Gears of War 2 content pricing: Microsoft responds to Ars

Ben Kuchera:
"Microsoft's pricing decisions on the retail and download packages for the newest Gears of War 2 content are... interesting. We had some harsh words for the value being offered, but Microsoft has responded to us with their side of the story: newcomers to the game get a good deal, and the online download price is comparable to other content packs. We explore the issue."

[KingKionic]

Yeah thats a great deal. Cant wait till july.

[lord_of_balrogs]

I feel a bit betrayed though. I bought both map packs for 800 points a piece, then I find out newcomers get a free $20 value if they buy the retail Dark Corners DLC, while I'm still paying the same price as them for the same thing but without the extra's when I buy it over Live.

[KingKionic]

Yeah i guess thats true. But at least dark corners is 1600 MSpoints.

[All-3]

... Previous map packs for Gears of War, and paying premium prices for the option to get those when they first released or WAITING - and getting them for FREE afterwards?

Same with Resistance map packs... initially they were premium purchases via the PSN store, and later on they were offered up for FREE. Was Sony and Insomniac ripping off the people that bought the map packs when they cost money?

[Bnet343]

I've been with Xbox Live since it first began on Xbox 1, and I have yet to still buy a premium map pack. Trust me guys, maps are not worth it, but in this way of a $20 disc with the maps sounds good.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

All I got from that was:

"Screw you if you already an existing customer, we are looking for new blood with more $$$$."

What a crap excuse MS! If you were so concerned about value you would break the thing down so someone like me who doesn't give 2 sh*ts about the MP maps can get the campaign without having to pay out the wazoo for crap I don't want or will play.

You are going to fleece the people who have been asking and wanting an expansion on the Single Player.

[thebudgetgamer]

each pack was like 7 or 8$ i got all3 for 15$

[ElementX]

Crab since when did you speak out against MS? You were always the 360 fanboy. Sure, I was a 360 fanboy, but I sold my 360 and I post my PSN name, where's yours? Or don't you have a PSN name? Do you just want to talk without showing who you are?

[GiantEnemyCrab]

I favor the 360 but I'm not blindly following whatever MS does.

You missed some epic rants from me on MS then.

Avatars, their 09 lineup, DLC pricing, etc. I've had some real zingers!

I've been trying to get more balanced in my views since the beginning of the year. I bought a PS3 because KZ2 delivered and I said if KZ2 can deliver I can't keep giving Sony sh*t and here we are.

I still defend the 360 here more than PS3 but I'm trying to be fair.

[ElementX]

It's cool. I was a 360 fanboy but sold it when I was strapped for cash. Now I only own a PS3 but sometimes wish I still had the 360. I bet MS will have some killer news at E3. Sony will have some, but I think MS has some serious news up their sleeve. Only time will tell.

[All Time Greatness]

I bet Microsoft kills it at E3.

[DARK WITNESS]

there is nothing wrong with being a fan of a system, but still speaking out when the manufacturers do some or go in a direction you don't like.

i own both systems, i also like my 360 more.. i also believe and have always said this whole download exclusive this and that for x amount is not worth it.

I have not bought a single piece of download content for gears 2. For me the game was a big disappointment and i refuse to pay these extortionate amounts so i can add to the crap online ( and no i am not just talking about lag and bugs )

for the most part i hardly buy anything with points. not gamer pics, not themes. most of it is way, way over priced and the only reason they get away charging such amounts for it is because people buy it... and sadly people always will.

only DLC like GTA; L&D i would say is worth it and i would buy.

anyway, thats just my opinion. I agree with GEC, MS and Epic can keep it. I still have not finished the campaign anyway.

[Thoreau]

the video game industry.

sony, micro, and ninten only want our money.

[yugovega]

but not to this extent. no other company goes this far. yeah maybe 5 or $10 but not 20. it is blatant rip-off

[Cock4Gamers]

that would be the NATURE of all capitalistic enterprises

[edhe]

And here i thought they wanted us to make them sandwiches, sing them songs and maybe, just maybe, defile their daughters.

