Halo 4 Special Edition Console + Halo 4 Standard Edition
#1
Thu, 09/20/2012 - 10:35
Halo 4 Special Edition Console + Halo 4 Standard Edition
Many people are always asking, why wasn't the Halo 4 LE included in the 360 console bundle?
Frankie has said this in fewer words before but this answer may satisfy your need to know why it is what it is.
That is still a cop out.
If the special editions are mainly bought by first time customers, why the hell would they purchase one that is from a game(s) a first time buyer would not have played before.
I am sure there is a percentage of new buyers that are buying because "I heard of this Halo game and I want to buy a 360 so this is a good time to give it a shot". But the majority of those Halo specific consoles purchased are going to be buy die hard fans OR people that enjoy playing Halo AND need a new system.
The cost of the new box will only be slightly higher, because of the new case, some colored leds and I am assuming they are not going to be replacing all new 360 made with the Halo case, so the overall cost compared as a whole is extremely small to the big pitcher.
The difference in price from the standard version and LE version of the game is 30 bucks. If they bundled that in with every H4 console times the number of those consoles made the perceived loss of profit to the overall sales of everything H4 related is small.
The profit margin answer is also crap. I would have had more respect for this answer, MS has a profit margin percentage they want to hit and refuse to take a smaller percentage then what they have planned. But to tip toe around that real answer and make it seem like bundling in the LE version would have blown all profits related is bs.
I know he is just trying to do his best and can't say what it really is, but if you really have an apprecian for your fans that have spent thousands of dollars on all things Halo related, they could at least show that and take LESS PROFIT on a limited basis.
I can't go along with you on this one LB. If Frankie says that's what the stats are, then that's what they are. If I don't believe him on this, I probably shouldn't believe him on anything that he says.
I do believe he is telling the truth to the best of his ability to do so.
SLRP?
Even with the inclusion of a game and an extra controller, it's still pretty expensive for ten year old tech which will probably be replaced in a year by its successor, for the same price (give or take).
I'm sure the die hard collectors will just buy the limited edition game and the console, and probably sell the standard edition game to offset some of the cost.
Or, here's a better idea I had last night - pre order the limited edition game from gamstop (forest skin) and buy the console from amazon (web skin), then sell the standard edition game later but use both armor skin codes :)
I need two copies of the game in my house anyway, so I don't mind the situation. I'm gettinga new 360, and giving the standard edition game to my kids. I know not everyone can drop $500, and honestly I've been saving for about 6 months, but it works for me.
Well lets just agree to say he will say just enough to either throw people off or give them no real answer to the question. I mean it's business and in the end they are there to make as much money as possible. But he is making it out to seem like if they included the LE version of the game in the H4 console would wipe out all profits for all things Halo related and cost the company a huge loss to its bottom line
Have we even seen the sale statistics on a themed Xbox? Not that I could find. Have we ever seen the total amount of themed Xbox made for each (cod, gow, Halo) game. No. I think it is safe to assume they keep selling these themed xboxes because they can make a HIGHER profit margin on them, then a traditional Xbox. Why else keep making new themed boxes? So why not cut down on the percentage of profit for each box, but make that up in the number of sales of the same box. Well I will tell you why, cause MS (and all other huge corpartions) give zero f&*^% about making its customer base completely happy and just want to suck every last point of profit they can. Big shocker, I know, but meh.
The numbers I have been able to find show xbox sales average around 2.3-3 million units per quarter for last year.
The true number that needs to be known (which anyone on the outside will never find out) is how much of the 30 dollar difference is profit. IF, MS. keeps to it pricing terms it had 5-6 years ago, companies (retailers) get very little profit margin on games. Full disclosure I worked for a global distribution company, that had a video/entertainment wholesale division that I use to be able to buy games from and I could look up in our system to see how much my company bought the games directly (and we bought in Huge quantities) from MS and then our percentage of mark up (2.5% to 12%). So lets say the LE version of the game is making an additional 10 dollars a game compared to the standard version of profit With the overall sales of H4 games, merch, consoles, controllers, DLC, avatar items, books, and everything else Halo Related. I estimate they could lose about 2-3 million of profit by including the LE version with the H4 Console. In the grander plan of things 2-3 million is a drop in the MS bucket of profit. Sometimes giving back to your customer base is worth the up front profit loss, to pull in more money over the long haul. Hell if they wanted to drive more sales of the unit, they could say the LE version of the game would only be included for X amount of H4 LE consoles and drive the demand for that specific sku.
But we all know as gamers, we will just take it like hungry ass little lemmings and be happy with the crumbs thrown at us.
You are looking at it from the point of view MS could eat some losses to keep some fans happy. Probably that is true.
I figure MS is so huge, it works somewhat like the Government. To maintain control over such a huge ass company they likely have rules up the ying yang. So it may be that they would like to do special perks for fans but the lumbering elephant that keeps the wheels turning just can't stop for the tiny piss breaks that might make people happy.
So I believe Frankie isn't hiding any truths from us. He knows how the rules work and that's the end of it for him. The people who inform him are probably told each unit must generate a certain percentage profit and they are not allowed to make special deals.
Well he is not lying to us, he just can't tell us the numbers and the bolded part is exactly the reason. My nerd rage is from the notion they will not make as MUCH profit.
Frankie 9.20.12
Another thing LB. Frankie says, "Listen to DEEP NNN. He is the Voice of Reason and also the Diviner of Truths from the Internet Sea of Random Facts."
Since this is the only thread discussing the Limited and standard editions:
FYI Gamestop and Amazon no longer have the LE available to pre-order online. Walmart and Best Buy however are still taking LE per-orders. I'm sure there are some others as well.
That is all.
Frankie is and always has been a M$ mouthpiece, even at Bungie, sorry DEEP..gif "34")
If they quit giving two controllers, there wouldn't be an issue with "profit margins".
The fact is, this way they get two sales per person if they need to. I've never seen a new buyer get a 1st console, only long time players. Also, frankie is kind of full of it. Why not have a base price for just the console and controllers, and then give a discount code for the game, then the person can get either the regular or LE edition.
There ARE workarounds for allowing people to not have to purchase two games, they just aren't allowing them for some reason (my thoughts are sales number inflation/boosting)
Perhaps they made more consoles than Limited Editions of the game, as the game LEs seem to be selling out in a big way.
How sad it would be then, if you wanted the Limited Edition, bought the console, and it came with a discount code, but all the Limited Edition games were already sold out.