LogIn"Not my call," says Gearbox's Chief Executive Officer.
Randy Pitchford, the infamous CEO of Gearbox Software, who just recently got criticized for being unable to handle criticism, has once again delighted the community with his witty remarks, this time by defending the potential $80 price tag of Borderlands 4, and doing so in the most bizarre way one could imagine – by invoking the "back in my day" argument.
Gearbox
Responding to a Twitter post from a user concerned that Gearbox following in the footsteps of Nintendo and Xbox and raising the price of Borderlands 4 to $80 would only hurt the game's sales because no one would buy it, Pitchford replied, and I quote, "If you're a real fan, you'll find a way to make it happen."
Instead of trying to justify the predatory price increase with the usual AAA studio talking points – like inflation, rising production costs, and so on – the CEO chose to lean into a "back in my day, school was uphill both ways" anecdote, saying that his "local game store had Starflight for Sega Genesis for $80 in 1991 when I was just out of high school working minimum wage at an ice cream parlor in Pismo Beach and I found a way to make it happen."
As if that wasn't enough, Pitchford also stated that whether Borderlands 4 will cost $80 is "not [his] call." While it's reasonable to assume that pricing would be decided by Gearbox's parent company 2K, or 2K's parent Take-Two, the idea of the Chief Executive Officer claiming the price of his studio's forthcoming game isn't up to him came off as absurd and was laughed at by many in the comments, with the tweet itself getting ratioed to oblivion.
Interestingly, keeping in mind each executive's favorite "rhetorical tool" – plausible deniability – Pitchford has neither confirmed nor denied Borderlands 4's final price, leaving the question unanswered and making one wonder why the CEO would once again embarrass himself in front of the public if the game's final cost might still be $70 or below.
Speaking of video game pricing, just recently, id Software and Bethesda seemingly felt the impact of overpricing firsthand, with DOOM: The Dark Ages reaching three million players while having abysmal Steam numbers – indicating that most gamers passed on the $70 price tag and instead valued the game at $12/month, a.k.a. played it on Xbox Game Pass.
So, what's your take on the video game price hikes? Are they justified, just another way for executives to pocket extra cash, or a necessary response to declining interest – read "fewer buyers" – in AAA games? Share your thoughts down in the comments!
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