I'll get it at 1200 because it seems like my type of game. I would love games to stay at 400/800, but considering people are taking a dump and putting it on XBLA for 800 now means we can expect to see 800/1200 from now on.

And eventually people will be taking a dump and putting it on XBLA for 1200. PA, Braid and CC are the Halo 2:LE of XBLA. Once MS sees that people are fine paying the higher price, before you know it, the higher price becomes the standard.

Anyone get bionic commando. Bought it lat night it is pretty cool , I like in the demo when they joke about how you can't jump. It's pretty good except I don't understand how you are supposed to do the hacks the object just flies out of the box everytime

...And if the quality is there, and people perceive it as being worth $15, then everyone wins. Everything on XBLA has a demo, so if you play the demo and think the game is worth it, pick it up. Space Giraffe was at the lower 400pt price, and still sold for shit. Braid was priced higher, and sold quite respectably.

I've read that MS has recently cut the percentage that they give developers on XBLA stuff, so maybe this is the only way a dev can break even?

The moving rings around the ball point in the direction it is about to fall, it's a little difficult to see. You rotate what direction it's going to fall by rotating the camera, I believe, and then drop the ball. You have to drop the ball on the platforms/blocks and get it to the green platform/block.

Word going around was that Braid and Castle Crashers were both contracted before the royalty cut, but I could see this being a possibility for future high prices.

You're missing my point. Quality is inconsequential. If they see that consumers are willing to pay more for then they will take advantage of it and charge more. It is just fortunate for gamers that Braid & CC are probably worth the scratch(Billiards and Lumines' fractured release weren't, I'm unsure of Roboblitz). Quality is a non-factor from their perspective. Shit sells just as much as the good stuff. For every Space Giraffe there is a Big Bumpin'. Both are shit, one flopped while the other didn't.

It's a slippery slope. That's all I'm getting at.

How can they justify that? They need developers. However, at the same time I did see that the upcoming South Park game is said to be the first game from MS' own 1st-party XBLA dev house. So I imagine they'll use the breathing room to undercut the 3rd parties or just really reap the benefits of the higher price points.

Pub Games - Yeesh.

First play, it locked on my when I wanted to back out of one game and play another. Lame.
I think Flay was on the take when he gave it a 2.5. if ANYONE in the world paid for this and didn't get it through the pre-order, they should be publicly beaten with a sugar cane.

That being said though - the games as they would fit within Fable 2, would be interesting. But as a stand alone game, hell to the no.

I guess we're just in different camps. If I don't see something as worth whatever the price (game, movie, clothes, etc.), then I just don't get it and move on. I'd rather hear actual discussion of the games (for and against), instead of fighting over price issues. Let us rich folk* enjoy things!

* I am not really a rich folk.

Who's fighting? It's just a discussion. Based on how many different podcasts & blogs that touched on Braid's pricing in the past week, value is a hot topic at the moment.

For $15 the game is a steal. I've played many slightly longer, substantially inferior games for far higher price tags in the past 10 years. It isn't the greatest game ever made mind you, but it is an enjoyable game.

$15 is fine for a quality original game, $5 was fine for Space Giraffe (which I don't understand the hate for). $10 is great for remakes and ports. I have no issues with these prices, and it's still better than paying $20 for Zuma on the PC.

I think Microsoft has created a perception problem about what downloadable content is on xbla. The early positioning of xbla with mainly retro revivals and small popcap games combined with early file size limits and a rigid pricing structure, has put them in an awkward marketing position as downloadable games expand in scope. I don't think you have these same issues on the PS3 which has already blurred the lines between full retail games and downloadable games, by offering "full" game releases on PSN. Likewise on Steam everything is downloadable, so there is no overall perception of what downloadable content should be priced at, in the end gamers decide with their wallet.

It is an individual decision for each gamer, whether or not Braid is worth the $15 to them. But what I have a problem with is the idea that pricing should be limited. Gamers think they are limiting an inevitable slippery slope increase in the game prices by complaining about Braid, when what they will really end up limiting is the the scope and variety of the content offered on xbla.

I intend on picking up Braid after playing the demo. From what I have read, the game is constantly building on itself and changing, it sounds like a high quality game for the price.

Fable II Pub Games Code Held Hostage: Day 2.

I preordered from Circuit City instead of Amazon because CC was promising the code on August 13 and Amazon on August 15. Well, it's August 14 and I have no code yet. I called CC's customer service number and they said it could take up to 7 days for me to get my code. 7 days for an automated e-mail!? WTF!

Oh well. The good news is that I'm knee-deep in Jade Empire right now, so I wouldn't be putting too much time into Pub Games even if I had it. The other good news is that Pub Games apparently sucks, so I guess I'm not missing too much.

Well. either a lot of people preordered it or you need lots of sugar canes -- on the 360voice it "outsold" BCR 3344 to 3134. I'm guessing almost all were from preorder codes (at least I hope so). BTW, both games "outsold" Braid which had 2122 on day 1 and 2536 at it's peak last week (it's the rare game that spiked after a few days, I assume due to great word-of-mouth). I think that speaks volumes about the price point of Braid.

I'm in the same boat about the Circuit City code. Hope it comes soon (so I can stop checking my inbox, not so much because I'm dying to play the game or anything like that).

So what's so bad about pub games? I spent a little time playing the demo and it seemed OK. I wouldn't pay for it, but if I had a preorder code I could see myself putting some time into it. Pity they didn't consider pricing it more like 200-400 points, then I might actually consider it..

Playing through Bionic Commando, I can't believe I beat the game before w/ no save feature.

Man I miss the good ol days.

They changed the swing mechanic a little bit, but I feel like I'm starting to get back into the groove fairly well. I could destroy that game back in the day. Bought it on PSN though for the remote play, etc.

Yeah I suck at also right now, although I understand the hacking thing. Then again I sucked at the old game too so thats no surprise.

It's just boring as ass. Spinnerbox tournaments are far too random given the nature of the game, so winning those artifacts will SUCK.

I'mt basically play at this point to get those items, like the sword and pistol. I've got the couple potions already, not sure I care enough about the tattoos though.

Well, not only didn't I get it the other day, I STILL haven't gotten it. Say goodbye to my $80, Amazon.

re: Braid's ending

holy shit!
just, absolutely brilliant...

HUGE Exploit in Pub Games. Everyone is going to be starting out Fable II with giant piles of gold.

Now I have to decide if I want to use that cheat. I generally don't like cheating. On the other hand, after playing Pub Games tonight, my only thought was "OK, so my reward for pre-ordering is that I get to start Fable II massively in debt. Fun."

Yeah, I used it. I'm also playing the other games legitimately, but without it, it seems to me like the game is not all that great--the payouts are worse than Vegas, and half the time on FT, I get almost as many chips on the rows with fewer cards as I do on the rows with more card, so it doesn't progress very well. Slots, er, Spinnerbox, is awful for payouts. Or I'm just incredibly unlucky.
As a game I don't really mind FT, it does require a little bit of strategy and it's more interesting than Solitaire, it's definitely weighted toward the dealer.
You can always decide to not merge the patron with the hero. Plus its quite likely they'll update it to fix the glitch.