I still don't quite understand this philosophy. What EXACTLY does it take for an action to be "anti-consumer"? Is it anti-consumer if everyone continues to willingly pay for it?
anti-consumer
adjective
: not favorable to consumers : improperly favoring the interests of businesses over the interests of consumers
First I would ask, who and what defines "not favorable"? And secondly, at what point does a company favoring its own interests become "improper"? And what successful business is there that hasn't done this?
I remember this topic coming up a while back, and one example people were using was having to buy a console to play their games. It doesn't seem the physical console is the problem, but rather the price. If the console was $20, would you still consider that anti-consumer? Is it less a definable act, and more your personal situation. Is a $500 console anti-consumer for a millionaire?
I'm not fan of Microsoft, but their backwards compatible offerings seem way better than what the others offer. I could see that being construed as pro-consumer, but it's not like the don't offset that in some other way. I'm not sure if that Phil quote about leaving the games business if game pass doesn't pick up is true, but it does seem to track with all the other unsustainable subscription models. Give away content at a loss, absorb as many subscribers as possible, get them hooked on your drugs, then jack up the price until it's not a good deal anymore, and hope that you stick around out of habit. It's all a bait and switch, and you guys know it. Plus, if they're successful long enough to disrupt the other forms of distribution (physical, rental,etc) they can take those options off the board, and further cement their stranglehold. These companies aren't our friends, these charismatic CEOs will always put their company in front of us, and their number one goal is to make money.
If you want to make the argument that games should be console agnostic, I could buy that. I personally like it when every console has different games, and a different feel, but if it's all the same ubiquitous hardware, system architecture, game engines... what does it matter?
And beyond all of that, who says it's good to be a "consumer". Some bottomless pit of gluttony and sloth. Maybe if people weren't so fixated on consumption, these companies would have less to prey on.
At the end of day, I still think this term is some socialist bullshit, and I don't agree with it. If a company lays a poor value proposition at your feet, quit picking it up. Just walk away, and quit adding to the problem.
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