Value of Skins + Ressurection

[lowercase skye]

3 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

No? That's just a temporary discount, it always returns back to its normal price later, standard business practice

What if a game permanently drops in price? E.g a game from a previous console generation once the new one comes out.

[Kaioh]

8 minutes ago, lowercase skye said:

What if a game permanently drops in price? E.g a game from a previous console generation once the new one comes out.

Depends how steep of a drop it is and the OG price of the game. Base DST is not that expensive to begin with

[lowercase skye]

7 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

Depends how steep of a drop it is and the OG price of the game. Base DST is not that expensive to begin with

For the sake of argument let's say a $60 game goes down to $15, I saw this a lot with Wii U games whenever the Switch came out.

[Kaioh]

14 minutes ago, lowercase skye said:

For the sake of argument let's say a $60 game goes down to $15, I saw this a lot with Wii U games whenever the Switch came out.

Then I would definitely feel cheated, especially if the game wasn't worth the $60 price tag to begin with. I would probably even note down the company's name so I know who I'm dealing with if I come accross another game from them if it's a regular occurence for them, I would even consider pirating their products to not reward this behavior. The one exception to this would be games that rely intensely on regular paid content DLCs to make money, such as Hearts of Iron IV and Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, as players might feel too overwhelmed to immediately dump like $200-300 on the game just to catch up with the rest of the players and enjoy the current game as intended - there gradual price drops make sense so long as it's within reason

[Johnny_Waffles]

2 hours ago, Kaioh said:

1. Because it sets a precedent for the future as well
2. Promoting exclusive digital items will ultimately create consumers who only buy merch for the skins, to them the actual merch might be worth dirt. If they don't want to exploit the skin collectors so more people buy merch because they actually like it, they should take the road of regular winter hats where they give random common in-game skins with codes instead and stop the exclusivity system in the first place
3. That's kind of the point, though? They're expensive because they're tied to expensive merch. I don't get why do people keep justifying Klei cheating people out of money so horribly like this

You just seem to like the skin over the merch and are trying to justify merch not being the main point/ the reason the skin should be more expensive. Even though if not for the merch, the skin would just be any old skin that costs 1350 spools but since it's a bonus for an irl item it's more expensive. If you don't care for the merch thats ok, just don't expect the digital skin to be expensive by itself (though 10 bucks for 1 skin is already expensive in dst)

[Kaioh]

6 minutes ago, Johnny_Waffles said:

You just seem to like the skin over the merch and are trying to justify merch not being the main point/ the reason the skin should be more expensive. Even though if not for the merch, the skin would just be any old skin that costs 1350 spools but since it's a bonus for an irl item it's more expensive. If you don't care for the merch thats ok, just don't expect the digital skin to be expensive by itself (though 10 bucks for 1 skin is already expensive in dst)

Again, Klei lured collectors into buying merch with the promise of exclusive skins, naturally this would create such demand where there are buyers that only care for the skins. Klei's fault this is a problem

[Johnny_Waffles]

13 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

Again, Klei lured collectors into buying merch with the promise of exclusive skins, naturally this would create such demand where there are buyers that only care for the skins. Klei's fault this is a problem

but that doesn't warrant a single skin to be crazy expensive. Also i didn't seem to find any advertisements saying they were exclusive, only that it includes a don't starve skin code.

[viblym]

15 hours ago, Kaioh said:

It doesn't matter, international buyers from poor countries still have to deal with American prices the same way privileged countries do, they were in no position to own something like that before, they shouldn't be now either just because they demand it

I don't think I am ever going to understand how people can say things like this and not realize how callous it comes across. Absolutely insane. I gave my Chilean friend a 5 dollar steam gift card and they were able to buy a skin set that costed me 25 dollars since it converted into their currency. I don't think you'll ever understand how awesome that feels, to help people out. Many of my friends live in other countries where their currency is worth less than USD and I celebrate every chance they get to get things at a discounted price. As someone who has spent my entire life below the poverty line I will always sympathize with them over someone seeking to have a "valuable collection". Saying someone is in "No position to own something like that... they shouldn't now either" has me utterly gobsmacked. Please do not continue this discussion. 

