Quote Originally Posted by chrisbid View Post
publishers can basically charge whatever they want. the physical cost of production is very low. all of the costs of a game are in development and (for third parties) licensing. Sony and Microsoft have to keep the licensing fees high to make up for the losses sustained with hardware sales.

i agree that game prices are too high, but the bigger problem is expensive hardware.
No matter how it's sliced, the market can't sustain these prices. The consumer does not think about the licensing, development costs, royalties, etc. when they look for games. All the consumer thinks about is "I can't afford this so I won't buy it". It's funny how companies like Sony keep hammering home that $500 is a good deal because it will play Blue Ray movies and games when most consumers will not buy a $500 game system no matter what it does. Sure, I also would love to deck my house out with solar panels and geothermal heating because it just makes sense.............except for my pocketbook.