"15$/month is cheaper than a night out" argument

[BlizzardApologist]

I'm not trying to say that WoW should go free to play, it's just that this argument I read here and there is tearing at my brain and I have to attack it.

When you go out for a movie and you:

Pay for the popcorn, the money goes to the pop-corn company and the container distributing company.

Pay for the drink, the money goes to the drink company and the cup distributing company.

Pay for the movie, the money goes to the movie studio, cinema upkeep and cinema staff.

So with almost 20$/movie you're paying 7 different entities to watch it, they can't afford to make it any cheaper, regardless of how many hours of enjoyment you get out of it. Those entities have to be PAID.

If 15$/month didn't pay for all the WoW developer salaries, hardware and development costs it would cost a lot more, but 15$/month does pay for them, so it doesn't cost a lot more. However, a movie ticket doesn't pay for your popcorn, doesn't pay for your drink, it pays for the studio and cinema upkeep costs, the popcorn and drink are two different entities part of your "night out" scenario.

The only way this comparison could make sense is if you're comparing the monthly cost and a pool table, or a babyfoot table, or a monthly fee and a fleshlight.

Or hey, I can go all dramatic here and say: well, a WoW "night out" costs me 10$ each time I play it + 15$/month, because whenever I play I have to have a drink and some snacks too.

You can't combine the price of a movie in your "a night out" package then compare it to a monthly fee, they're three separate things.

I'm sure I was trying to make a point somewhere in all this.

[Ratyrel]

I'm not entirely sure of the point you're trying to make and thus doubt the validity of this thread. Popcorn and drinks obviously also provide the cinema with profits. The fact that the cinema has expenditures too is not different from the fact that Blizzard has expenditures. The point is to compare a typical night out - which includes drinks and food - to WoW.

[Soisoisoi]

A movie alone with no snacks and drink costs nearly the same as the Sub for a month in the UK. That's ONE movie, vs a whole month.

On another note, prices for everything have gone up. WoW's sub hasn't, we're paying less than we used to.

[Hikaro]

Luckily I never go out.

[riptal]

I understand your point, but in fact, even if you play only 2 or 3 nights a month, you save probably more than $ 15 you would have spent on something else.

Wow is entertainment as several others. I'm just asking you to find me another entertainment that would cost you as low as $ 15 a month? I know you can find, but in general, it may be much more expensive than that!

[Saxtorph]

The cost of the movie is the only required payment. All the other stuff is optional. Kinda like the Blizzard store. It's still just about the cheapest entertainment you'll find anywhere.

[Tekkommo]

Pay for the popcorn, the money goes to the pop-corn company and the container distributing company.

Pay for the drink, the money goes to the drink company and the cup distributing company.

Wrong.

It goes to the cinema company who have already bought the goods far cheaper than you pay.

[runedhill]

A night at the movies, without popcorn or candy or a drink, for a single ticket, costs 14 dollars in my city. At the shitty theatre. I've never gone without my girlfriend, and without popcorn, Snowcaps and a drink.

[Tekkommo]

Or hey, I can go all dramatic here and say: well, a WoW "night out" costs me 10$ each time I play it + 15$/month, because whenever I play I have to have a drink and some snacks too.

Are you a fat bastard? Sure sounds like it if you spend that much on drink and food every time you play.

[Darsithis]

Your comparison is wrong but in the end a movie + drink + snacks is a night out and costs more for one occurrence than a single month's subscription of World of Warcraft. Period. It doesn't matter how you dice it. A night out doing anything that isn't free will cost more.

That isn't a reason not to go out, though. A healthy social life is important.

[BlizzardApologist]

Are you a fat bastard?

No! I'm a fit bastard!

[zephid]

I'm not trying to say that WoW should go free to play, it's just that this argument I read here and there is tearing at my brain and I have to attack it.

When you go out for a movie and you:

Pay for the popcorn, the money goes to the pop-corn company and the container distributing company.

Pay for the drink, the money goes to the drink company and the cup distributing company.

