Question about pricing model

[Question]

What happens if I buy one table from the app store and I later want to buy the second table in that "table pack"? Will I be able to purchase the second table at the table pack rate, in other words, would I be able to complete the table pack at the original table pack price or will I have to pay the individual table price for the second table and thus end up paying his company another dollar? Their pricing structure is so confusing and bizarre.

 

[Brandon Debes]

There is no way to "complete" a pack that you already purchased half of. This is not confusing or bizarre. It is incredibly common. For example, Rock Band song packs work this way.

 

[Question]

Thanks Brandon, I'm going with zen. If someone from the company reads this, u should adopt the iTunes model for completing table packs. Not to be mean but it is kind of common sense. Yes i want lagoon but I may or may not want black knight. But I'm not going to engage a company that makes me choose right away and imposes a penalty on me for not making multiple decisions. The idea of downloading one table that I surely want now from a table pack and then later paying another dollar for the other table in that table pack, losing that dollar, is unacceptable. Just as unacceptable is paying for a table I may or may not want right now. I just want one table, I should be able to purchase it and not be penalized. Farsight you lost a customer and probably about 30 bucks. I'll check in some day to see if you've come to your senses.

 

[Brandon Debes]

You can't really think of it as a "penalty" for not buying the pack. The pack, like bundle pricing has been since long before digitally distributed goods existed, is a discount. Think of the individual table prices as the "regular" price. If you decide, up front, to buy more, you get a discount of a dollar. You don't have to decide this. But if you don't, you forfeit your opportunity to get the discounted price. The iTunes "complete my album" model for song downloads is actually quite singular in this regard. It is certainly not the norm, regardless of what you perceive to be common sense. If I had to guess, I would say you were probably born after the Internet became ubiquitous in the developed world (say, 1996?). Maybe it's time for merchants to change the way they view bundling discounts now that the digital age has changed their cost model. But until then you just sound like an entitled baby to older consumers. If you see Zen Pinball's fanciful video gamey tables as a commodity alternative to loving recreations of classic, practical tables, then by all means go with that.

 

[DopedToInfinity]

Thanks Brandon, I'm going with zen. If someone from the company reads this, u should adopt the iTunes model for completing table packs. Not to be mean but it is kind of common sense. Yes i want lagoon but I may or may not want black knight. But I'm not going to engage a company that makes me choose right away and imposes a penalty on me for not making multiple decisions. The idea of downloading one table that I surely want now from a table pack and then later paying another dollar for the other table in that table pack, losing that dollar, is unacceptable. Just as unacceptable is paying for a table I may or may not want right now. I just want one table, I should be able to purchase it and not be penalized. Farsight you lost a customer and probably about 30 bucks. I'll check in some day to see if you've come to your senses.

Deals like this are meant to make you go for the impulse buy, i.e. "why not? its only a quid more...".
I'm a part-time minimum wage barman, and £3 a month doesn't bankrupt me, its very good value.

Edit: I want Taxi, but Harley Davidson looks a bit crappy. I'll still buy them both because I love pinball and the more tables the better. I never liked the look of Gorgar but now I play it quite a lot.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

But I'm not going to engage a company that makes me choose right away and imposes a penalty on me for not making multiple decisions.

What penalty? Since when was a business offering a discount for purchasing multiple items considered a penalty?

 

[bavelb]

I just went clotheshopping at a store,: buy 3 items, get 1 free. But I only need 1 shirt, do you think I should ask the store that if I buy 1 shirt now, and another one at winter, I still get my 3rd item free?

My grocerystory has a kilodiscount: if I buy a kilo of chicken, I get 10% discount. Yet if I get 2 packages of 250grams this week and 2 packages the next I pay the full amount. What's your stance on that?

 

[Daniel Osborne]

I seem to remember when fx2 came out you has to buy tables in bundles, it's only recently they're available singly isn't it? I'd rather buy them singly or have a choice, but hey, they're bloody incredible when you stop to think about what they've done. Zen pinball? I used to enjoy it, but it was more of endure than enjoy when I played it a few months ago. Now I just don't bother. The ridiculous nudging and lead weight ball just kill that game for me now. Their music is usually great though.

 

[Carl Spiby]

I want to know how the whole msp thing works, do microsoft have some internal exchange rate?

 

[Pinhead]

You're looking at this backwards. You're not being punished for your purchase decisions; other customers are merely being rewarded for theirs.

As someone who has purchased a fair amount of Rock Band DLC, I know the frustration of buying 2 or 3 singles, then rebuying those same tracks and negating any benefit of the bundle discount, if I later decide I want the whole album.

I seem to remember when fx2 came out you has to buy tables in bundles, it's only recently they're available singly isn't it?

No. Zen has offered single enhanced FX1 tables since the release of FX2. And the first single FX2 DLC table was released after the first 4-pack of FX2 DLC tables.

