Gamertell

With folks having fewer dollars in their pockets to spend overall, a report from Electronic Entertainment Design and Research (EEDAR) indicates there are more games coming out at lower prices. The research group suggests publishers may have to continue that trend, at least in the short term, as the economy gets hit harder.

According to analyst Jesse Divnich, from the EEDAR’s report:

“As the Xbox 360 and the PS3 hardware continue to decline in price, more non-traditional, casual, family, and price sensitive gamers (noting these demographics sometimes overlap) will likely adopt these systems, which will increase the demand for cheaper titles.”

Another important issue is shelf space, as there are more games coming out than there are spaces for retailers to put them in. Stores will find space for Street Fighter IV or the latest Final Fantasy installment or spinoff but, for titles that aren’t big names, retailers are going to have to look at price as a factor in choosing games. That’s particularly true in a climate that sees more non-traditional gamers shopping.

Divnich said the average manufacturers’ suggested retail price for Xbox 360 and PS3 games for February and March is $53, when initially PS3 and Xbox 360 games were starting at $59.99. It’s a risk for publishers as dropping decrease their profit margins. But in this time of economic struggle, the bigger risk may be doing nothing at all.

Look, I love video games as much as anybody but $60 is a serious drain on my wallet. I don’t remember a time in my adult life I’ve been more excited about sales that knock $5 or $10 the price of a game. Nor has there been a time I’ve traded more beloved games in for pennies on the dollar just because I couldn’t justify buying the game without using the trade credit. Knocking a couple of dollars off the price benefits everybody in the long run. A lot of us devout game slaves will just end up spending the extra money in the game store anyway. But you can’t get us in the store for an impulse buy if the games cost too much for us to put gas in our cars.

Read [GameDaily] Also Read [Gamers.com] Site [EEDAR]