Price Cuts Cut Quality, According to Steam Users
Following its month of release, Shadow of the Tomb Raider received 34% discount on Steam, a price cut that evidently angered people. The game fell to a swift review bomb after going on sale.
A full month after launch, Shadow of the Tomb Raider held a steady majority of positive reviews. That “Mostly Positive” rating took a dive on October 16th, when hundreds of users shared negative review scores. As spotted on PCGamesN, the reviews spiked after the game went on sale (66% were negative). Many comments were transparent about their bitterness, too. One example reads, “Feel like a fool to have pre-ordered.” Another negative review says: “Game is good btw…but never pre-ordering a Square Enix game ever again.”
Video game discounts can reflect a game’s performance in the market. If the game’s not selling well, a publisher will slash the price in the next month. Of course, like in Square Enix’s case, publishers do it so often that players now wait for discounts like the one on Steam. Many of the most recent reviewers feel like they’re paying the premium to play ahead of everyone else. By now, however, every player (PC gamers especially) should know that the reward of patience is a price cut. Reviews exist to evaluate the quality of a game like Shadow of the Tomb Raider, and should not be abused. That said, the phony reviews are mixed in with quite a few legitimate complaints. While many players found Shadow of the Tomb Raider glitchy in some cases, others believe it didn’t deviate enough from a tired formula.
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