 

[shutyertrap]

Thanks Brandon, I'm going with zen. If someone from the company reads this, u should adopt the iTunes model for completing table packs. Not to be mean but it is kind of common sense. Yes i want lagoon but I may or may not want black knight. But I'm not going to engage a company that makes me choose right away and imposes a penalty on me for not making multiple decisions. The idea of downloading one table that I surely want now from a table pack and then later paying another dollar for the other table in that table pack, losing that dollar, is unacceptable. Just as unacceptable is paying for a table I may or may not want right now. I just want one table, I should be able to purchase it and not be penalized. Farsight you lost a customer and probably about 30 bucks. I'll check in some day to see if you've come to your senses.

First off, the company is NOT making you choose right away. You can demo any and all tables up to the first high score. Second, it's an enticement to buy tables you might otherwise skip. I know I would have skipped Ripley's, and now that's one of my faves. Third, Zen might sell individual tables, but not if you want their Marvel collection. With them you have to buy not 2, but 4! And at $10 for those packs, that's the same price as buying 4 TPA titles.

Finally, your threat is quite limp. iTunes is competing with other music services for the exact same content. TPA is the only place you are going to get real world tables. You are essentially complaining about the cost of a chicken dinner, so instead you're gonna eat some nuggets. Both chicken, but not in the same league.

Take your trolling to the facebook page, cause it won't stand here.

 

[Question]

The pricing model is broken and also too expensive. Angry birds is 99c. So many great little games are 99c. It's the industry standard. I appreciate what this company does but the pricing is just plain off. I can't tell u how great iTunes is. There is a reason why apple is the best company in the world and a reason why iTunes has taken over the music industry. Their pricing and complete an album feature is common sense and allows consumers more freedom. The system is rational and mathematically correct. Farsights system is irrational and logically incorrect. Apples system serves the consumer first, and Farsights system attempts to maximize profit first. Apples system is fundamentally fair and reasonable. Farsights system is obviously unfair and attempting to make extra money at the expense of the consumers freedom of choice.

 

[BlindSpider11]

The pricing model is broken and also too expensive. Angry birds is 99c. So many great little games are 99c. It's the industry standard. I appreciate what this company does but the pricing is just plain off. I can't tell u how great iTunes is. There is a reason why apple is the best company in the world and a reason why iTunes has taken over the music industry. Their pricing and complete an album feature is common sense and allows consumers more freedom. The system is rational and mathematically correct. Farsights system is irrational and logically incorrect. Apples system serves the consumer first, and Farsights system attempts to maximize profit first. Apples system is fundamentally fair and reasonable. Farsights system is obviously unfair and attempting to make extra money at the expense of the consumers freedom of choice.

From what FarSight has stated creating these tables is very expensive. They charge what they need to, and the majority of use are ok with that.

 

[dtown8532]

The pricing model is broken and also too expensive. Angry birds is 99c. So many great little games are 99c. It's the industry standard. I appreciate what this company does but the pricing is just plain off. I can't tell u how great iTunes is. There is a reason why apple is the best company in the world and a reason why iTunes has taken over the music industry. Their pricing and complete an album feature is common sense and allows consumers more freedom. The system is rational and mathematically correct. Farsights system is irrational and logically incorrect. Apples system serves the consumer first, and Farsights system attempts to maximize profit first. Apples system is fundamentally fair and reasonable. Farsights system is obviously unfair and attempting to make extra money at the expense of the consumers freedom of choice.

Angry Birds? Angry Birds? You're comparing the emulation of thousands of mechanical and electronic parts of a pinball machine with...Angry Birds! And you think it should be 99 cents? You're talking about two tables at a time. If you want them both, buy them both. If you only want one, buy just one. I just spent almost eight bucks at Wawa for a hoagie, chips and a soda that I'll "unload" later. A five buck TPA table pack will stick around much longer than that. I'll also get a lot more satisfaction out of it as well.

I, along with many others, have some performance issues with TPA right now but...99 cents?...Angry Birds? I gotta go to the bathroom.

 

[Bonzo]

There is a reason why apple is the best company in the world and a reason why iTunes has taken over the music industry. Their pricing and complete an album feature is common sense and allows consumers more freedom. The system is rational and mathematically correct. Farsights system is irrational and logically incorrect. Apples system serves the consumer first, and Farsights system attempts to maximize profit first.

Ever thought about the fact that apple's system is only possible because apple is a HUGE company? Ever heard musicians complain about the deals they have to live with if they want to have their music sold on iTunes? Did you realize that apple doesn't create content but only distributes it?

In comparison FS are a tiny tiny company that indeed has encountered more obstacles than they thought they would since releasing TPA. And they certainly have also made more than one mistake (e.g. PR-wise). But c'mon, give them a fair chance and stop comparing apple(s) and oranges...

 

[Jan Duin]

Seeing that the thread starter's question has been answered (no you don't get the 2-pack discount if you buy the 2nd table at a later stage) this thread will be closed before it turns into a flame war.