Regional Price Adjustment - January 2025

[PDX_Sales]

Hello,

We’re Johan and Peter, Sales Managers at Paradox Interactive.

As we approach the end of the year, and our customary review of regional prices, we’d like to inform you about what lies ahead. This year, no regional price increases are planned, as our current pricing overall aligns with industry standards, our benchmarks and industry peers. Based on these reference points, we will be slightly lowering prices for the following currencies: Chinese Yuan (CNY), Brazilian Real (BRL), Swiss Franc (CHF), and Hong Kong Dollar (HKD), for a select group of games and price points, for example Cities: Skylines II, Hearts of Iron IV and Stellaris.

These adjustments will take effect on January 28, 2025.

Thank you for your continued support, and we hope this update is helpful.

Best regards,
Johan and Peter

 

[The Aziz]

As Polish person, thank you for nothing. Thanks to regional prices, we're among the highest paying Steam users in the world, despite having average income incomparably lower than Euro region. Most of the games you currently sell on our market are over 8% more expensive than base Euro price, only the Swiss pay more than that. And they won't be soon since you seem to be lowering CHF, but not PLN. This is not industry standard.
Take a look. https://steamdb.info/app/949230/

Be fair, read up, and act. There's entire campaign on kursnasteam.pl showing the problem spreading across thousands of games. #polishourprices
Moderator Edit: SAS- removed outside link to petition.
@PDX_Sales

 

[AlemãoÉSopa]

Well, that's a pleasant surprise, I didn't expect BRL to receive a cut (Although we really do need it, the Stellaris Ultimate Bundle costing a salary is kinda crazy), right when I'm getting into Stellaris too! I will not get my hopes up too much, because it's only a slight decrease, but I'm nevertheless grateful for what we've got.

 

[Gamshud]

Lol, another year when Paradoxes bang their heads against the wall and don't understand basic things.
Paradox, don't thank me (although maybe you should) it's just that in the terminology "Regional prices" there is the word "regional" which should mean that their price is based on the solvency of the region and not on "we want this one in this region to pay $30 and that one $60".
Do you understand that in a region where people earn $300-350 a month, buying games for $30 is insanity (not to mention DLCs which add another +-$30 to the cost of the game every year)?
Another year when Paradox will increasingly hear "Arrr, matey!" from poor regions, and they themselves contribute to this... wow...

 

[Preeger]

The purchasing power of Chinese people is very low. Please lower the price of your game and DLC in mainland China. Most Chinese players have to play pirated games because of the high prices. If you lower the price of the game and DLC in mainland China, you will get more profits.

 

[The Aziz]

As expected, no reply. PLN is now the second most expensive currency to pay in for paradox games. 10% more than Euro region (which has much better wage-to-prices ratio), more than British, Norwegians... We're only behind the Swiss. And not by much. It's not fair pricing.
@PDX_Sales again. Show that you actually care about your customers, although after radio silence, I doubt it.

 

[qz_xyz]

This is crazy, I wanted to buy CK3 collection and checked prices on steamdb - we're 2nd most expensive (~3% below Swiss, ~7% higher than EUR).

 

[danciuo]

Thanks Johan and Peter for the transparency — it’s great to see Paradox actually lowering some regional prices instead of increasing them like many others do.
As someone who buys from a region with strong currency fluctuations, this kind of adjustment really matters.
Hope more publishers follow this example.
Also nice to see titles like Cities II and Stellaris included.
Looking forward to the changes in January!

 

[FranklyJustNess]

Hello,

We’re Johan and Peter, Sales Managers at Paradox Interactive.

As we approach the end of the year, and our customary review of regional prices, we’d like to inform you about what lies ahead. This year, no regional price increases are planned, as our current pricing overall aligns with industry standards, our benchmarks and industry peers. Based on these reference points, we will be slightly lowering prices for the following currencies: Chinese Yuan (CNY), Brazilian Real (BRL), Swiss Franc (CHF), and Hong Kong Dollar (HKD), for a select group of games and price points, for example Cities: Skylines II, Hearts of Iron IV and Stellaris.

These adjustments will take effect on January 28, 2025.

Thank you for your continued support, and we hope this update is helpful.

Best regards,
Johan and Peter

It's truly ignorant to see no reason to adjust the Polish PLN prices, when the players here are expected to pay higher prices than all of Eurozone, while earning a median income half of that in most of western/northern Europe. It is simply unaffordable to buy games, and that very much includes Paradox titles. It's an industry standard to extort Polish players (as it's what Steam pricing recommends since 2022), but when it's reviewed by an individual publisher, and they still decide, that it makes perfect sense, then that's truly a shame. It's at least recommended to ignore the local purchasing power and equalize the prices to Euro (so about 8% decrease), not to continuously ask a higher price from a poorer population.

 

[qz_xyz]

I don't think they care about Polish median income, but I truly don't understand the logic here. What's the point of setting PLN prices higher than Euro?

 

[The Aziz]

There isn't any. Back when steam changed their recommended prices 3 years ago, PLN was a very weak currency (0.20USD), so the calculations on steam sort of made sense. And most publishers didn't have to touch it to be "fair". Today though it's getting close to 0.30, so we're paying nearly 10% more than we should if the exchange rates on steam were reviewed. But many publishers still aren't adjusting regional prices, and we end up with very unfair results.

Johan, Peter, are you still working at Paradox? People are asking you know, why you lowered the prices for one of the richest countries on the planet but not for others.

 

[vaniiii369]

Hello,

We’re Johan and Peter, Sales Managers at Paradox Interactive.

As we approach the end of the year, and our customary review of regional prices, we’d like to inform you about what lies ahead. This year, no regional price increases are planned, as our current pricing overall aligns with industry standards, our benchmarks and industry peers. Based on these reference points, we will be slightly lowering prices for the following currencies: Chinese Yuan (CNY), Brazilian Real (BRL), Swiss Franc (CHF), and Hong Kong Dollar (HKD), for a select group of games and price points, for example Cities: Skylines II, Hearts of Iron IV and Stellaris.

These adjustments will take effect on January 28, 2025.

Thank you for your continued support, and we hope this update is helpful.

Best regards,
Johan and Peter

very nice

 

[Gamshud]

I don't want to upset anyone, but Paradox is reviewing its pricing policy only at the end of the year, and it is highly likely that prices for Poland will not change, and it is highly likely that they will increase prices for all other regions so that they do not lag behind Poland. But even if common sense (or conscience) awakens in Paradox, I would not count on a significant price reduction for Poland. Probably the argument will be something like this: "well, since they bought there the whole of last year at this price, they will buy this year too".

 

[qz_xyz]

Maybe you are right, but by this logic - why not raise it every year for everybody, forever? Price has an impact on the demand, especially for lower income countries.

I'm not sure if I'll be buying anything new (like Victoria or Stellaris) if I know I'm being ripped off for no reason.

 

[Pedrogw]

This constant paranoia of regional price increases...i don't know if i can keep following PDX.
I know most of your market is either in the USD or EUR zone, but...geez, you guys are slowly expelling the consumers, that are out of that two currency zones, with those regional prices
I know, it's to make the games have constant updates or more content. But i don't think this is a sustainable system out of the USD and EUR zones