Capcom Plans to Increase Game Prices: A Song of 'Insufficient Costs'?

Capcom believes that the current market prices for games are too low, especially when considering the costs associated with development and distribution.

In a recent interview with The Nikkei, Capcom's President and CEO, Mr. Haruhiro Tsujimoto, stated: 'The market price of electronic games today is too low, while production costs have increased more than 100 times compared to the Famicom era.' Indeed, the costs associated with publishing a AAA game in recent years have continuously risen due to demands for scale and graphics. 

While other publishers are seeking to cut costs, Capcom believes that further increasing game prices will open up new avenues for the current electronic gaming industry. This will undoubtedly spark debates within the gaming community, but producing games that meet demand while remaining affordable poses a significant challenge for businesses.

AAA games have maintained a price of around 60 USD for almost a decade, despite significant technological advancements in graphics. Therefore, Mr. Haruhiro has declared that prices will be raised further to ensure the 'health' of the business and to provide more deserving compensation for employees' efforts.

Concluding the interview with The Nikkei, Haruhiro Tsujimoto also commented on rumors about Microsoft's potential acquisition of Capcom, stating that the company would 'politely decline' any acquisition proposals from the Xbox manufacturer.

At present, the gaming community has not shown any significant opposition to Capcom's price hike announcement. Considering the development of the electronic gaming industry, S-Games fully supports Mr. Haruhiro's statement. Businesses need financial resources to operate and to produce games that meet the ever-growing demands of the current market. We hope this article has provided you with useful information and look forward to seeing you in future editions!