為什麼遊戲要賣60美元？為什麼電子遊戲的價格從未改變？：英語精讀講義

In 1994, it cost around $2.49 to buy a 20 oz box of Oreo cookies.

1994年，買一盒20盎司的OREO餅乾大約需要2.49美元。

In 2014, it cost around $4.49 to buy a 14 oz box of Oreo cookies.

到了2014年，買一盒14盎司的OREO餅乾大約需要4.49美元。

Manufacturing one box of Oreo cookies hasn't necessarily gone up,

製造一盒OREO餅乾的成本未必增加了，

but the rate of inflation has,

但通貨膨脹率卻上升了，

making a smaller box cost nearly twice as much as a larger box did 20 years prior. 文法

導致20年後，一盒更小的餅乾價格幾乎是原來大盒子的兩倍。

But video games are a different story. 慣用語

但電子遊戲的情況卻截然不同。

Though the cost of developing them has risen considerably over that same period, 文法

儘管在同一時期，遊戲的開發成本大幅上升，

the retail price has not.

但零售價格卻沒有上漲。

And in some cases,

在某些情況下，

it's even dropped.

它的價格甚至下降了。

Why is that?

這是為什麼呢？

That's the mystery we intend to solve in this episode of The Infographics Show.

這就是本期《The Infographics Show》我們要解開的謎團。

Why hasn't the price of video games changed?

為什麼電子遊戲的價格沒有改變？

The first example of a game machine was unveiled by Dr. Edward U. Condon at the New York's World's Fair in 1940.

第一台遊戲機的雛形是愛德華·U·康登博士在1940年紐約世博會上展示的。

The mathematical game was played by roughly 50,000 people

大約有5萬人玩過這款數學遊戲，

with the computer reportedly winning more than 90% of the games. 講解

據報導，電腦贏得了超過90%的對局。

The first game system designed for commercial home use was in the late 1960s 文法

第一台專為商業家用設計的遊戲系統出現在1960年代末，

when Ralph Baer and his team released his prototype,

當時拉爾夫·貝爾及其團隊發布了他的原型機

the Brown Box,

「棕盒子」(Brown Box)，

a vacuum tube circuit that could be connected to a television set

這是一種可以連接到電視機的真空管電路，

allowing two users to control cubes that chased each other on the screen.

允許兩名使用者控制螢幕上互相追逐的方塊。

But it wasn't until the 1970s that games became mainstream 文法

但直到1970年代，遊戲才成為主流，

when the first commercial arcade video game,

當時第一款商業街機電子遊戲，

Computer Space by Nutting Associates,

Nutting Associates公司製作的《Computer Space》，

was introduced.

正式問世。

And in the same decade,

在同一個十年裡，

Atari introduced Pong to the arcades.

雅達利(Atari)將《Pong》引入了街機廳。

A game that many who were born in Generation X will remember fondly,

許多X世代出生的人對這款遊戲依然記憶猶新，

Pong is a table tennis sports game with simple two-dimensional graphics,

《Pong》是一款帶有簡單二維圖形的桌球體育遊戲，

and it quickly grew in popularity. 片語搭配

它很快就流行了起來。

It was the first commercially successful video game,

這是第一款獲得商業成功的電子遊戲，

and it helped to establish the video game industry

而它與第一台家用主機共同奠定了電子遊戲產業的基礎，

along with the first home console,

這台家用主機就是

the Magnavox Odyssey.

米羅華奧德賽(Magnavox Odyssey)。

Soon after its release,

在它發布後不久，

several companies began producing games that copied the layout of Pong's gameplay

幾家公司開始製作模仿《Pong》玩法設計的遊戲，

and went on to release new types of games. 片語搭配

並隨後發布了新型遊戲。

But back in 1976, 片語搭配

不過回望1976年，

of course, things were quite different and gaming was simple.

情況當然大不相同，當時的遊戲很簡單。

Pong was the height of at-home multiplayer gaming 用詞

《Pong》是家庭多人遊戲的巔峰，

with only two dials, one button, and a switch.

它只有兩個旋鈕、一個按鈕和一個開關。

And new, it cost nearly $100,

當時它的全新售價將近100美元，

which is enough to buy an Xbox 360 and a Nintendo Wii by today's dollars.

