Price?

[myros]

Wow, didnt expect this kind of price.
Sorry guys but IMO you're pricing yourselves out of a lot of potential new customers.
 
But good luck and all that, might check it out if it shows up in a future half price sale or something.

[Chief Rudiger]

Ha!

Just bought the game. Did i miss the fine print or was there actually no mention the "total" excluding VAT until after you'd hit confrim? (Prices in the UK are usually quoted inclusive of VAT)

Silly me.

Gripe with is with Matrix, not Panther.

[Chief Rudiger]

Hmm,

From the shopping basket small print:

*Information about VAT

Any physical products sold to customers in the European Union include an estimated VAT charge. However, the VAT rate and, hence, the total price, may change once you select your shipping destination. The tax rate that will be applied for each respective EU shipping destination will be as follows: 20% for Austria or Italy, 21% for Belgium, 25% for Denmark or Sweden, 19.6% for France, 19% for Germany or Netherlands, 16% for Spain, 22% for Finland, 15% for Luxembourg, and 17.5% for UK and all other EU member states.

A VAT invoice can be viewed and printed at the end of your purchase.

No mention that the basket total excludes VAT.

[Erik Rutins]

There's actually a pop-up window when you enter the store that specifically states that VAT Is only included at the end of the process when you are checking out (but before you pay). That's the way our store has to work because of the varying VAT rates by country, we can only apply it correctly once we know where you are.

[Greyhunterlp]

I'm not one to normally register my feelings on a forum, but I'm going to have to put myself down as another lost purchase. I'm mainly doing this to add another voice to the choir, as not passing comment and not buying does not send a message on its own.

£70 is just far to much to be putting out for a game like this, its a weeks food, or a months fuel.
For the people saying "Just save some more" that's missing the point, its not that most of us are that cash strapped, its more that we cannot justify spending the money on something that we may only use for a few hours.

I also find the developers "Average of 400 hours play" to be a massive overestimation, I've had WitP AE since it came out, and I've yet to put half that into the game - and I'm doing an AAR that takes me an hour a turn - and I've been doing a turn a day since the 7th of December. I've played HttR, but unless this has many more scenarios or a much larger size, this seems to be a paradox sized exaggeration.

I hope that Matrix reconsider their price point, the only comments I've seen about this game on four forums and rock, paper, shotgun have all been outrage about the price, and nothing about the game itself.

[SuluSea]

ORIGINAL: RayWolfe

ORIGINAL: SuluSea
I'll never buy anything from Panther Games being upfront and decent with customers is my most important criteria, raising prices on a 4 year old game is unacceptable.

I suspect that you know that this statement is untrue.
Shame that you feel it nessesary, from the home of capitalism, to suggest that a man is not entitled to be paid for his labour. And by golly the man has laboured. If you think the game is four years old, why has it taken 4 years for this to come out?
I expect no answer, because there is not one that can have any credence.

So you're saying COTA has always had a seventy dollar price tag?


If it hasn't changed than I'm wrong and apologize.


http://www.digitalriver.com/dr/v2/ec_Ma ... _ID=119338

If it has changed I stand by my original comments.

[milkweg]

ORIGINAL: Nihil

Another buyer lost, I have CotA as I have several games from Matrix. I was eagerly waiting this game to come out, but I am not going to pay 65 € (75 € with taxes added) for a game, not even for this one.

It is not a question about whether I have the money or not, which I obviously have, but i dont want to enter into this pricing policy. Is this a message? of course it is, I will repeat it just in case "I am not going to pay 75 € for a game"

Some people here is wishing you good luck though they have stated they are not going to buy your game, well I wish you the worst of lucks, perhaps that way you will reconsider and make you open your eyes.

You may price a game whatever you think it deserves but in the end it is the market who fixes the prices.

+1

I am exactly in the same position and can afford to buy this game but common sense says SAY NO! loud and clear.

[GoodGuy]

ORIGINAL: SuluSea

So you're saying COTA has always had a seventy dollar price tag?

If it hasn't changed than I'm wrong and apologize.

I hope you don't mind if I answer that question, but I'm pretty sure the digital download version is and was $59.99 since the release in 2006 (+ some additional 10 bucks for the physical copy then, I guess).

[milkweg]

ORIGINAL: ElchDivision



If someone does not have the money its one thing, but saving up rather than complaining makes it a lot easier.

Whatever fanboy. Complaining has the chance to lower the price and saying nothing does no one any favours. That's my take on it anyway.

[David Heath]

Hello,

We are listening and we fully understand why many of you are concerned with the price of this game and wanting to know if this is a shift in our pricing
policy. The answer is both yes and no. No this is not a shift in our pricing policy. Each product is priced for that product. On the yes side because we
always work with our developers when deciding the final price for any product. In the case of this game the release price was what Panther Games felt was
needed to allow them to recover their efforts and invest in new products. We will also be releasing a demo for you to try in the next few weeks,
which should help with your decisions on Command Ops: Battles from the Bulge.


