I find the announcement of a season pass for a BGS title to be very interesting. For one, it means BGS is definitely watching the rest of the industry and following suit. Secondly, it makes it a bit more convenient for those of us who just want to have access to all of the DLC eventually rather than having to buy them separately. Third, and the point of the thread, this suggests that a GotY edition may be a thing of the past.

The reason I say this is because the GotY edition happened as a means of bundling all of the DLC with the base game. There was no season pass before, so this gave BGS an excuse to make a quick buck a year or so after release. With the advent of a season pass and following suit with all the major publishers, having a GotY edition would no longer make sense given the season pass.

It's also worth noting developers and publishers make a lot more money with a season pass. BGS is gaining an estimated $90 per buyer ($60 for base game and $30 for season pass) before Fallout 4 even releases rather than $60 for the base game, $15-20 for individual DLCs from some owners of the base game, and then $30-40 for a GotY edition a year or so later for the rest who are willing to wait and would rather pay a cheaper price.

I don't really have a stake in this as I never purchased the GotY edition of BGS games with the exception of Morrowind on the original Xbox. It does show that BGS wants to maximize profits as much as they can and rather than getting some scraps a year later for all of their work, they are charging even higher before the game is released for the base game and the promise of quality DLC later.

I only find this somewhat concerning as $30 is half the price of the base game. In fairness, that means it should offer 200 hours of content, as BGS has suggested the main game will have 400 hours. That's obviously not going to happen as BGS suggested they are continuing their DLC strategy from Oblivion/Fallout 3/Skyrim. Is $30 for ten or so hours of content really acceptable?

A season pass is generally $20 for most games. TW3 had a $25 "expansion pass," yet both expansions are adding a total of 30-40 hours of new content. BAK has the most expensive season pass at $40 adding new skins, batmobiles, and new story missions. With the exception of maybe TW3, I can't say this amount of money for so little content is really worth it.

Thoughts?

Doubt it, game industries put the Season Pass up for impatient buyers and those who be patient through and through get the reward of having the "Ultimate Edition" which is the game+DLCs all in one package at a great discount (even more so with Steam). Borderlands 2 did it, and other games have done it as well, so expect Fallout 4 to have a "super awesome ultra mega explosive" bundle as well.

As for the DLC prices, I kind of laugh whenever I see that 30 dollar price tag, then again, people nowadays are less fanatic and yet awkwardly will buy anything from the company they like. Odd. This is more in line of what Destiny is doing, and that, from what I've seen, is being a huge no-no for the fanbase and gamers, and it's seriously putting people off, though I hope they don't restrict access for one add-on and force you to buy another to gain access to another...separate..add-on. Just overall annoying, confusing and downright troll-y.

I doubt it.
-The season pass is for people who want to buy everything now, because they may lose interest over time, and not buy everything as it comes out.
-The GOTY edition is for all the skeptics who weren't going to buy everything individually anyways because they only felt "meh" about the product.

Both the season pass, and GOTY edition, serve to get Bethesda more money then they would have normally, had people been forced to buy everything separate, by bundling things together and putting them on a discount.

Except very few games do GotY editions anymore... In truth, BGS is one of the few developers who was still hanging on to the archaic system. Again, this was because it was an excuse to make more money and a way to bundle all the DLC released in addition to the base game.

Having a season pass means BGS can make more money than they ever could with a GotY edition. In fact, I'd imagine they probably lost money having to re-release the game just for cheapskates to get what would have otherwise been $100 worth of content for $30-40.

From a business standpoint, it makes perfect sense to force individuals to buy the base game and season pass (or DLC separately) rather than giving them the option of getting all that content for cheap a year or so later. Zenimax has proven it wants to be on the same playing field with Ubisoft, EA, and Activision. This is merely more evidence they are looking at ways to maximize their profits like other publishers have been doing for years.

Ive always seen GotY editions as incentive for those who may not have bought the game at all, to buy it after the masses have already been milked, well down the road.

It's not costing them a terrible amount of money to sell a few more copies that they might not have. I would say they stand to lose out on some money if they don't. Particularly in a time when downloads mean they aren't really paying anything out to sell them. Keep in mind, by this point, everyone that was going to buy the base game and either a season pass or a la carte DLC has already done so.

