Chapter 92 Pricing is a Skill
Lu Ming looked at the game screen that kept looping in the meeting.
After a long while, he slowly spoke:
“No matter how good a game is, people have to play it.”
"We can't think of going high-end from the start. After all, we're not some big-name game company; we're an emotional experience product."
"I suggest setting the price directly at 298."
“You can even go up to 328.”
“It’s not the most expensive, but it’s not cheap either.”
"Give enough confidence and leave space."
Lu Ming had his reasons for choosing this price.
This is a stand-alone game with a buyout system.
The pricing is too low and obviously unreasonable.
"Time Journey" was created by Lao Zhou and so many people with great effort.
If the price is too low, people will be disappointed, and it also goes against the laws of the market.
"Time Journey" is backed by the Deep Blue gaming platform. The price you set this time is too low. How will you price your other games?
This will upset the balance.
The price is 328, which is considered a mid-to-high price.
Besides, the tariff has now risen to 145%, so people can’t just say V50, they have to change it to V122.5.
The price of this game is very reasonable!
“…”
After Lu Ming finished speaking, everyone in the audience was stunned.
Zhou Yizhou almost fell to his knees. He had never thought of pricing this game at over 300 yuan!
Those are prices that only big companies and big IPs can afford!
And who is he? He is just a producer with two games rated around 2.
Zhou Yizhou couldn't help but speak,
"Mr. Lu, if we put this price up, I'm afraid a lot of players will be discouraged!"
"Besides, if they're not satisfied, we'll probably get a flood of negative reviews on the first day!"
Lu Ming looked calm, thinking to himself, "That's what I was thinking!"
However, facing Lao Zhou, Lu Ming had to have his reasons.
"Old Zhou, you have to think clearly. We are making a high-pressure game with souls, multiple plots, and a time loop."
"This type of player can afford to spend and is willing to spend."
"People who are willing to spend more than two hundred won't care about the three hundred!"
"More importantly..."
Lu Ming suddenly slammed the table.
“Once this price is posted, it will set an expectation.”
"If you charge players 328, they will tell themselves that this game must be something special."
“It’s called sunk-cost induced belief.”
Zhou Yizhou didn't say anything, but the programmer next to him understood.
He added quietly, "It's just like stock trading. The more you buy, the more reluctant you are to sell."
Lu Ming pointed at him and nodded rapidly, "Yes! That's what I mean!"
Zhou Yizhou tightened his fingers slightly. He really didn't expect that President Lu would be so tough.
This game,
Buyout system,
High difficulty,
It also has soul torture attributes.
Order 328!
His mind was already replaying the comments from the players' comments section:
"You're selling this game for over 300 yuan, even though it's a game that discourages people from buying it. Thank you!"
"I spent 328, can I die a few more times?"
"Luckily I didn't buy it, otherwise I would have given the NPC experience points."
But the next second,
Zhou Yizhou lowered his head and glanced at the projection screen.
The character in the old military uniform raised his gun in the trench, fell down, turned back, and attacked again...
A complex emotion quietly rose in my heart.
This is the result of their team's work day and night for several months.
Every battle, every plot, every death point,
They have all repeatedly deduced, tested, and refactored.
This game is definitely worth the price.
He suddenly realized:
"Mr. Lu is not setting the price."
“He was exercising faith.”
Zhou Yizhou raised his head, his tone a little hesitant, but he finally gritted his teeth and nodded.
"……OK."
"Mr. Lu, let's stick to this price!"
The meeting was adjourned.
Everyone left the meeting room one after another, and discussions continued.
But Zhou Yizhou still sat there, motionless.
His mind was still echoing with what Lu Ming had just said:
"If you charge players 328, they will tell themselves that this game must be something special."
Sunk costs...
Once players buy it, they are unwilling to give it up.
Even if the game tries to discourage them, they will persevere, try to understand the plot, and struggle to find the highlights that can convince them...
Zhou Yizhou suddenly wanted to laugh, but also felt a little sorry for the players.
But that's the market.
Even if you have ideals, you still have to run in reality in the end.
He closed his eyes gently.
“…convince them.”
"Maybe it can really buy me the freedom to make the next game."
Walk out of the office building,
Lu Ming stood downstairs, looking at the street shining in the sun, and suddenly felt that this moment was very quiet.
He murmured to himself:
"I almost got into trouble this time."
"Fortunately... the initiative is still in my hands."
…
Two days after the release date and price of Time Journey were officially confirmed,
On the other hand, the trend in the industry has also quietly changed.
Steam Platform Headquarters.
The atmosphere in a conference room was suffocating.
"This is the traffic data for this morning."
The operations manager threw the report on the table with a sullen look on his face.
"It's dropped another 1%, three days in a row."
"and"
He pointed at the inconspicuous platform logo on the screen.
"They were all snatched away by this Deep Blue gaming platform."
There was a sudden silence in the conference room.
The data curve is clearly displayed on the big screen, with the red arrow pointing all the way downward, forming an intersection with the blue curve opposite.
"Deep blue?"
A colleague frowned.
"It's the platform that Jingyue Investment is based on. They held a gaming competition a few days ago."
"It seems their new game 'Time Journey' is about to be released, so players who need it should go over there to make a reservation!"
"Also, the keyword popularity of 'Time Journey' on our platform has suddenly increased significantly in the past few days."
"Unfortunately, we know so little!"
The marketing director sneered and put the coffee in his hand down on the table, creating ripples.
"Needless to say? They just released a promotional video!"
"Also, the speed at which their platform has risen is so fast that we haven't even noticed it before!"
Several vice presidents looked at each other, and someone murmured:
"We can't just force an investigation... After all, they're an independent platform, and it wouldn't be good for us to get involved too deeply."
At this moment, the vice president of products who had been sitting in the corner without saying a word suddenly coughed lightly.
Everyone looked at him.
"I do have a...less intrusive way."
He spoke slowly, his tone half true and half false, as if he said it casually, but also as if he had planned it long ago.
"You know my niece, right? She just came back from Sakura Country and is now unemployed at home, complaining every day that she can't find a job."
"She also studied development, so her expertise is definitely impeccable!"
The marketing director's eyes lit up.
"You want to..."
"I didn't think anything,"
The vice president of product immediately waved his hand.
"I just mentioned that Deep Blue was hiring recently. She had seen the independent game competition they held and said that the company looked promising and she wanted to give it a try."
"She submitted her resume herself anyway, and we didn't force her."
"If she really gets hired, it will be due to her own ability."
As soon as the words fell, the conference room fell silent.
Then there was a burst of laughter.
"Your hand looks quite innocent."
"If she can join the development team, then we can..."
"Don't be so blunt!"
The Vice President of Product waved his hand, trying to stop him, but his eyes were filled with a hint of unconcealed pride.
"I didn't ask her for information. She went to find a job on her own."
"Besides, she's not our employee."
"But as long as she's around, there's always some advance notice of any meetings they're holding, any tests they're doing, any patches they're releasing, any feature updates they're making."
"We're not trying to take secrets."
"We just want to know...what they're going to do next."
“…”
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