The Xbox Game Awards Sale 2020 is now live with big discounts on a range of games

MH The Rockstar said:You think that is bad. And it isn’t limited to just sales (nothing stopping a supermarket selling a 12 pack for less than the price of a 6 pack).

But the actual description of Minecraft Dungeons Season Pass clearly states you will save money over buying the seperate DLCs. Here each DLC is $8.70, so $34.80 for all 4, and the Pass is $39.95.

I have complained to Microsoft (the store owner) before, saying that is illegal, but they don’t change the prices and reply saying the Season Pass is a convenient bundle and not necessarily cheaper than buying the contents separately. I tell them if that is the case they should remove the statement that it is cheaper.

I think the bundles and not DLC being sold has more to do with being in GP and them wanting to make a little more off of you if you want the rest than it does some newer version of the same game.

Also with Control, I haven't really followed along as I haven't finished Wake, Payne or Break and would like to just spend a month or so playing those back to back but have they announced no more DLC, game is a little over a year old but there could be more coming so maybe the Season Pass is actually a better for a few cents more.

That said it's literally the only thing on this list that interests me as I intend to play the universe games soon. Terrible sale with even worse pricing.

SheBeatsYou said:When you buy a digital item from Amazon, who do you think sets the price? ;)

All stores have margins, and giving up those margins or even selling at a loss is something they can decide to do.

HolyHalfDead said:I didn’t know S/X had “1” game exclusive to the console or a few stackable achievements, I apologise.

HolyHalfDead said:Not the same thing at all. Amazon sells codes, not digital games themselves.

SheBeatsYou said:Amazon sells digital MP3 music ;)

HolyHalfDead said:Think about it this way. Do you think Ubisoft would have allowed MS to lower Far Cry 3 to $3 like it was a few months ago? Hell no that was all Ubisoft. Artists sell their music for different prices based on how they sell. Why do you think Sony and Steam have better sales than MS? because more people use both platforms publishers and devs can afford to sell lower with a higher turnout.

I dunno how to explain it to you. 99% sure MS does not control their digital store prices.

stebeer85 said:No apology necessary :). Microsoft have made it really hard to find that out this gen.

HolyHalfDead said:OMG... I give up belive what you want dude

SheBeatsYou said:If Ubisoft supply Far Cry 3 to Microsoft for $7 a copy and Microsoft sell it for $3, they still have to pay Ubisoft $7.

What are your thoughts about when a sale has different XBL Free and XBL Gold discounts? Do you think Ubisoft get less money from the people who paid the Gold discount price? Even though it is Microsoft that get the money from the Gold subs.

Same way when Microsoft set the price of a game to $0 for GwG, they still have to pay Ubisoft the agreed amount per download (or a negotiated lump sum - it is done case by case).

Then there was the time Warner Brothers games were marked as free in some regions by mistake. Do you think Microsoft didn’t have to pay WB?

Microsoft own and operate the store and are ultimately responsible for the prices, even though they have little control over the cost of the items from the supplier. And when any store states for a fact that $39.95 is cheaper than $34.80, it is the store that is misleading the customer, not the supplier.

Since neither you or I work for the MS store, we can both only be 99% sure. But I always have logical reasoning behind my point of view. I also enjoy a friendly difference of opinion. :)

HolyHalfDead said:I dunno what you are talking about. It's a digital storefront your buying permission to play the game. The game is already there MS didn't pay anything for it they get a 30% cut no matter what it sells for. Would not be in their interest to discount games heavily they would be pissing away their cut. MS is just the middle man they have nothing to do with what a publisher sells or discounts their games for. They send out an email "we're doing a game awards sale" and they get replies "sell x game for xxx. and MS do it.

SheBeatsYou said:Perhaps you missed that part. I don’t think Ubisoft would be happy about the extra 10% XBL Gold member discount coming out of their “cut”.

Microsoft want to make XBL Gold look like an attractive proposition, and DwG and GwG are ways to do that. You can’t surely believe that is done at the expense of Ubisoft, or their other suppliers.

HolyHalfDead said:Which makes the logical explanation that Microsoft takes that extra discount out of their own profit on said product.

Elite1111111111 said:Exactly my thinking :)

HolyHalfDead said:Not sure if whoosh or...

I'm agreeing with SheBeatsYou, I'm just saying Microsoft takes a hit to their own "cut" to offer an extra discount.

Elite1111111111 said:You are agreeing with my very first statement that kicked this all off, that it is Microsoft that set’s the sale prices, same way a supermarket does.

If a supermarket knocks an extra 5% off than the one down the road, it comes out of their cut, not the suppliers.

If Ubisoft have set Far Cry 3 pricing to $2, and Microsoft sell it for $3 and Sony sell it for $2.50, it is the store that set the sale price. You were even able to buy it from the Ubisoft store, where neither Sony or Microsoft would get a storefront cut, although they will still get their license fee.

HolyHalfDead said:I'm saying Microsoft possibly sets the Gold prices, at their own expense, but the regular and Silver Sale price is set by the publisher.

As SheBeatsYou said - Storefront, not store. The Microsoft Store is an engine for publishers to sell their games, not some brick & mortar grabbing products to resell.

I really don’t think there is any possibility about it. If Microsoft are not setting the XBL Gold prices, then who is?

HolyHalfDead said:If that's the only hitch you have with that post I'm going to assume you see the logic in the rest of it.

Elite1111111111 said:Ok :)

A storefront certainly has regulations it must abide by, that a store may not have. Assuming there is an agreed 30% cut/fee for the marketplace, it cannot be exceeded - but it can be reduced as we have agreed.

However those same regulations mean publishers cannot force the Microsoft storefront to deceive customers.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-nz/p/minecraft-dungeons-season-...

$39.95 is not a discount on $34.80 as stated TWICE on that page. Microsoft need to either refuse to publish that statement as it is not a fact, take down the store listing, or get the publisher (Xbox Studios in this case, lol) to either increase the price of the DLC or reduce the price of the pass.