A season pass is something that's early in a game's lifespan, when the game has the most potential to make money.

A GotY edition is released late in a game's life, when the majority of the game's sales have already been made, in an attempt to attract people who haven't bought the game yet.

I don't see how the season pass threatens the GotY edition.

Besides, by the time a GotY edition would drop, Fallout 4 wouldn't be sold for 60 dollars anymore except maybe on Sony and Microsoft's digital downloads.

A season pass is a way for publishers to charge for a higher price of a base game with the promise of quality DLC later. BGS has not indicated what kind of DLC we will receive because they aren't working on it yet. We are essentially just paying $90 for the base game and "something else."

GotY was always a way for BGS to increase the longevity of their titles by having an excuse to release the same game again, except with all DLC included with the base game. They always release this at a cheaper price, so many decide to wait to get the cheaper GotY edition rather than buy the base game and the DLC as it comes. In other words, BGS was losing a lot of money with the GotY edition. It was contradictory towards their business goals.

A season pass shows they are looking to maximinze their profits because they are so profitable which is why so many do them. BGS also doesn't have to re-release the same game again at a cheaper price and can just maintain the price of the base game and the season pass without a price drop.

That's a bit rude, don't you think? I get this negative vibe coming off of you just because people are patient and know bundles will eventually happen. No, multiple companies have been doing this, popular, large companies have done this in order to get the last bit of juice out of the fanbase. I doubt they hardly lose any money in the first place.

I'm pretty sure they won't be nixing the GotY editions. And they definitely aren't losing money by doing it. It's just a great way to package a game for everyone that came to the fore after the game fell out of the spotlight; someone like me who came on board with Skyrim would be remiss not to buy the GotY editions for all of Bethesda's prior games, from Morrowind all the way up to New Vegas. That's where a GotY edition becomes significant.

And I'm not sure it's accurate to value DLC in comparison to the base game itself. Dawnguard and Dragonborn both cost $20 when they dropped; I think that's a great value for the amount of stuff they add, but I can't pretend that they each add one third of the base game content for being one third the price of the game. If Bethesda promises to do $40 worth of DLC on the same level of quality they've done for prior games, a $30 Season Pass is a good deal for people like me who generally like Beth's DLC. Bethesda's also established a good enough rapport with me as a consumer that I'm not afraid they'll just pocket the Season Pass money and deliver $40 of half-assed crap.

While this might be true to an extent, BGS wasn't making a lot of money off GotY releases. Again, you are taking what is likely $100 worth of content and bundling it at $30-40. With a season pass (of which very few ever get discounted even after release), BGS is able to maintain a higher price for the base game and all its DLC. BGS doesn't have to worry about attracting new customers as their very name and reputation sells their games for them.

A season pass is an excuse to charge more for a game at release. A GotY edition was a way to make money off the same game some time afterwards with all post-release content included. Again, GotY editions are a dying breed and a season pass is the norm. If GotY was so profitable, everybody would be doing it, yet very few do. I think BGS realizes by now that people will either buy their games or won't and this allows them to make more money doing so.

Fallout 4 will certainly get a price drop on PC, as is the case with all games on the platform, but console games rarely get that kind of price drop so soon.

Uhh no. I don't know where you got such an idea, but it is entierly wrong headed. Nothing about Season passes involve paying more for the base game, because they are 100% optional from the base game.

Uhh no. They INCREASE profit by allowing Bethesda to make some, albet a reduced sum, from people who never had any intention of buying the base game or its DLC becuase they only kind of liked the devloper.

I have no idea where you got these notions, but they are entierly ocntrary to how both season passes and GOTY editions work.

This is a tad knee jerk of a reaction. Which isn't very surprising, as it is something new bethesda is doing, and thus people are a tad jumpy at new things. No, they won't toss out the GoTY edition in favor of a season pass... they'll do both, because it's the smart thing. Imagine how many people have picked up the GoTY editions of Fallout 3 and New Vegas since Fallout 4 has been announced? Throw in the people who bought the game originally, and then later on bought the GoTY edition as well. You increase sales by giving people options, those that want one, or two of the dlcs, but not the others can buy them separately... those who want all of them can buy the season pass, and those who want the whole enchilada but want it at a lower price can buy the complete edition.