Ooops no.. a business that wants your money. Whodathunkit?

I'll be renting/getting gears2 for the new coop in this pack. Will see what more cheevs come along to see if i can scrub up some more gamerscore from the mp maps like the other ones.

Not liking how they randomly screw my gs % with achievement increases.

[JeffGUNZ]

how is 20 dollars a rip off? you get SEVEN NEW maps and a new chapter, that's standard, do the math. 8 new maps would run you 1600 at the cheapest. You are getting 7 new maps and a NEW CHAPTER, that's spot on. Would you rather they stop adding new things to the game, so you play the same old maps and the game gets real dull? I think it's funny how people expect everything to be free. The game was 60 dollars, and all this new content you think should be free or cheap? Come on people, it's all optional, if you want it, buy it, if not, don't. For all the people who enjoy gears of war 2, this is a great thing, to other people that just hate xbox, it's fuel to the fire.

[Shaka2K6]

.

[-MD-]

Gears of War 2 sucked only to those without a 360. Those of us lucky enough to own one enjoyed it.

[KingKionic]

Well 20 bucks would be a deal... let me see

combustible maps : 800 ponis

snowblind maps : 800ms points

flashback: free(gold editon) or 400 points

Now the new version

Dark corners 1600

Yeah the 19.99$ is a better value.

well at least it wasnt a outrageous price for dark corners.

[Lord Vader]

"at the risk of annoying the hardcore fans..."

I am annoyed ~ yes not bad pricing for the package perhaps, but Micro & Epic both should think twice about screwing hardcore gamers that are also early adopters. They've screwed us enough with the arcadey MP, they should have given us free maps along time ago.

I'd rather they resolve the MP Lag then create new dlc.

[Lord Vader]

...and no, i wouldnt have bought the old maps acouple months ago if i knew i could get them essentially for "free" in July.

Hindsight = 20/20

I paid like 800pts a pack, thats what $20 + $70 for the limited edition preorder (+ tax), & now another $20 for new dlc + maps i have already paid for ???

Can a Brother get a Break ?

Hey here's a novel idea, take that $$$ & fix the LAG !!!

[edhe]

Don't like the cost? don't buy it..

[JeffGUNZ]

I understand what you mean, since you paid for the map packs early and now others will get them included for the same price. BUT, you got the maps MONTHS earlier. You got to think of this like a business. If you go to a store and buy a new jacket for $120, wear it for 6 months, go back into the store and see the same jacket on the clearance rack for $19.99, do you demand another free jacket or to get your money back? No. This product is old now, people are not buying it anymore. EPIC has ALWAYS made their map packs free after a certain period of time, they did it with gears 1. Just look at it as having all those new map pack achievements and being able to enjoy that experience before others. The lag will always be there until dedicated servers, but it has got A LOT better. Just keep your head up and be happy they are adding new content instead of letting it sit in your game collection gathering dust.

[BX81]

If you were here from the beginning and supported our map packs from day one you have to pay more.. and not to mention you also have the added on bonus of having your online rank reseted by mistake and your current half done achievements reseted as well. Makes sense to me. Game on!

[IdleLeeSiuLung]

WOW, a lot of bitter people. If you don't like it, don't be an early adopter and take your money elsewhere. Vote with your wallet, not your mouth (or should I say electronic postings)!

[BX81]

Had I known that could even happen, best believe I would have never bothered.

[Microsoft Xbox 360]

Every article about this game is about DLC pricing or patches. Talk about a garbage ass product.

[-MD-]

I've seen like 20 threads about patching Killzone why not mention that?

[JasonPC360PS3Wii]

owned

[JeffGUNZ]

Wait a minute, what about the KZ2 patch BEFORE the game was released...And after?! What about the map packs suppose to be free, but now they are charging for them? Oh I know, you probably never see those articles because you spend all of your time trolling in the 360 section.

