Skyrim lead says the $100 videogame may not be the best idea: 'I personally think game developers would be wise to not push the prices higher, but gamers are a special breed... they will pay for what they want'
Bethesda veteran and Skyrim lead designer Bruce Nesmith has done a new interview with PressBoxPR going over his considerable time at the studio: among the topics addressed are why Bethesda shouldn't switch to Unreal Engine, Todd Howard's "seagulling" habits, and one bit of deep cut lore that had PCG's Joshua Wolens despairing.
Nesmith is asked at one point about the debate over $100 games, which has been going on for years now but feels especially acute in the year of our lord Grand Theft Auto 6, which some expect to set a new premium price point. The argument is that spiralling budgets and the relatively steady price of games over the years makes such an increase inevitable, and perhaps even essential to the industry's future well-being.
"I remember for 15 years, the price of a newly released game was $59.95," says Nesmith. "For 15 years, it didn't change. Not even a cost of living increase. Not even recognizing inflation. It stayed at that price point. The fact that the prices are going up, I can't fault them for that.
"But I don't think players look at the hours of experience per price of the title once it gets past a certain number. There's going to be savvy players who do but I think a lot of times it's just that immediate hit you in the jaw, the impact that I've got to drop this amount of money for a game."
Nesmith's argument is obviously a good one for something like GTA 6, or indeed Bethesda's own games: I've been playing GTA 5 and Online for about a decade on-and-off now and, while I'm more of a Fallout than Elder Scrolls type, I've racked up hundreds of hours in individual Bethesda titles.
"What I'm surprised you didn't ask about is if they weren't going to go to a subscription model," continues Nesmith. "A pay-as-you-go model. That seems to be where everything is going these days. I can't get Microsoft Word unless I pay a monthly fee. The model for online games [is] indeed that way, but are singleplayer games going to go that way too?
"I think that they would most likely sell The Elder Scrolls 6 for whatever the industry standard price is at the time. If consumers are accepting $79.95, that's what it'll sell for. If they're accepting $99.95, that's what it'll sell for. It'll sell for whatever premium games go for at that time, and Microsoft has a heavy say in that and how it's marketed."
Yes, good old Microsoft and its consumer-friendly ways. While The Elder Scrolls 6 may well sell at that price on PC, you'd have to imagine it will also be used for a big push on Game Pass, just as Starfield was. In that case it was even a bit of an awkward halfway house: subscribers got access to the game, but could play it even earlier with a $31.49 'premium' upgrade.
"Economies around the world are struggling a little bit," concludes Nesmith. "I personally think game developers would be wise to not push the prices higher but gamers are a special breed. You know, they will pay for what they want.
"I would be loath to tell you how much I have paid for gaming in my life. I'm sitting at a fancy gaming table I paid way too much for. We’re willing to pay for our hobby so maybe people will pay for that and smarter people on the marketing side than I will be able to answer that question better."
Nesmith gave the interview to promote his Loki Redeemed books, a trilogy of novels he's written since leaving Bethesda. He also discusses his past work on The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, and has some ideas about where both series' could go next.