Why is Ripleys believe it or not £2.49!!??

lettuce

New member
Mar 17, 2012
1,086
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I have just purchased Black Hole seeing as the gate bug is fixed now and it cost me £1.49, i then decided to go buy Ripleys Believe it or not but its asking me to pay £2.49 for a single table!, why is it soo much?
 

Heretic

New member
Jun 4, 2012
4,125
1
I have just purchased Black Hole seeing as the gate bug is fixed now and it cost me £1.49, i then decided to go buy Ripleys Believe it or not but its asking me to pay £2.49 for a single table!, why is it soo much?

Good choice on the blackhole , i dont play ripleys too much but the extra cost is licensing, which is why twilight and tng will cost a similar amount, i buy all tables anyway...ive a pin arcade in my MIND heh back on topic, its all to do with costs man peterson wasnt greedy so we got elvira for the normal price etc
 

Sean DonCarlos

Moderator
Staff member
Mar 17, 2012
4,293
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The licensed tables cost more, even when the license is relatively minor, like Ripley's. Major licensed tables like TZ and ST:TNG may be even more.
 

lettuce

New member
Mar 17, 2012
1,086
0
How come FS didnt need a KickStarter for RBION then but do for TZ and TNG if there going to increase the asking price of these types of tables?. So with TZ and TNG be priced at £2.49 aswell?

Well RBION and HD will be 2 tables i wont be purchasing.....funny how there 2 Stern tables! Think the only Stern tables i would buy would be Simpsons PP, Family Guy, Ironman, Spiderman and Tron...but to be fair i dont think we'll ever see these in TPA without the help of a kickstarter and i dont think any of them carry enough clout (with the exception of Simpsons) to reach a Kickstarter target :(
 
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Kolchak357

Senior Pigeon
May 31, 2012
8,102
2
I really enjoy RBION. Wasn't sure about it at first. Pretty ugly table with the typical PL layout design, but I learned to love it. Gameplay is fun and there is a lot to do on it. I never noticed the higher price before. I always just buy the pack without really checking the individual price of each table. I will play any table enough to justify the price in my head.
 

Sean DonCarlos

Moderator
Staff member
Mar 17, 2012
4,293
0
How come FS didnt need a KickStarter for RBION then but do for TZ and TNG if there going to increase the asking price of these types of tables?. So with TZ and TNG be priced at £2.49 aswell?
Because the license for the Ripley's property is fairly obscure and probably did not cost very much. Universal Studios apparently did not ask for an arm and a leg for their monsters (MB and CFTBL) as well. But once you start getting into major properties like TZ and ST:TNG, the costs go up, both upfront (which is all the kickstarters paid for) and residuals.

TZ and ST:TNG are very likely to cost more than £2.49. I am not aware of the current state of the US-UK exchange rate, but consensus seems to think TZ will be $4.99 by itself (RBION is $3.99 over here). I wouldn't be surprised if it came out at $6.99 or $7.99.

The kickstarters were to make the tables "commercially viable", not necessarily to get them to the same price point as the other tables. If FarSight can pull it off at $3.99 for TZ, good on them, but I really don't see that happening.
 

Mmmbacon

New member
Jul 6, 2012
22
0
I live in a world where people complain about paying over 2.00 for a Photorealistic, lifelike pinball emulation that can be carried in your pocket....

/soapbox mode: OFF
ok now you kids get off my lawn!!!!!
 

Worf

New member
Aug 12, 2012
726
0
Technically, any mobile game over 99 cents is considered "expensive". The first thing people say about Square-Enix's games (typically $15) is "outrageously expensive". At least on iOS. On Android, any game with a price tag is considered "expensive" (which explains why most people get them for free).

It's a relative thing - people will pay more on the PC, so they probably won't complain (other than "I can't believe how cheap TPA is"), since games normally go for $30 or so. Ditto consoles.
 

Matt McIrvin

New member
Jun 5, 2012
801
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The cost and cost structure of the license depends on whatever Farsight can negotiate with the rights-holders. My understanding is that the TZ and Star Trek: TNG licenses involved both an up-front payment and a per-unit residual. The Kickstarter was mostly to raise the considerable up-front money, but the tables will still have to be more expensive than usual to cover the residuals.
 

Richard B

New member
Apr 7, 2012
1,868
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For Stern tables yes, for Twlight Zone no!
Maybe not in 1993, but today, with pinball so scarce, it's not unusual to see ridiculous pricing like that. Fortunately, all the tables near me are still 25 to 50 cents on average, the most expensive being 75 cents (AC/DC).
 

Supermans

New member
Jun 19, 2012
131
0
The licensed tables cost more, even when the license is relatively minor, like Ripley's. Major licensed tables like TZ and ST:TNG may be even more.

The kickstarter money paid for the licenses of TZ and STTNG and went over the amount. There is no reason either table should cost more than the others when released as the licensing overhead isn't there. As for residual costs being mentioned above, I don't believe it warrants a doubling of the normal table price.
 
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Lord Boron

Member
Apr 18, 2012
583
1
It occurs to me that if 1 buck difference is to much for someone, they probably shouldn't be spending their money on an iPad or iPhone in the first place. Perhaps food or rent would be a better priority.
 

Worf

New member
Aug 12, 2012
726
0
The kickstarter money paid for the licenses of TZ and STTNG and went over the amount. There is no reason either table should cost more than the others when released as the licensing overhead isn't there. As for residual costs being mentioned above, I don't believe it warrants a doubling of the normal table price.

The kickstarter money went to prepayment to CBS and the like to START licensing talks. Also the excess of TZ went to the STTNG prepayment. There is no extra money for TZ.

Star Trek and TZ are very valuable properties, so to discourage people from unnecessarily entering licensing agreements, they often demand huge upfront payments to prove that you're serious. This money goes to pay the licensor's costs in lawyers.

That doesn't include the per-unit royalty that the license will demand. You can expect TNG and TZ to among the highest amounts of royalty demanded and paid.

And when the tables were originally licensed, it's unlikely anyone ever considered simulating those pinball machines, so digital rights may have to be renegotiated.
 

Jay

Member
May 19, 2012
478
3
I'm curious why Big Shot is $1.99 to buy in iOS, but is only available as part of the $4.99 package on a Mac.
 

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