Not at all. It's true that some will wait merely to get the entire package for a cheaper price. Whether you want to call it being stingy, frugal, cheap, etc., you are getting a game at a much cheaper price than it is worth. What "multiple companies" and "large companies" are you speaking of? I don't remember the last time EA, Ubisoft, or Acitivion did any "GotY editions" for their games. They do season passes instead. You can say something happens, but until you actually point to something, it's purely conjecture.

It certainly is costing them money, whether they are losing money or not is something else. With a season pass, they don't even have to invest to re-release a game and sell it at a cheaper price. They just get more money for the base game and whatever DLC they decide to do. It gives publishers more flexibility and more money upfront, which is when games make most of their revenue anyways.

None of those games had a season pass either. This is the point of the thread. There is still a season pass for Battlefield 3, which came out in 2011. Companies are able to charge more for games not only before release but even after as season passes rarely go on sale. Again, why use any money at all to get some scraps from a few folks when you can just nickel and dime your most loyal customers and those likely to buy the game anyways? If people want the game a year or so afterwards, the season pass will still be there. It won't just disappear.

Because you don't establish a good relationship with your consumers by hosing your loyal customers?

You aren't getting it. Season passes are becoming more and more the norm. It's even common place for games to come bundled with the season pass for buyers to pay completely upfront before release. TW3 and BAK are two examples of games where you paid $80-90 before the games even released for the base game and all promised content afterwards. Again, you are paying for the base game and the promise of quality DLC later. We have no idea how much and to what extent the DLC in Fallout 4 will provide us even if BGS claims it will be technically "$40 worth of content."

Again, BGS has to expend money to re-release the game, specifically physical copies. They hope to turn somewhat of a profit at the reduced cost of the game, but it's unlikely many even purchase GotY copies to start, unless there is a Steam sale. With a season pass that won't just miraculously disappear, they don't have to reduce the price or re-release the game. You want the game and season pass? Buy them.

From a business standpoint, it's smart to release a season pass and do away with a GotY edition. They make far more money doing the former than the latter, if they make any money on the latter at all. Again, there are plenty of games that have been out for years that do not have a GotY edition, yet have a season pass, and often these two may be combined. Look at Ubisoft's "Gold Edition" for Assassin's Creed and Far Cry. They are able to keep the price higher and the season pass is still available after all the DLC was done years ago.

I also think you are basing your argument around the PC base, which is a minority. If GotY is selling anywhere to be profitable, it would have to be on consoles. Again, not very many developers do GotY editions these days because they have season passes that serve the same purpose and for more money.

But they have, they just didn't use the term "GotY" but rather in bundles, packs, and other "lovely name" edition, for example.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/242050/

I see a "Insert Fancy Name here" Edition already, along with some "Ultimate" packs. These are capable of being in a huge discount as well.

steamcommunity.com/id/popegtr/recommended/202970/

Activision is also doing it, and I believe Blizzard is also making bundle deals.

By the time Fallout 4 would be getting a GotY edition (likely no earlier than 2017), it would likely be on sale for 40 dollars on the consoles. At least physical copies.

A season pass doesn't incentivize late adopters the same way a GotY edition does, because you're being asked to buy the base game as well as all the content. They're aimed at different demographics. A season pass targets people who are likely to get the game at launch and are likely to buy a majority of the DLC. The GotY edition targets people who didn't buy the game throughout its supported lifespan.

It's not designed to be "so profitable." It's aimed to squeeze a bit of extra cash without making new content from people who otherwise probably wouldn't buy the game. GotY editions have become more of a rarity, but that's partially because of sequelitis. GotY editions typically come out a year or more after the game has come out, but with games like Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed are yearly installments, there's less emphasis on attracting people to buy the old game and more emphasis on getting people to buy the new game, which is sold at a higher price, and has yet to exhaust its DLC. There's also the fact that "GotY" editions are being marketed as under different names as well, such as "complete" or "definitive."

Dishonored, published by Bethesda, got a season pass, a GoTY edition, and a definitive edition for current gen consoles. I think you're reaching for topics to discuss and thus are making a mountain out of a mole hill.

