Why isn't there outrage over game prices?

Not wanting to tread over old ground, but you'd have to have been living under a rock this week not to have noticed some of the uproar around the country about the stance by Adidas over the pricing of its All Blacks jersey.

In a nutshell, the company refused to budge on its wholesale price, prompting fans and retailers to voice their opinions on just about every forum imaginable. It was an outrage, it was a travesty, people opined. Senior people in the country, too. People started ordering their jerseys from overseas just to show Adidas what they thought, blah, blah, blah.

It seems the situation has now resolved itself somewhat (to be honest I haven't paid much attention to the issue, not being a huge rugby fan) but ask yourself this: why isn't there as much public outrage over video game pricing as there is over the price of a replica team jersey for an event that comes around once every four years? That's what Game Junkie reader delphijunkie wants to know.

Good point, delphijunkie, good point - but I don't have the answer.

I've talked about the discrepancies in video game pricing in New Zealand on this blog before but there won't be a gamer here who hasn't held off buying a new game they've wanted until they've found it in the bargain bin or on special somewhere.

Now, not that I usually use Twitter as a source for story material, but delphijunkie's query raised a interesting reply from kiwibastard, who noted that high prices for games had been "the case since there was games in NZ. I remember £1.99 budget tapes for Amstrad selling for $20 here."

So why is it that when rugby fans rise up in arms about an issue it nets results pretty darn quickly from retailers, but when gamers complain about high prices of something they love (which we have) it seemingly falls on deaf ears?

Is it because, in the mind of society, video games matter less than replica rugby jerseys and rugby in general and many in society still see video games as the domain for children and not grown adults? I know which one I'd prefer to buy.

Interestingly, there are two rugby games coming out to mark the Rugby World Cup: Sidhe Interactive's All Blacks Rugby Challenge ($128, EB Games, console price) and HB Studios' Rugby World Cup 2011: the official game ($118, EB Games, console price). I wonder if the pricing for those games will raise the hackles of rugby fans?

I'd be interested in your thoughts.

Article Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/blogs/game-junkie/5435276/Why-isn-t-there-outrage-over-game-prices