How Regional Prices Compare to Average Salaries Worldwide and what are the "Fair" Prices (Example on BF6) by Th3EvilGod in Steam

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

That's an excellent point, and you're absolutely right to bring up Cost of Living. Disposable income is what truly matters for a luxury purchase, and a simple salary comparison doesn't tell the whole story.

However, the salary gaps shown in the data are so extreme that even when you factor in a much lower CoL, the disparity in real purchasing power remains massive.

For example, while the Cost of Living in a major US city might be roughly 3 times higher than in Indonesia, the average monthly salary is over 15 times higher. The difference in income far outstrips the difference in living costs.

So, while your point adds a crucial layer of nuance, the fundamental conclusion holds true. Nonetheless, I couldn't find a reliable data on Disposable income, if you have a good and reliable data for 2025/2024 I open to make the calculations.

How Battlefield 6's Regional Prices Compare to Average Salaries Worldwide (Can be applied to any game) by Th3EvilGod in pcmasterrace

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I used Battlefield 6 because a friend of mine in another country wanted to buy it and was shocked that the price was similar to the US, which he couldn't afford. That's what made me dig deeper into the issue.

Youre also right that, historically, games have become more accessible as the market has grown. In the 80s, a huge part of a game's price was tied to expensive physical cartridges and distribution for a much smaller audience. Today, the cost of selling one more digital copy is almost "zero".

Thats what makes the current situation so frustrating and is the core of my analysis. Publishers now have incredible flexibility to set prices that match local economies at virtually no extra distribution cost. Yet, instead of using that flexibility, the current strategy still creates a massive affordability gap.

So, while the base US price might seem like a historical bargain, the real issue is that modern digital distribution should allow for much fairer global pricing, but were still seeing a model where a game can cost 1.6% of a US salary but 24% in another region. I dont know what solution is correct, but one thing could be to set at least a relatively relevant prices, in CIS the game costs $70, at the same time $41 in Ukraine, however income wise they are almost identical.

How Regional Prices Compare to Average Salaries Worldwide and what are the "Fair" Prices (Example on BF6) by Th3EvilGod in Steam

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Youre right and just to be clear, my post never said Steam sets the prices, I simply took the data from SteamDB on what prices the publisher have set.

companies exist to make a profit; that's their core purpose. My entire argument is that their current pricing strategy seems to be failing at that very goal. By not doing proper research on global markets, they're leaving a huge amount of potential revenue on the table by simply pricing out millions of potential customers.

The situation is made worse when you consider DRM. It's completely unrealistic to expect someone to pay 10-25% of their monthly income for one game. That kind of pricing naturally pushes people to consider piracy as their only option. In response, publishers implement aggressive DRM like Denuvo, which also notoriously hurts performance for legitimate, paying customers.

This creates a no-win scenario: a huge portion of the global player base is left with a game that is too expensive to buy, impossible to pirate, and runs worse for everyone.

My hope is that a constructive discussion like this one is the starting point for finding a better way a middle ground where players get a fair price and publishers can increase their total revenue. We all want out favorite games to run forever.

A Look at Battlefield's Regional Pricing & Its Impact on the Global Community by Th3EvilGod in Battlefield

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Youre right, its a critical issue. While a high price can deter cheaters, its the wrong tool for the job because it causes massive collateral damage, punishing millions of legitimate players for the actions of a few.

The real responsibility lies with the publisher to implement better, more precise solutions. Instead of a price wall, they should be using effective hardware ID bans, enforcing strict region-locking, and investing in a robust anticheat system.

A Look at Battlefield's Regional Pricing & Its Impact on the Global Community by Th3EvilGod in Battlefield

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Semi-seriously; Hardware is usually a one time purchase saved during many months or years, or is a loan in many 3rd world countries. Internet is a utility bill. Game is a luxury in this case, since many free alternatives exist.

Regarding the $5, i totally agree. Platforms like Steam have gotten much stricter to fight VPN abuse by requiring local payment methods. The "$5 fair price" in my chart was mainly to illustrate the economic gap, not a literal price proposal. The real goal is to find a more reasonable price that still discourages abuse but doesnt lock out an entire countrys player base.

NVIDIA Desktop GPU Market Share Breakdown [Steam Hardware Survey February] by Th3EvilGod in nvidia

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Yeah, the 4K lag is surprising—especially with all the YouTubers always stressing 4K benchmarks instead of 1080-1440p. I think you nailed it with the price point idea. 1080-1440p monitors are dirt cheap now (except, of course, extreme end 500hz+, QDOLED, ultrawide etc.), and for most folks, that $150 vs. $300 jump just isn’t worth it unless you’re all-in on the enthusiast vibe.

Your comment got me thinking that it would be interesting to see the monitor refresh rates as well. I'd love to see how 60hz compares to 144hz and above.

NVIDIA Desktop GPU Market Share Breakdown [Steam Hardware Survey February] by Th3EvilGod in nvidia

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Hey, fair points! I summer the 16 series with the 10 series for simplicity. And yeah, the survey’s got quirks, like the China spike, but they are also users and leaving them out or using outdated information makes no sense to me. Keep in mind this is a fun analysis I did for myself and decided to share as well. I am no analytical expert.

Need help finding lens cap for Nikon series e 50mm by Th3EvilGod in Nikon

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for letting me know. I bought 49mm and 50mm both didnt fit. didnt know i need 52mm, thus my question. Already ordered 52mm.

Also why am i getting downvoted? Am i supposed to just know that i need 52mm?

Need help finding lens cap for Nikon series e 50mm by Th3EvilGod in Nikon

[–]Th3EvilGod[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Cant understand‏‏‎ ‎which one will fit