Counting the Pennies - Revision history

Dog Pants: /* Examples */

2009-05-17T19:56:35Z

‎Examples

Dog Pants: /* Mainstream Titles */

2009-05-17T19:48:22Z

‎Mainstream Titles

Dog Pants: /* Mainstream Titles */

2009-05-17T19:47:26Z

‎Mainstream Titles

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 Using my own xfire profile as an example, these values can be tested.
-* Mass Effect (mainstream single player) - £35, 36 hours = 97p/hour
+* Mass Effect (mainstream single player RPG) - £35, 36 hours = 97p/hour
 * Call of Duty 4 (mainstream SP with multiplayer) - £35, 120 hours = 29p/hour
 * Battlefield 2 (mainstream multiplayer) - £35, 211 hours = 17p/hour

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 ==Mainstream Titles==
-The RRP for a mainstream release is £35, although typically this is reduced by retailers. For this a player will usually get around 10-20 hours play from a single player game, with multiplayer games potentially extending into hundreds of hours. Sticking with the single player experience for the time being, this would equate to roughly £2 per hour in value for time, assuming the game was played to completion. In the grand scheme of things that's not bad value for money. Now take games which include a multiplayer component. The maths gets a little more foggy as the amount of time playing the multiplayer part of a game varies by player, but for the sake of argument assume a reasonable figure of 60-80 hours. A game with a decent multiplayer mode can therefore potentially drastically increase the value of the game, bringing it down to about 43p per hour.
+The RRP for a mainstream release is £35, although typically this is reduced by retailers. For this a player will usually get around 10-20 hours play from a single player game, with multiplayer games potentially extending into hundreds of hours. Sticking with the single player experience for the time being, this would equate to roughly £2 per hour in value for time, assuming the game was played to completion. Compared to other forms of entertainment that's not bad value for money. Now take games which include a multiplayer component. The maths gets a little more foggy as the amount of time playing the multiplayer part of a game varies by player, but for the sake of argument assume a reasonable figure of 60-80 hours. A game with a decent multiplayer mode can therefore potentially drastically increase the value of the game, bringing it down to about 43p per hour.
 Multiplayer only online games such as the Battlefield series are well established now, and frequently hold a place in the games charts. While the multiplayer components of regular games only occasionally offer prolonged interest, those designed specifically for online gaming will frequently offer hundreds of hours for the same price. A conservative estimate of between 150 and 250 hours averages a cost of around 17p per hour, an improvement again.

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 ==Mainstream Titles==
-The RRP for a mainstream release is £35, although typically this is reduced by retailers. For this a player will usually get around 30-40 hours play from a single player game, with multiplayer games potentially extending into hundreds of hours. Sticking with the single player experience for the time being, this would equate to roughly £1 per hour in value for time, assuming the game was played to completion. In the grand scheme of things that's not bad value for money. Now take games which include a multiplayer component. The maths gets a little more foggy as the amount of time playing the MP part of a game varies by player, but for the sake of argument assume a reasonable figure of 60-80 hours. A game with a decent multiplayer mode can therefore potentially triple the value of the game, bringing it down to about 35p per hour.
+The RRP for a mainstream release is £35, although typically this is reduced by retailers. For this a player will usually get around 10-20 hours play from a single player game, with multiplayer games potentially extending into hundreds of hours. Sticking with the single player experience for the time being, this would equate to roughly £2 per hour in value for time, assuming the game was played to completion. In the grand scheme of things that's not bad value for money. Now take games which include a multiplayer component. The maths gets a little more foggy as the amount of time playing the multiplayer part of a game varies by player, but for the sake of argument assume a reasonable figure of 60-80 hours. A game with a decent multiplayer mode can therefore potentially drastically increase the value of the game, bringing it down to about 43p per hour.
 Multiplayer only online games such as the Battlefield series are well established now, and frequently hold a place in the games charts. While the multiplayer components of regular games only occasionally offer prolonged interest, those designed specifically for online gaming will frequently offer hundreds of hours for the same price. A conservative estimate of between 150 and 250 hours averages a cost of around 17p per hour, an improvement again.