might even get it for less.
CGI: …
Me: Essentially, what I’m saying is that people who steal, probably weren’t going to buy. They’re actively doing nothing to the gaming industry. They’re not helping anyone (obviously), but they’re not really tangibly hurting the industry either. People who buy used? They’re actively feeding a market that is in direct COMPETITION with the gaming industry.
CGI: But…Piracy is stealing! Stealing is wrong!
Me: Fine. Whatever. Ps. You know you just sped through that red light, dude. Right?
CGI: It was barely red when I was in the intersection and I’m only going 37.
Me: My bad.
The point is, if you’re buying games used and the reason you don’t like piracy is because it “takes money from game studios,” please shut up. I’ve worked in the industry for years. I’ve been with a dev team when they were shut down. I buy my company’s games new. I buy other companies’ games new. I try to support and showcase small indie games when I hear about them by telling others and encouraging them to buy. I also buy some games used. I also buy some games on sale. I frequent CheapAssGamer and Amazon Warehouse Deals and love them both. And when I was a kid, I had a modded PSOne that I used to play burned “backups” along with purchased games. Then I grew up and helped Sony launch the PS3, which I then bought at full price.
Piracy isn’t great. Agreed. But if you really want to help game companies, get out there and do it, but yelling at and judging people doesn’t help anyone in my industry. Especially if what you do is not much better.
Hey Sony,
I know that Geohot has got you all in a legal tizzy right now, but hey, do me a solid? Stop making security updates that potentially kill my system.
See, the thing is that I hear you just put out this 3.60 update. Which is great and all, but supposedly when I update with my 60Gig PS3, I’ll get this:
That yellow light means that I, who proudly bought your system early on and paid for it, will be out of my PS3 (which I love) because you’re trying to catch Carmen Sandiego.
Now, I totally get it. The reason for some of these changes is because of this douchebag who decided to crack your codes and make it so that a PS3 can do things that you don’t want and then he told everyone.
Welcome to America.
It’s not exactly uncommon for someone to buy something and then use it for something that it wasn’t originally intended and then teaching other people how to do that. And I’m not just talking about the recent phenomena of modding systems. I’m talking about people using cement blocks to loft their beds in college, or using garbage bags for ponchos.
But I guess that’s not the same, right? I mean, these aren’t garbage bags, they’re PS3s! Well…
Why aren’t you suing those jerks who are using PS3s as super computers? I mean that wasn’t why you made them either. Oh wait! Is it because those people are the US Air Force and not just some guy? Is that what makes it okay?
Or maybe all of the fuss is because the security breach is “costing you money.”
Here’s the thing. I’m already afraid (LIKE MOST PEOPLE) that I’m going to brick my system that I PAID over $450 bucks for by installing firmware that was created BY YOU. WHY in the HELL would I want to do anything to this machine that might brick it?
Are there really that many people out there using these codes to steal games and rip you off?
Not to be a dick, but…I hardly buy Sony games as it is for my PS3.
So what’s the deal? Because right now I’m sitting here as a paying customer and wondering if the next time I update my system if it’s going to explode.
SO maybe instead of chasing down some basement hacker for what he POTENTIALLY has done to your company. You could focus on those of us who have paid and continue to pay for your services.
Or haven’t we paid enough?
