The year is wrapping up, and that means we’re nearing the busiest time for video game releases. And even though covid-19 has thrown a wrench in the entire industry and led to numerous delays, a few big games are still launching in the next few weeks. But if you want to enjoy them, you’ll need to fork over 70 bucks (or more) as publishers begin transitioning into a new, more expensive era of gaming.
Thank You, PS Plus, For Making My Backlog Even Bigger
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Video games becoming more expensive isn’t entirely surprising. Since at least 2020, companies like Sony have made it clear that, moving forward, game prices would be going up from $60 to $70. But it’s still worth noting, as many big games this year released at $60 or less, that a majority of the biggest games coming out this fall and into early next year will now cost more, even on older consoles.
Here are all the games launching in the next few months that will cost $70 or more:
Fall 2022
Gotham Knights РOct. 25 Call of Duty Modern Warfare II (2022) РOct. 28God of War Ragnar̦k (PS5) РNov. 9The Callisto Protocol (PS5, Xbox Series X/S) РDec. 1
Winter / Spring 2023
Forspoken – Jan. 24, 2023Dead Island 2 – Feb. 2, 2023Hogwart’s Legacy – Feb. 9, 2023Wild Hearts – Feb. 17, 2023Skull and Bones – Mar. 9, 2023
There are various reasons for these increased prices, from inflation to more expensive and longer development cycles to good old-fashioned greed. Whatever the reasons behind the price increase, it seems to be here to stay. And it’s also becoming clear that publishers aren’t interested in offering up free next-gen upgrades anymore, or lower prices on PS4 and Xbox One versions. Some games listed above, like Call of Duty and Dead Island 2, are charging $70 regardless if you are playing on PS4 or PS5.
Wild Hearts Official Reveal Trailer
While I understand that developing and publishing video games is a very expensive process, it’s hard to stomach these price increases when games seem to be filled more than ever with microtransactions and other ways to siphon away players’ dollars long after the initial purchase. Some might assume that the human developers working on these games will get more money, but that’s also highly unlikely, especially in an industry with a long history of exploiting its workers and which still, in 2022, has almost no labor unions.
