The Finals developer Embark Studios has shut down a frequent request from its community to introduce region locking to combat cheating in the hot new FPS.
30.11.2023 - 13:30 / gamesindustry.biz
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When I head to my local supermarket in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, a pack of rice (one kilogram) will set you back anywhere between €1.79 ($2) and €4.99 ($5.50), while looking for an equivalent product in Argentina’s capital, starts at somewhere around 400 Pesos or $1.
While I’m not an expert in commodities, or rice in particular, it is obvious that the regional price is somewhat adjusted, when taking into consideration disposable income as well as factors such as production cost, distribution cost, current demand and supply levels, and so on. In short: purchasing power parity.
The Economist has developed its well-known Big Mac Index to measure purchasing power parity by tracking the local price of McDonald’s signature burger and measuring differences and how one particular currency compares to another. Looking at the latest available July 2023 data, the Euro overvalued 4.3% in raw data and 15.5% in GDP adjusted against the US dollar price. In Argentina, the peso was overvalued by 33% GDP adjusted, likely because of the soaring inflation and strong devaluation of its currency.
This similar logic also applies to other products and services, including those of digital format. Netflix and Spotify both offer regional prices that are adjusted based on maintaining a relatively similar accessibility level.
When I was working at BoaCompra (now PagSeguro), we supported Valve’s first release of local catalogs and pricing outside of major currencies, including many countries in Latin America. We advised applying a similar logic and suggested reasonable discounts for Argentina and Brazil (and later Turkey). This was something that worked well when released but was seemingly too cumbersome to keep up with or required too much communication and understanding of current economic conditions.
A lot has changed since 2012 (and 2014 respectively), not just with the world as a whole, but especially with the devaluation of the Argentine peso and Turkish Lira. Valve has had issues with this for many years, but the current solution is far from ideal, as was also covered by Rob Fahey’s opinion piece at GamesIndustry.biz a few days ago.
An adjustment was urgently needed to ensure publishers generate and retain the proper value their products deserve, and pricing adjustments are somewhat aligned in real terms to those in major markets with more stable currencies. Switching off local currency support and adjusting pricing by simply switching to US dollar-denominated values had game prices soar up to 4,298%. This is a poor attempt at curing symptoms, not the root cause.
Simply hiking prices is not how to resolve the underlying issues of digital
The Finals developer Embark Studios has shut down a frequent request from its community to introduce region locking to combat cheating in the hot new FPS.
Developer Embark Studios has taken to the official Discord server for competitive multiplayer shooter THE FINALS to respond to player complaints about there being many new cheaters populating the game over the weekend. As caught by Mp1st, the studio has stated that it couldn’t ban cheaters effectively because of technical issues, but the problem was being actively worked on.
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PlayStation VR2, Sony's current-gen virtual reality headset, is finally available in India. The news comes nearly 10 months after its launch in the US and costs a bit more than the standard PS5 in the country. The visor and Sense controllers alone cost Rs. 57,990, albeit one could also opt for the Horizon Call of the Mountain bundle, priced at Rs. 61,999. However, it seems there's not enough stock when it comes to online retailers. At the time of writing, only Amazon and e2z Store have the headset in stock, with the latter only listing the base edition. Other notable sites have the option to pre-book or enable email notifications whenever they're ready.
The Game Awards is back for its 2023 edition, signalling that time of the year when the industry and fans gather together to celebrate the best in video games. Marking the 10th iteration of the Geoff Keighley-hosted show, the annual event is held in high regard by developers worldwide, who will be competing in 31 categories that acknowledge games across genres. As usual, the ceremony will be spruced up by big announcements and trailers for upcoming titles, backed by a dedicated musical orchestra conducted by returning composer Lorne Balfe. There haven't been as many leaks this year, so anticipation is high as gamers keep their fingers crossed hoping for the biggest reveals.
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Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer release date is finally upon us, as confirmed by Rockstar Games via a tweet. The first footage from the highly-anticipated crime odyssey sequel will be out on Tuesday, December 5, at 7:30pm IST in India/ 9am ET in the US, with the publisher only posting an image of a sunset and palm tree silhouettes — confirming previous claims that it's set in a fictionalised version of Miami, which franchise veterans might recognise as a return to Vice City. With that, it is clear that Geoff Keighley won't be presenting the trailer at The Game Awards 2023, though a teaser or some screenshot drops are always possible.
Video games are expensive. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that. But if you want to enjoy some of the latest games, it can mean picking and choosing what new release to grab. Other games are forced to sit on the back burner until they drop down to a more comfortable price. However, if you are still waiting to get on the latest-generation platforms, there’s a new deal we want to highlight. The Microsoft Xbox Series X is now reportedly at its lowest price yet. This is for those located in the United States.