A Strong Kick in the Face to People Upset With Online Passes

In today’s profanity and insult-laden Speak Up on Kotaku, commenter Skeletal-Minion tells us exactly what he thinks about people that complain about Online Passes and other used sales-thwarting measures. I’m so sick of seeing people who buy used games bitching, most recently about Kingdoms of Amalur providing some extra content for people who buy a new copy. You don’t like Online Passes? You want the “choice” to be able to buy the game used (and I can’t even believe I’m actually saying that, as if the option to buy used was completely removed, when it obviously hasn’t)? Fine then. DON’T FUCKING BUY IT, you entitled, self-centered pricks. 38 Studios and every other company who implements an online pass don’t have to listen to a fucking word of your whining. When you decide to be cheap and save a few dollars by buying used—and yes, it boils down to you being CHEAP, since if you can’t afford to skip one fucking value meal to make up the $5 difference between a new and used copy, you obviously don’t have the extra money to waste on the game period and shouldn’t be buying it in the first place—those same developers and publishers you’re crying a river to are making $0 off you. To paraphrase Penny Arcade, “You are no longer their customer, you’re a customer of Gamestop.” I know you people who are actually upset over this think the gaming industry should be a magical fantasy land where everything is sold below cost, all DLC is free, and games are supported indefinitely, but guess what? You know those people making all the great games you’ve enjoyed since you discovered the hobby? This is their JOB. That’s right, MAKING GAMES is what they do to put bread on the table. People look at big names in the industry like Bobby Kotick and assume anyone and Y1 App everyone remotely related Y1 Game to gaming is some greedy bastard who’s already filthy rich, and end up thinking the following: “They could easily afford to lower the price on this DLC/include that extra mode they cut/keep updating the game forever, they just don’t want to!” Newsflash: big names in the industry are rich BECAUSE THEY’RE BIG NAMES. Bobby Kotick is a damn CEO, of course he’s rolling in cash. But while you were making that moronic assumption, THOUSANDS of programmers, artists, writers, modelers, musicians, etc. were making a fraction of what someone like Kotick makes while absolutely working their asses off making the games you enjoy (and they do work VERY hard, just look at what they have to put up with during the “crunch time” right before a title’s release). Since the gaming industry is a business, guess what happens when a game doesn’t turn a profit? Layoffs. Layoffs that impact the families and lives of all those people I just mentioned (Kotaku just posted a huge list of recently shut down studios if you want evidence of this). There are several things that can cause a game to not be profitable: poor release climate, poor marketing, over budgeting, poor strategic decisions (e.g., releasing a clearly multiplayer focused title with no online play or releasing a game on a system with a different demographic than your target), piracy, or even the game being flat out bad. Regardless of how badly you want to penny pinch, the used games market is one of those causes. If online passes can help eliminate that and keep the developers I like around to make more of the games I like, I’m all for it. “WAAAAAAH, EVEN THOUGH I STILL HAVE THE OPTIONS TO, I DON’T WANT TO BUY IT USED SINCE I’LL MISS OUT ON SOME CONTENT! :(” Bitch, baby, bitch. What are you going to do, not give them your money TWICE? About Speak Up on Kotaku: Our readers have a lot to say, and sometimes what they have to say has nothing to do with the stories we run. That’s why we have a forum on Kotaku called Speak Up. That’s the place to post anecdotes, photos, game tips and hints, and anything you want to share with Kotaku at large. Every weekday we’ll pull one of the best Speak Up posts we can find and all yono app highlight it here.