換算成今天的美元，這筆錢足以買下一台Xbox 360和一台任天堂Wii。

So what about the modern gaming era 表達脈絡

那麼現代遊戲時代

and the prices people paid to play?

以及人們為了玩遊戲所支付的價格呢？

The 1990s were a decade of innovation in video gaming,

1990年代是電子遊戲創新的十年，

a transition from sprite-based graphics to full-fledged 3D graphics.

實現了從基於精靈圖的圖形向成熟3D圖形的過渡。

It gave rise to several genres of video games including the first-person shooter, 片語搭配

它催生了多種類型的電子遊戲，包括第一人稱射擊遊戲、

real-time strategy, survival horror,

即時戰略遊戲、生存恐怖遊戲，

and massively multiplayer online or MMO. 文化背景

以及大型多人線上遊戲(MMO)。

Consoles went from fourth to fifth to sixth generation,

遊戲主機從第四代、第五代發展到第六代，

CD-ROM technology was born with the Nintendo 64 being the last major home video game console to use ROM cartridges,

CD-ROM技術誕生，任天堂64(Nintendo 64)成為最後一款使用ROM卡匣的主流家用遊戲機，

and game controllers took on a new look with the Super NES controller 片語動詞

遊戲控制器也煥然一新，超任(Super NES)控制器的出現，

introducing a more rounded dog-bone-like design and adding two more face buttons,

引入了更圓潤的類似狗骨頭的設計，並增加了兩個面板按鈕

X and Y, arranged in a diamond formation.

X和Y，呈菱形排列。

Games such as Street Fighter II,

《快打旋風2》(Street Fighter II)、

Mortal Kombat,

《真人快打》(Mortal Kombat)、

Sonic the Hedgehog,

《音速小子》(Sonic the Hedgehog)、

Super Mario 64,

《超級瑪利歐64》(Super Mario 64)、

Doom, Resident Evil, StarCraft,

《毀滅戰士》(Doom)、《惡靈古堡》(Resident Evil)、《星海爭霸》(StarCraft)，

and dozens more were released.

以及幾十款其他遊戲相繼發行。

And how much did the '90s games cost?

90年代的遊戲賣多少錢呢？

Well, Super Mario 3 cost $94.40,

《超級瑪利歐3》售價94.40美元，

Mortal Kombat for Super Nintendo was priced at $119.55,

超級任天堂版《真人快打》售價119.55美元，

Street Fighter II was a cool $123.13, 用詞

《快打旋風2》則高達123.13美元，

a big chunk of cash for a '90s gamer. 慣用語

對90年代的玩家來說，這是一大筆錢。

Those prices should have continued to rise, 文法

這些價格本應繼續上漲，

but that's not what happened.

但實際情況並非如此。

The price eventually dropped to $60.

遊戲價格最終降到了60美元。

We couldn't work out exactly when this was, 片語動詞

我們無法確切得知這是什麼時候發生的事，

but the online opinion of gamers says that it was sometime in the '90s,

但網路上玩家們的普遍觀點認為這發生在90年代的某個時候，

and $60 is where it has stayed.

並且價格就一直保持在60美元。

And with rising development costs and inflation,

隨著開發成本不斷上升和通貨膨脹，

how and why has the price not shifted?

價格究竟為何且如何做到保持不變的？

Kate Cox from The Consumerist,

非營利消費者事務網站The Consumerist的

a non-profit consumer affairs website,

凱特·考克斯(Kate Cox)，

detailed some of the practices that have become standard with video game sales in recent years.

詳細介紹了近年來電子遊戲銷售中已成為標準的一些做法。

She explained that the reason most retailers in the US charge $59.99 for a new video game on release week is because it's a price point that comes from the publisher, 用詞

她解釋說，大多數美國零售商在新遊戲發布首週標價59.99美元的原因，是因為這是發行商定下的基準價格，

and all the retailers that sell the new product agree to abide by it. 片語動詞

所有銷售這款新產品的零售商都同意遵守這一價格。

Stores that choose not to abide by this price quickly find themselves out of favor with the publisher, 講解

選擇不遵守這一價格的商店會很快失去發行商的青睞，

risking future shipments.

