So I’ve been debating whether to pick up Final Fantasy III on my Kindle Fire HD or Final Fantasy Dimensions on my iPhone. Last night I was checking out Dimensions and the reviews in iTunes seriously annoyed me. The game is listed as free because you can download it and play the prologue for free and then purchase the other chapters as you progress (or all at once). Chapter 1 is $2.99, while chapters 2, 3 and 4 are $9.99 each ($33 purchased separately). There’s also the option to purchase the chapters as a set for $28.99.
Yet so many users have given the game a one star review simply because they feel it’s ‘false advertising’ or a ‘complete ripoff’ to spend $29 on a mobile game (some even fail horribly at math and claim it’s $40 somehow). Have any of these people never purchased a GameBoy game? A DS or PSP game? This is a full Final Fantasy game with every bit of quality as a full retail game, so why are people so surprised? What’s the deal? They want this game to be $0.99 like Angry Birds, but do they not get that this is not your typical phone based mobile game, but rather an all out video game experience?
Final Fantasy III (and the other ports) are $15.99 but these are older games ported to mobile devices. Dimensions is a brand new game, a brand new experience that is supposed to play like the older games (in other words it has a retro style).
The IGN review calls the price ‘fully justified’ and notes the game includes at least 40 hours of gameplay. When you consider console games such as Homefront offer less than 6 hours of gameplay for $60, I’d have to say this alone justifies the price.
What do you think? Have you played Dimensions? Is it worth $29? How about Final Fantasy III?
avideogamelife 
It is quite a shame that Apple has rotted many iOS users to expect games being no more than $5. EVERYONE is expecting this nowadays which is a sad thing. Like always there’s 2 sides to everything and in the end everyone is both right and or wrong. I wouldn’t mind paying $29 for a game…as long as I have a physical copy..BUT then again I’m being a hypocrite because I DO pay $30 for a game off of STEAM. And then we ask ourselves, why are we complaining in the first place. Why aren’t portable devices such as ipods,iphones, and ipads worth the trouble to spend $20 on certain apps/software. I’d blame it on apple due to the fact that they’ve monopolized on $1 app sales. They’ve gotten people accustomed to it and they themselves have to blame. But then again, STEAM has sales as well but they’re both a different market. It could also be blamed in gamers of this generation and or the economy. Lot’s of factors are at play.
Great article!!! 😀
Great post. =)
I used to happily shell out that much for games on my PSP. I’m beyond pleased that developers are porting over classics and creating new material for iOS and Android – I use tiny purses, and if I can avoid carting around a handheld console and still get quality gaming in on my lunch breaks I’m going to be thrilled, and I’m not going to complain about a $30 price tag. ^_^
I wish people would think a little harder before rating a decent game poorly because it costs more than Angry Birds. Come on, guys. Think on the history of handheld game prices before wailing about being ripped off.
I’d be happy to pay this if dimensions came to the Amazon Android store. Would look great on the Fire HD!