For those enthusiasts eager to be amongst the first in the world to get hands on with a new game, retailers accept pre-orders. These secure you a copy of the latest title and can sometimes be accompanied by a pre-order bonus, typically in-game content.
The problem is pre-orders are charged at the RRP of the game (PS3 of Xbox 360),which today is rapidly becoming a standard AU $109. Shortly after the game launches, usually the next day, large retail chains like Big W, K-mart and Target have launch sales, selling the same game as low as $75. This price lasts a week or two then they return to normal RRP pricing.
So while enthusiasts are happy to pay a little extra for being first into the game, why are early adopters being penalised in excess of $30 ? I’ve been burnt by this sales cycle a number of times. I’m so sick of it, that I’ll no longer be pre-ordering titles. Availability has never been an issue and I’d much rather have that $30 in my pocket rather than greedy retailers.
Unfortunately competition isn’t solving this problem, I’ve encountered this enthusiast tax across the board, independent of the retailer (I’m looking at you Game and EB Games).
