Although Steam broke its record for the highest number of games released on the platform last year, some voices have noted that things are not as positive as they appear, at least not for many studios and developers. In recent months, it seems that an important gap has been opened between the AAA games available on Steam and the indie or medium or low budget games and this is having an economic impact, according to Steam Spy.
Sergey Galyonkin, the creator of Steam Spy, presented the results of an analysis carried out around the state that keeps the income of the games available on the Valve platform at present, which are serving to question the so-called price comfort zone that is located in the $9.99 USD.
According to the study of Galyonkin, the 4579 sets of $9.99 USD launched on Steam in 2017 generated 9.63% in revenue, while the 1321 titles of $19.99 generated 16.87%. Although the notorious difference of prices and revenues could be considered as something logical, the point is that the independent scene considers that the games with price $9.99 USD are a good business and generate important revenues.
At the same time, the results of the creator of Steam Spy reveal that in terms of income distribution, the games of $19.99 USD and those of $59.99 are the most successful. To give a sample of the previous thing, Galyonkin did not contemplate in one of the graphs (posted at the top of this news) to PUBG, a title that generated more income on Steam last year and that, evidently, leaves the norm.
Finally, Galyonkin considered that the results of his analysis show a trend in which players are turning to acquire high-quality games and level of development, opening more a gap that would be leaving the independent scene in the middle of AAA titles and games low cost, not stimulating position in economic terms. In that sense, the creative said: “The pricing situation is also becoming more and more unhealthy and reminds the pre-iOS 11 App Store. The race to zero is on.”
What do you think about this study? Are indie games condemned to disappear before AAA titles and junk games? Let us know about your opinion in the comments below.