Pay for the movie, the money goes to the movie studio, cinema upkeep and cinema staff.

So with almost 20$/movie you're paying 7 different entities to watch it, they can't afford to make it any cheaper, regardless of how many hours of enjoyment you get out of it. Those entities have to be PAID.

If 15$/month didn't pay for all the WoW developer salaries, hardware and development costs it would cost a lot more, but 15$/month does pay for them, so it doesn't cost a lot more. However, a movie ticket doesn't pay for your popcorn, doesn't pay for your drink, it pays for the studio and cinema upkeep costs, the popcorn and drink are two different entities part of your "night out" scenario.

The only way this comparison could make sense is if you're comparing the monthly cost and a pool table, or a babyfoot table, or a monthly fee and a fleshlight.

Or hey, I can go all dramatic here and say: well, a WoW "night out" costs me 10$ each time I play it + 15$/month, because whenever I play I have to have a drink and some snacks too.

You can't combine the price of a movie in your "a night out" package then compare it to a monthly fee, they're three separate things.

I'm sure I was trying to make a point somewhere in all this.

None of that matters. The fact is that you pay more for a night out than you do for an entire month of WoW. That's the only thing that matters. And going to a movie is cheap when you compare it to going out to a bar and having a few drinks with your buddies etc.

[snuzzle]

One single movie ticket around here about costs $9, not including tax. If I see two movies in a month, the movie ticket alone will cost more than an entire month of WoW.

Okay, what about bowling? That's another popular pasttime! One night of "galactic bowling" at the local bowling rink (is that what they're called? I don't sports) is $17. So that's also more than WoW.

The point is, generally, WoW is a pretty cheap hobby as hobbies go. While it might not be cheaper than a single movie ticket, I also don't have to pay the exorbitant movie concessions prices if I get thirsty mid-raid, so there's that.

[Marema]

You don't seem to understrand what you're talking about. When you go to a movie and buy all of those things, all that money goes to the movie theater. It doesn't go to their vendors.

Or you can twist it around. Your 15$ sub fee for Blizzard goes to paying for electricty, equipment upgrades, supplies, etc so some of your sub fee goes to those vendors.

And you're also talking about going to a movie for 2ish hours while the sub fee lets you play for the vast majority of a month.

[Pann]

Wrong.

It goes to the cinema company who have already bought the goods far cheaper than you pay.

In the case of soft drinks there will be a rental and maintenance agreement in place with distributor for the dispensing equipment, you cannot just attach Pepsi to Coke's equipment or vice versa, I also would imagine it would be a similar situation for snacks and I would not be surprised that drinks and snack supplier are one in the same, so he is partially correct.

[ComputerNerd]

None of that matters. The fact is that you pay more for a night out than you do for an entire month of WoW. That's the only thing that matters. And going to a movie is cheap when you compare it to going out to a bar and having a few drinks with your buddies etc.

Exactly.
We are not saying that the movies are too expensive, but that for the amount of money we get better value out of the WoW subscription.
Stop grasping at straws and perhaps realise that what we said is exactly what it looks like.

[lunchbox2042]

That movie is new and fresh though. I've been playing the same content going on 6 months now and with the way it's looking, would be for the next 6 months as well. Do you go see the same movie every month?

[Itakas]

The problem is, next time i go to the cinema and pay 15$ i will watch another movie, i am not forced to watch the same movie for 1 year.

[Alvito]

Interesting choice of picking a theater, one of the most marked up places around, to make Blizzard seem greedy. That gallon of soda they are selling for 8 bucks costs them about 10 cents to make, the popcorn is slightly more but still a 700% mark up at least. Could Blizzard drop their prices, maybe. Should they, no. From their point of view why would they? From mine it costs, as you pointed out, less then a few hours at the movies for a month of entertainment.

[Alvito]

The problem is, next time i go to the cinema and pay 15$ i will watch another movie, i am not forced to watch the same movie for 1 year.

You are in luck, you aren't forced to play the same game for a year or even a second now.