The price tag for Age of Empires IV was revealed on Monday (June 14) however, fans are upset that the cost has been raised to “impossible” prices in certain regions across the world.
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While the standard edition of Age of Empires IV will cost £49.99 in the UK, fans in certain regions will be paying even more for their copy.
Despite the game costing $59.99 on U.S. Steam, the Australian Steam page for Age of Empires IV currently lists the price at AU$99.95. As one Reddit post notes, $59.99 translates to AU$77.78, meaning that the game is $30 more expensive for fans in Australia.
Players in Australia aren’t the only ones surprised at the high price. In a thread on the Age of Empires IV forum, Brazilian fans are voicing similar concerns. The game will cost R$199 in Brazil, with one user stating that although he would like the game, “at these prices it’s impossible for ordinary people”.
The Steamdb page for Age of Empires IV shows that in many countries the game is being sold far higher than the Valve recommended price for each area.
The game is being sold above the recommended price in over half of the Steam regions listed, with 23 out of 41 areas being priced higher.
Certain regions stand out significantly. In Argentina, the ARS$2999.99 price is 362% higher than Valve’s recommended price of ARS$649.99. Similarly, pricing in countries like India, Russia and Turkey is almost double (in some cases more) the recommended price set by Valve.
There’s a chance that this pricing may change – one forum user in Argentina notes that while the current cost is “ridiculously” higher than other regions, a similarly high pricing was originally announced for Age of Empires 3 Deluxe Edition and was returned to a regular pricing within a few hours.
Age of Empires IV will receive a PC release on October 28, 2021.
In other news Steam’s Next Fest has begun, allowing users to enjoy over 700 playable demos.
The post ‘Age of Empires IV’ reveals controversial regional pricing differences appeared first on NME.
