Unlimited Media Knowledge Zone - Gaming

Speaking to GI.biz, Valve’s head of Steam, Jason Holtman, had some interesting things to say about the company’s frequent deals and their effect on long-term game sales. According to Holtman, Steam’s quick game sales — offering Team Fortress 2 for $2.49 for only a few hours last month, for example — don’t have a negative impact on a game’s long-term performance. Holtman notes that once a brick-and-mortar retailer reduces a game’s price, people are reticent to ever pay a higher price again, but downloadable games are different. “You can have sales that are dramatically low and bring the price back up and people don’t care,” said Holtman, “They don’t care at all.”

Regarding the $2.49 Team Fortress 2 sale last month, Holtman said that sales actually increased the following weekend — after it went back to full price. He also mentioned Steam’s previous half-off sale of Left 4 Dead, noting that it didn’t hurt retail sales at all (readers will recall that Valve claimed that it actually boosted retail sales). Holtman stated that it’s possible to run several promotions without “sacrificing” either downloadable or retail sales, and added, “You don’t have to hurt somebody to win.”

Tags: business, downloadable, left-4-dead, steam, valve