Price of Books too high?

[Desdichado]

If you look at the price for RPG material over the years vs. the consumer price index over the years, you'd probably actually find that RPGs are cheaper than they've ever been.

 

[BrooklynKnight]

If i wasnt lazy i'd link SKR's rant on the price of books.

 

[HellHound]

The original white box set was an astounding $10 US back in the mid-70's.

(a 1975 dollar is worth about 29 cents accounting for inflation, thus a price of about $34)

Three tiny booklets in a wee little box. Basically without art.

 

[DragonLancer]

For the most part I think that books are priced about right. Its only the 3.5 corebooks that are seriously overpriced. I paid £18.99 for each book and thats about £4 - £5 too much. I agree that it doesn't sound much but like most gamers I have to watch my cash.

 

[Crothian]

Watching cash is good. Heck, I got the 3.5 core books at a discount place because I frankly had no interest in paying full price for them. Lately, I've found some great d20 products at the half price bookstore and other discount second hand places.

 

[BrooklynKnight]

WHY why do people forget that the original price of 20$ for the core books was INTENTIONALLY UNDERPRICED as a marketing tactic to get people back into the game. IT was a 1 year introductory offer.

The books always were and are worth 30!

 

[Psion]

WHY why do people forget that the original price of 20$ for the core books was INTENTIONALLY UNDERPRICED as a marketing tactic to get people back into the game. IT was a 1 year introductory offer.

The books always were and are worth 30!

Careful with that "worth" word. A product is "worth" what people will pay for it. If WotC felt that it was compelling to price it lower to get more people to buy it, that's a pretty compelling statement of "worth."

BTW and NB: That doesn't mean it's not "worth" more to me, but that's an entirely different matter. In my group, I am the only person who has the new books, which again, is a statement of how "worth" it it seems to be to spend $30 for the new books.

 

[DragonLancer]

WHY why do people forget that the original price of 20$ for the core books was INTENTIONALLY UNDERPRICED as a marketing tactic to get people back into the game. IT was a 1 year introductory offer.

The books always were and are worth 30!

I haven't forgotten that. The came out over here at £12.99 which was nice. I was working in a game shop at the time afor the next couple years, and as soon as the price went up sales dropped away. Now with the 3.5 release being as expensive as it is, the shop is having trouble selling the new books.

 

[Djeta Thernadier]

I've noticed that most new RPG books are in the $30-$40 range now, even with B&W interior!. This does not surprise me when considering smaller publishers, but WOTC? Compare these prices to those of Palladium books. Although soft cover, I think one gets more "bang for the buck". As games go, I like D&D better than Palladium Fantasy RPG, so I only wish Wizards would find ways to bring their prices down.

Oh well...

I work for a huge publisher and I know that some books are super cheap to produce but that books with a lot of artwork, and a smaller select target audience are way more expensive. Most RPG books are in a different format than the standard hardcover novel and that difference in size can make a big difference in cost. Not so much because of the size difference itself, but because certain sizes of paper are not used as often, therefore making them more expensive. Also, typically the more copies you have printed, the less it costs. Unfortunately, until the Monster Manual shows up on the NY Times Bestsellers list, RPG companies are going to have to print less to keep themselves in business.

I DO agree that a lot of the books are pricy, but they also last. These books need to be bound well because as reference books, they are not simply read and then put on a shelf like a novel. Compared to a hardcover book by James Patterson or Sandra Brown, I'd say RPG books give you more value for your money. (*not just because I don't care for those two authors works...they aren't my type of reading...but they were the first two bestsellers who popped into my head).

The average hardcover novel has a cover price of around $25.95 and often costs about $4 to make. *Most* readers read them once and then buy a new book to read next.

Most hardcover RPG books, if I had to guess, cost at least $10-12 to make and sell for $30-$35. These are referened repeatedly by readers over the course of the years until an update comes out.

When you think of it that way, I don't think it's that bad. It's just that compared to other types of books, they cost more.

 

[Stegger]

Here is Sean Reynolds view on this:
http://www.seankreynolds.com/rpgfiles/rants/rpgsaretooexpensive.html
I also find that books are not that expensive compared to the costs of other social activities. Of course I would like them to be cheaper, but generally the prices seem fair enough....
Stegger