Edited July 22, 2025 by viblym

[Kaioh]

10 minutes ago, Johnny_Waffles said:

but that doesn't warrant a single skin to be crazy expensive. Also i didn't seem to find any advertisements saying they were exclusive, only that it includes a don't starve skin code.

It pretty much does if Klei wants to seem credible to its fans. JoeW stated the skins are exclusive to merch here:

"I understand the completionist idea, for sure. But, if we were to balance our items around that idea, it would be just way too limiting. You can still be a completionist if you like, but you have to accept that there will be some items you won't be able to get. There will definitely be items that are limited under certain conditions, like the tragic torch, beta firepit, pax items and proof of purchase items or even just stuff that is only available during special times, like... Halloween. I mean, just for example, of course. *ahem*"

Some physical cards you receive with the merch also call their rewards exclusive

 

[Johnny_Waffles]

4 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

It pretty much does if Klei wants to seem credible to its fans. JoeW stated the skins are exclusive to merch here:

"I understand the completionist idea, for sure. But, if we were to balance our items around that idea, it would be just way too limiting. You can still be a completionist if you like, but you have to accept that there will be some items you won't be able to get. There will definitely be items that are limited under certain conditions, like the tragic torch, beta firepit, pax items and proof of purchase items or even just stuff that is only available during special times, like... Halloween. I mean, just for example, of course. *ahem*"

Some physical cards you receive with the merch also call their rewards exclusive

 

a few things almost 10 years ago said exclusive while other things didn't. I think that those things just said that since, at the time the skin were exclusive to those items, so I guess there is a bit of false advertisement. Also what Joey says isn't concrete since he also says some Halloween will be exclusive for that time even though there isn't any exclusive Halloween items.

[Kaioh]

11 minutes ago, viblym said:

I don't think I am ever going to understand how people can say things like this and not realize how callous it comes across. Absolutely insane. I gave my Chilean friend a 5 dollar steam gift card and they were able to buy a skin set that costed me 25 dollars since it converted into their currency. I don't think you'll ever understand how awesome that feels, to help people out. Many of my friends live in other countries where their currency is worth less than USD and I celebrate every chance they get to get things at a discounted price. As someone who has spent my entire life below the poverty line I will always sympathize with them over someone seeking to have a "valuable collection". Saying someone is in "No position to own something like that... they shouldn't now either" has me utterly gobsmacked. Please do not continue this discussion. 

I guess you would rather see Klei collapse financially due to lost financial credibility, and as a result all of their projects either ended or sold off to companies like Tencent instead of Klei maintaining customer fairness and protecting their credibility, then? I feel like the company and the game staying afloat is much more important than some people not having some skins with no real bearing on the gameplay itself, but hey, to each their own I guess ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

1 minute ago, Johnny_Waffles said:

a few things almost 10 years ago said exclusive while other things didn't. I think that those things just said that since, at the time the skin were exclusive to those items, so I guess there is a bit of false advertisement. Also what Joey says isn't concrete since he also says some Halloween will be exclusive for that time even though there isn't any exclusive Halloween items.

The term exclusive still appears on some physical merch cards from the klei shop to this day, it's by design. Funko Pops also used this advertising

[lowercase skye]

17 hours ago, Kaioh said:

It doesn't matter, international buyers from poor countries still have to deal with American prices the same way privileged countries do, they were in no position to own something like that before, they shouldn't be now either just because they demand it

I didn't notice it before but I want to make it clear this is an extraordinarily horrible thing to say. I am kind of stunned that you thought this was at all okay.