David Heath

[RayWolfe]

I'll never buy anything from Panther Games being upfront and decent with customers is my most important criteria

That is my point. That you don't think that Panther are being upfront and decent.
In what way are they not. The man should be paid for his labour. You don't want to; that's fine, but to impune the decency of this developer is beond reasonablness.

[Sti]

ORIGINAL: GoodGuy

ORIGINAL: SuluSea

So you're saying COTA has always had a seventy dollar price tag?

If it hasn't changed than I'm wrong and apologize.

I hope you don't mind if I answer that question, but I'm pretty sure the digital download version is and was $59.99 since the release in 2006 (+ some additional 10 bucks for the physical copy then, I guess).

No, it wasn't. It was 49.99 (or even 39.99, I'm not sure whether the 49.99 were the download version or the physical copy.... and it was even lower for a while (on sale)).

[jmlima]

ORIGINAL: David Heath
...In the case of this game the release price was what Panther Games felt was
needed to allow them to recover their efforts and invest in new products. ...

I wonder if the reasonable number of people on these forums that supported them, virtually without complaints, through the many years it took to get the COTA engine tweaked for this release, were also taken onto account.

[Titanwarrior89]

I will probley buy it. BUt they have every right to whine. So stop Whining about their whining. Oh boy now I am whining about your whining that their whining.....[;)][:D]

ORIGINAL: Greup

ORIGINAL: Terminus

Pay the money or not, but don't whine about it.

I couldn't agree more.

It's a lot of money and probably more so for those who see BFTB as just another PC game. I suggest people compare the cost of BFTB to the cost of other similar priced things in life (one shoe of top brand sneakers, two premium Tequila or Scotch shots, one new tire for your car) , consider how serious you are about historical war simulations, check your budget and make your decision. If it's not worth it to you - fine. It's your choice just as much as the pricing is Panther/Matrix choice.

The world probably don't need to know that you consider a game's worth more if the scope is semi-global than if the scope is "just one battle". Be happy - go play Risk. It's a tremendous value!

In my case the last war game I bought was COTA back in 2006. Call me a Panther fanboy if you want, but since Panther started issuing games again during the last decade I have found no other war sims to been worthy of my *precious* time and my money. Given the fact that I still play COTA after 4 years and I expect BFTB to last at least as long I don't have a big problem with investing in BFTB. Certainly I would rather have an east front game (Fire Brigade revisited, Arjuna?) but until then (if ever) BFTB will most likely fill a big part of my simulation needs.

Peace to the world! There are enough historical wars to be re-played.

[milkweg]

Hey, I bought my HTTR on sale from eBGames many years ago and it only cost me $29.99. There is no way eBGames would even consider selling this game at $83.99 CAD. Wish we could return to those days because my wallet was happier back then.

[philsublime]

Fellow wargamers. I don't post much. But I feel I have to now. Ever since having played the heck out of CotA and since BftB has been announced, I've been checking on the progress here in the forums. I felt like everyone was really waiting for this game. Now finally the game is out, and instead of talking about it's qualities and sharing strategies and ideas, we're discussing price policy and giving economical advice to Matrix. All of you who believe, from an economical perspective, it was unwise of Matrix to sell it at a higher price tag, I think you're wrong. These guys probably aren't stupid and did their homework.
Me personally, I don't care paying 20 bucks more than the usual price and therefore making it possible for small developers to make games I love. I would probably even pay a 20 bucks more. On the other side, I also understand the complaints about the price tag, especially in difficult times. But guys, let's get over it, maybe eat noodles and rice for a week and get yourself the game. Support Panther Games!

[SuluSea]

ORIGINAL: RayWolfe

I'll never buy anything from Panther Games being upfront and decent with customers is my most important criteria

That is my point. That you don't think that Panther are being upfront and decent.
In what way are they not. The man should be paid for his labour. You don't want to; that's fine, but to impune the decency of this developer is beond reasonablness.

Okay , looks like we have an opinion and they differ.

I never said the man shouldn't be paid, that's entirely you. I stated I won't pay what he thinks the game is worth nor pay an inflated price on an older game.

[CriticalMass]

ORIGINAL: Sovard

Unfortunately, higher price points do not generate more revenue.

I would suggest Steve Jobs would disagree with you...

1988, I paid £150 for 1/2 MB of RAM for my Amiga 500, so I could "play" Panther Games' Fire Brigade...I worked in a record shop, so that was more than a weeks wage! IIRC

[Chief Rudiger]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins

There's actually a pop-up window when you enter the store that specifically states that VAT Is only included at the end of the process when you are checking out (but before you pay). That's the way our store has to work because of the varying VAT rates by country, we can only apply it correctly once we know where you are.

I'm using Mozilla and when i follow the link (as below) given in the "Now Available" topic in this forum no pop up immediately appears.

http://www.matrixgames.com/products/377 ... .the.Bulge.

At no point in the order process do i remeber being told the price quoted exlcuded VAT. Indeed, the above quoted small print suggests VAT is inclusive in the price. I have repeated the order process as far as reentering my details and haven't had any pop ups.

[Erik Rutins]

I just verified that it's there. I'm also using Firefox. Are you blocking pop-ups? Here's a screenshot of what I just saw 30 seconds ago: