According to Polygon, Microsoft has confirmed that first-party games for the Xbox One will cost the same as those for the Xbox 360 (in North America at least), i.e. $59.99. To prevent any uncertainty, here are the exact words from the Microsoft representative Polygon spoke to:
“I can confirm that Microsoft Studios games on Xbox One will be $59.99 (MSRP).”
As Polygon points out, Jack Tretton hinted during an interview after the PS4 reveal in February that games for Sony's new console will also cost $60 at most, when he said: “We're going to welcome free-to-play models, games from $.99 up to those $60 games.” No one has official confirmation as of yet that PS4 games will cost that much, however.
While it's unsurprising that Microsoft has chosen to sell its games for the Xbox One at this price, it may be another mark against the console. After all, the new model that Microsoft is pushing towards with the Xbox One – you “license” your content rather than owning it, an emphasis on digital and the cloud – would be far more appealing to players were the games cheaper.
Given that we only know what Microsoft will charge for first-party games for the console, it's possible that third-party publishers will charge much less to go along with this new model for buying and playing games. On the flip-side, however, it's also possible that the likes of EA will charge more, backing up the decision with rhetoric about increased development costs.
Will you be happy to continue to pay $60 for games for the next generation of consoles, or will the confusion around the issue of used sales put you off in the case of the Xbox One?