[cybers2001]

2 hours ago, Johnny_Waffles said:

You just seem to like the skin over the merch and are trying to justify merch not being the main point/ the reason the skin should be more expensive. Even though if not for the merch, the skin would just be any old skin that costs 1350 spools but since it's a bonus for an irl item it's more expensive. If you don't care for the merch thats ok, just don't expect the digital skin to be expensive by itself (though 10 bucks for 1 skin is already expensive in dst)

I definitely bought the Wilson Funko for the skin. I don't even like Funkos.

[Kaioh]

19 minutes ago, lowercase skye said:

I didn't notice it before but I want to make it clear this is an extraordinarily horrible thing to say. I am kind of stunned that you thought this was at all okay.

And whose fault is it exactly that this is the reality? I didn't make the rules that all countries, regardless of their wealth, must adhere to American prices (aka the richest country in the world) when buying merch from Klei, this is a problem which Klei failed to solve. Facts don't care about feelings, and this appeal to emotion fallacy just exposes the fact this is not a neutral thread at all. If you guys can't debate without constant appealing to emotion, where you just say things like extremely expensive non-essential purely cosmetic things should be now extremely cheap, because some countries and/or people have it rough and because they too want to own said things without making the same sacrifice as the others before them did, there is no more reason to continue this debate, frankly

[lowercase skye]

5 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

Facts don't care about feelings

LOL

[Popian]

4 hours ago, Kaioh said:

gradual price drops make sense so long as it's within reason

The acceptability of depreciation is relative to time. It's not a bait and switch if circumstances have changed and enough time has passed. What one gets for being an early adopter is exclusive access while it is not available at any other price, in general.

This might not actually be the case in this situation, so I would advise doing more research if you do not agree with this opinion. We could debate on what we feel is reasonable, but that's what laws are for. You can usually seek an equitable remedy if you feel wronged and have proof of it.

Edited July 23, 2025 by Popian

[hhh2]

On 7/21/2025 at 10:43 PM, Picklesaurus said:

I don't, I'm not buying those skins, at the current prices they are already expensive to me

8 hours ago, viblym said:

gave my Chilean friend a 5 dollar steam gift card and they were able to buy a skin set that costed me 25 dollars since it converted into their currency.

6 hours ago, Kaioh said:

this is a problem which Klei failed to solve

Does Klei do regional pricing?  Not with everything?

 

On 7/22/2025 at 12:01 AM, lowercase skye said:

capitalism works by convincing you that clothes made in sweat shops, pieces of paper with Charizard on it, and videogame cosmetics are all something you want to spend as much money on as possible, and will be happy to Complete Your Collection and Gain Social Status

Not capitalism but human nature.  Humans are already convinced that rare and attractive things are valuable.  Maybe it has something to do with pattern recognition and uncommon patterns being more simulating and that they make you alert because that rare thing might have useful properties.  (Obviously they do not if they are videogame cosmetics, but the response is vestigial.)  Socialism is fatally flawed because of our nature, but becoming socialist wouldn't remove our or some human's tendencies to think that rare and attractive things are valuable. 

21 hours ago, 00petar00 said:

Everyone that wants the skins to be exclusive and expensive is basically trying to gatekeep them at their own cost so less people own it and they can show off.

Yes!  Like that behavior or not, it's natural.

 

On 7/22/2025 at 12:20 AM, cybers2001 said:

They both see the skin as something that represents status, which they either like or they don't like. The people who really don't care at all about the rarity of the skin are the people who are basically ignoring this subject altogether.

They both do not see the skin as something that represents status.  The activists of skin freedom like the appearance of the sprites and want to use them to decorate or is what I hear.

 

10 hours ago, lowercase skye said:

Whenever a game goes on sale, are you being cheated out of money for having bought it at full price earlier?

This is witty, but not applicable because you can't resell or trade games in this digital age.

 

[RexySeven]

8 hours ago, Kaioh said:

The term exclusive still appears on some physical merch cards from the klei shop to this day, it's by design. Funko Pops also used this advertising

Term exclusive appeared on the ice cream's packaging I invested (bought at the supermarket) today.

