Paul Frew
Has piracy really wrecked the game market?
August 22nd 2007 13:20
The last post I made discussed the Wii and its ability to run DVDs using a boot disk once the console was modified. Of course, chipping a Wii is quite cheap and allows gamers to play 'burnt' or 'back-up' games. Hackers can't really be stopped from finding exploits in coding and hardware allowing gamers to play games without paying for them. Now looking at the effects of game prices and release titles has made me come to weird conclusion...
PSP games are what I will focus on at the moment. Having looked into the latest news on the PSP 'hack' scene, hackers have produced custom firmware allowing PSP owners to run literally all PSP titles backed up and even PSX games! Almost the latest firmware can be downgraded too. This is come a long way and Sony's 'unbreakable' firmware has been cracked beyond repair.
Interestingly, the price of PSP games has also dropped. Gamers can pick up PSP games on eBay for as little as $10, not to mention the low prices at games stores. Could this be related to more gamers 'cracking' their firmware and just downloading games illegally or the PSP losing its popularity and getting 'old'? Makes you wonder...
On a different note, gamers who 'missed out' the Xbox and Playstation 2 smash hits can now pick up games on eBay or retail outlets for almost nothing! Buying quality classics hasn’t been so tempting in ages...but then it makes you question... why play the old titles when you can cough out $120 a game on the PS3 or Xbox 360 (lol it all comes down to what you want to play and whether the word 'fun' involves graphics or gameplay!!).
That’s my 2 cents...
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Comment by Ahmed
Video Gamer Kids
Little Green Foosballs
PolyKicks
Comment by Dani
I have seen Xbox's on eBay for less than $100 along with GC's at less than $50!