面臨未來斷貨的風險。

So if big game store is keen on getting players in the door, 講解

因此，如果大型遊戲商店渴望吸引玩家進店，

they won't drop below the publisher's guidance.

他們就不會將價格降到低於發行商指導價的水平。

And gaming media website GameRant concluded that all the triple-A publishers set their game price at $60 文化背景

遊戲媒體網站GameRant總結道，所有3A級發行商都將遊戲價格設定為60美元，

as it's a guaranteed method of leveling the playing field. 慣用語

因為這是維持公平競爭的可靠方法。

Publishers set the minimum price of $60 because it guarantees their cut will be substantial enough to support them 用詞

發行商將最低價格設定為60美元，因為這保證了他們的分成足以維持生計，

with more being made from extras such as collector's editions, 文化背景

而透過典藏版、

DLC, and microtransactions.

DLC和微交易等額外內容則可以賺取更多利潤。

Unfortunately, the model may not be as lucrative for retail,

遺憾的是，這種模式對零售商來說可能沒那麼暴利，

and stores often take a hit on stocking new games, 慣用語

商店進貨新遊戲常常會承擔虧損，

which is part of the reason used game stores don't offer much cash for used games,

這也是二手遊戲店收購二手遊戲時不願給太多現金，

yet still on-sell them at a much higher price. 用詞

卻仍以高得多的價格轉手出售的部分原因。

So where exactly does the $60 go to?

那麼這60美元到底去了哪裡？

According to Alex Pham in an article for the Los Angeles Times in 2010,

根據亞歷克斯·范(Alex Pham) 2010年在《洛杉磯時報》上發表的一篇文章，

that $60 price is broken down as follows: 表達脈絡

這60美元的價格分配如下：

$27 goes to the publisher,

27美元歸發行商，

$15 to the retailer,

15美元歸零售商，

$7 to returns, 用詞

7美元用於退貨，

which are games that don't sell and are sent back,

即未能售出被退回的遊戲，

$7 is a platform royalty, 文化背景

7美元是平台權利金，

which is paid to Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo,

支付給索尼、微軟或任天堂，

and $4 to production and distribution.

4美元用於生產和分銷。

You might have noticed that there's no mention of the developer. 片語搭配

你可能注意到了，這裡並沒有提到開發者。

Well, that's because in most cases the developer has already been paid.

這是因為在多數情況下，開發者已經拿到了報酬。

And to talk about developing video games for a minute, 表達脈絡

讓我們花點時間談談電子遊戲的開發，

you would think that a game that is more expensive to make 文法

你可能會認為製作成本更高的遊戲，

should be more expensive to buy.

購買價格也應該更貴。

Well, that's just not the case. 片語搭配

然而事實並非如此。

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

《決勝時刻：現代戰爭2》(Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2)

cost $200 million to make,

製作成本達2億美元，

whereas Gears of War only cost $10 million to make. 文法

而《戰爭機器》(Gears of War)的製作成本僅為1000萬美元。

Surprise, surprise, they'll sell for $60 語氣意圖

驚不驚喜，它們的售價都是60美元，

and generate $27 of profit per sale.

並且每次銷售都能產生27美元的利潤。

Will video games stay $60 and below forever?

電子遊戲的價格會永遠保持在60美元及以下嗎？

No one knows for sure. 片語搭配

沒人能確定。

And we found there is a lot of debate from gamers on Reddit and Quora as to when things might change. 片語搭配

我們發現Reddit和Quora上的玩家對於情況何時會發生改變有很多爭論。

Maybe you have your own opinion on why the $60 price tag has lasted so long.

也許你對為什麼60美元的定價持續了這麼久有自己的看法。

Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

歡迎在留言區告訴我們你的想法。

Also, be sure to check out our other video called Minecraft vs. Roblox,

同時，請務必去看看我們的另一期影片《Minecraft vs. Roblox》，

how do they compare?

它們之間相比如何？

Thanks for watching,

感謝觀看，

and as always, don't forget to like, share, and subscribe.

和往常一樣，別忘了按讚、分享和訂閱。

See you next time.

我們下次見。