[Kaioh]

5 hours ago, Popian said:

We could debate on what we feel is reasonable, but that's what laws are for. You can usually seek an equitable remedy if you feel wronged and have proof of it.

Huh, this is interesting, thanks for bringing this up. I'll look into it when I have the time

14 minutes ago, hhh2 said:

Does Klei do regional pricing?  Not with everything?

Not with merch. In-game prices are indeed regional, but merch is the same value in american dollars regardless of where you live. I had to pay for merch the same exact dollar value as an american would, even though I don't live in the USA.

[lowercase skye]

So what I'm hearing is that if a skin's price is too low, then scalpers won't be able to scalp anymore, and poor people will be allowed to have something they like. And this is, uh, bad, apparently.

Edited July 23, 2025 by lowercase skye

[Maxposting]

1 hour ago, hhh2 said:

Not capitalism but human nature.

"It's human nature bro" says video game forum user in favour of a system which nowadays benefits nobody but a few parasites and will lead to destruction of humanity altogether if not overthrown.

How would it be against "human nature" (totally immutable and very eternal thing outside of the conditions people exist in) to have skins available to everyone under socialism?

[Kaioh]

45 minutes ago, lowercase skye said:

So what I'm hearing is that if a skin's price is too low, then scalpers won't be able to scalp anymore, and poor people will be allowed to have something they like. And this is, uh, bad, apparently.

Since everyone cares so much about scalping and saying that buying merch should be for merch only and that skins are just a "tiny bonus", then how about this fact? Since Klei has introduced exclusive skins, it creates demand from a group that purely seeks out skins and not the merch. This causes less supply for genuine merch enthusiasts as they now have to compete with collectors for merch supplies. You might think that Klei eliminating an entire merch supply and making their respective skins worth chump change as a result will somehow "fix" things, well, not really. Collectors will be genuinely angered by this and seek revenge on Klei. One way of achieving this is by cutting spending, another way of doing this would be taking advantage of the situation of cut merch supplies by collectors - now that Klei is not here to provide a cheaper alternative, resellers no longer have a limit on how much they can earn by selling their "useless" merch. For example, Crabbit was $35, Mandrake was $30, what if they all start selling them for $70 and $60 respectively for example (aka double the MSRP)? Ultimately, the biggest losers in all of this are genuine merch enthusiasts who really just love merch, as now they have no choice but to get scalped hard if they want to own something. This completely defeats the purpose of merch being enjoyed by merch lovers

[Maxposting]

3 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

Ultimately, the biggest losers in all of this are genuine merch enthusiasts who really just love merch, as now they have no choice but to get scalped hard if they want to own something. This completely defeats the purpose of merch being enjoyed by merch lovers

I'm not sure how this is the case just now?

[Kaioh]

10 minutes ago, Maxposting said:

I'm not sure how this is the case just now?

Mandrake and Crabbit plushies are no longer manufactured and sold, this means merch enthusiasts can now only get this merch from resellers on pages like eBay, they're at their complete mercy when it comes to pricing, and with time, I wouldn't be surprised if they reach absolutely absurd levels

[Maxposting]

9 minutes ago, Kaioh said:

Mandrake and Crabbit plushies are no longer manufactured and sold, this means merch enthusiasts can now only get this merch from resellers on pages like eBay, they're at their complete mercy when it comes to pricing, and with time, I wouldn't be surprised if they reach absolutely absurd levels

Correct, but that was happening way before Klei started resurrecting the skins since scalpers have been reselling the merchandise already.

I'm not sure how it's connected to the skin collectors though? To me this seems like yet another reason why the skins should have been sold separately and at best, bundled redeem codes with the merchandise as "the bonus gift", which was Klei's intention in the first place with those.

Edited July 23, 2025 by Maxposting
corrected the first sentence