Good relationship? This is a business. Zenimax Media Inc. is a privately-owned corporation that has been buying up game studios for years to compete with EA, Ubisoft, Activision, etc. This isn't some "mom and pop" company where they are looking out for the interest of the customer over the business. That might be the case with CDPR as they own GOG, give out free DLC, make their games DRM free, etc., but BGS is owned by Zenimax, and their interest is making money.

BGS has a long cemented relationship and is considered one of the best developers in the business. They've won GotY with every title since Morrowind. In other words, Zenimax has the leverage to bully around the consumer base and force them to pay more money for their games because people want them. It might not be ethical or fair, but it's what makes money and that's what businesses do.

The move to a season pass is clear evidence Zenimax is following suit with every other publisher. They understand how much more money can be made versus just releasing a GotY edition later for minimal money. You don't see Grand Theft Auto or Call of Duty releasing GotY editions because they don't have to. They make a killing and customers (old and new to the franchise) will buy them regardless.

That is not a GotY edition... That is AC4 + Season Pass bundle... Ubisoft calls it the "Gold Edition." It was available before the game even released. Want to know how I know? I bought the Gold Edition of AC4... If you look further down that page, you'll see the season pass is also still available for separate purchase. Again, you are merely proving my point here.

http://www.gamestop.com/ps3/games/grand-theft-auto-iv-complete-edition/84534

As for Call of Duty, it being a competitive multiplayer game with yearly installments, a GotY edition with all the content for a game with mostly uninhabited servers isn't that attractive of a product.

Yes and Business usually involves good realtionships with their customers. You don't piss off the very thing that's giving you lifeblood, as that can create a massive ripple and domino-effect of disastrous proportions, with people boy-cotting, spreading the word, and then those words reach a journalist, and the journalist begins to publish on well-known sites, all of this happening within seconds of the incident. Companies (one's that last longer than usual anyway) have always been known to make their customer's fat and happy, it's almost a golden rule of symbiotic relationships.

Of course, once a fanbase is created, companies can usually slack off a bit, as they know someone out there will buy anything from them, and some profit is better than none to those, I suppose.

Uh, you forgot the Call of Duty one, which is obviously proving my point.

Again, you are conflating GotY and what it means. Definitive is just another term for an HD remake or a remastery. A GotY edition is just the base game and all content. Definitive, like Tomb Raider or Dishonored, is improving visuals and sometime gameplay mechanics. Those are two very different things.

Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed both do season passes for their games. They still have season passes for their older games if you want all the content and never release GotY titles. Do you think it's because they can't do it? There is little incentive for them to do so because they can keep their games at a higher price for longer. You'll notice AC and CoD, as examples, never go on sale much and installments that came out years ago are still quite expensive.

Arkane Studios is not Bethesda Game Studios, for one. Dishonored was also Arkane's first title, thus getting as much exposure as possible, even at a loss with the GotY edition, made sense. BGS is long-established and would make a lot more money with just a season pass. This is my point. You aren't connecting the dots.

I view the Season Pass as simply a marketing tool for those who must have everything BGS does... The GOTY release is really about re-skinning the game, and providing a jump in cash flow while BGS is in the 3-4 year lull between releases. I think there were actually 3 different releases of Oblivion that surfaced prior to Skyrim. While Falllout 3 is being packaged with FO4, in some bundles, it's possible the shift between console generations is actually muting the appeal of it. Easy to fill in the gap with another bundle based on the future rather than the past...

Personally, I won't buy the DLC if it receives poor reviews. I especially won't if it comes across as simply a new lengthy questline in the same gameworld I've already traversed through, this smacks of simply with holding game content for extra money. Fallout 4 intrigues me, but I'm still haven't seen anything about it that says, new world, new stories, new gaming concepts. Voiced protag I can live with, settlement crafting is OK, but it's the story which hooks, not endless killings of supermutants, BOS, and death claws... Sorry, a bit off topic, but somehow it seems we know more about how the game is being marketed, than we do about the game itself...

The last GotY Edition I bought was Oblivion for Xbox 360. I probably wouldn't buy Fallout 4's GotY edition unless I get it for PC when I get mine operational. I'm not sure yet if I would buy the season pass, I'd like to play the game first.