[cryymoar]

Sony never said the DLC was gona be free. Thank your media for saying that, Sony does not control what the media says. Just like how Kotaku spoiled Playstation Home for Sony, and that's why everyone was able to use the Home delays against them even though they were no where near ready to launch.

[JeffGUNZ]

True, Sony never CONFIRMED it would be free, but I read somewhere that it was hinted to be free, but it never panned out. That's not a surprise, why give something away for free when most people will purchase it?

[dylantalon]

i wish microsoft was charging 3 times the amount actually because it wouldn't surprise me. fanboys would still buy it not realizing they are buying sh*t because the online is broken and laggy and they are paying for it. fanboys should continue supporting rubbish and get rubbish . in the midst of rrod, people play on xbox live which is laggy and the top games for the xbox 360 are plagued with issues like slowdowns, glitches and lag and fanboys pay for xbox live. its actually fine for people to have free will and do what they wish but i wont support a system such as the xbox 360 and their inferior service.

ps. the talon stands for talented

[KingKionic]

well...

There are still alot of people enjoying this game. Yes ,the game has glitches. But nowhere close to gears 1. Lag all depends on who you are playing with. Its good there are updates though,it shows how you support your fanbase .

yes...gears fan.

[JeffGUNZ]

You're a complete ignorant fanboy. Listen, when you have 10 million people playing Halo 3, it may lag a little more than the 250 thousand playing Resistance 2. When you have more people purchasing Gears 2 in ONE weekend then Killzone 2 has produced from it's release, you will experience more lag. How can an online experience be "inferior" when MILLIONS of more people are choosing it, with their own free will? even with Killzone 2 having dedicated servers and excellent graphics, the "inferior" service still reigns superior. Your console is in third place, aka last. You should think twice about bashing a system for being "inferior" when it is ahead of your console. Answer this for me; If they 360 is "inferior", then please explain why this "inferior" product is STILL out-selling the "God almighty PS3!!!"?

[caffman]

you cant spell

[JeffGUNZ]

Really? Are you really picking out people's spelling and grammar on a forum? How about you take your own advice, it's "can't", not "cant". Before you attempt to bash other people's spelling and grammar do two things: A. Remember it's a forum and not a formal report/document. B. Make sure EVERYTHING in your post is grammatically correct and has proper spelling. Too bad you didn't take any of those two thoughts into consideration.

[Allowen]

I would like to be able to buy GoW2 and Halo 3 some day for the my PC.
I already got a Ps3 and a Wii so I dont really need a 3rd vg.
Well, wii does not count much....

[BX81]

I like the wii boxing. It gets you going pretty good if you push it.

[GiantEnemyCrab]

And here are the daily trolls woohoo!!! All aboard the train to leperville!!!

Wakka Wakka!!

[BX81]

Lol!

[KwietStorm_BLM]

I knew the retail package was $20, but I figured the download only would be less. Some funny business going on

[kevlar]

It doesn't make any sense to buy the download version, the retail version will undoubtedly get discounted in the online stores that I use like gameplay or shopto.net, will probably go for £12.99 or £13.99 which makes it cheaper than 1600pts.

[greyfox235]

i havent bought a thing and look how its going to pay off for me :)

[peeps]

good for gamers like myself, bad for gamers who purchesed the map packs as soon as they were avaialble.

I've never bought map packs ever lol cus usually i 'hardcore' a game when it's releasd, that is, playing hours and hours each day. By the time map packs are released i'm bored of the game. I was sure that the kz maps would be a day 1 purchase but aint been on in ages.

I guess map packs are worth it if your constantly playing on a certain game, but for a lot of ppl, they know that before long they will be free or in a deal like this anyway

[Brixxer600]

I have recently just purchased and played through Gears2 , i was going to get the extra maps but will wait for this "all in one" disc instead.