Why are games on the marketplace so expensive?

It is up to the maker of the game to set the price. It is not xbox. You would need to talk to them.

Yeah and I did mention Fable 3 is produced by Microsoft so why the high price? And I doubt that all the other game makers think their game should be alot more expensive on xbox live when it could be a great way to sell games.

And your suggestion is not really accurate since the stores all have different prices depending on how much profit they want on the game. Like I said Fable 3 in the real life stores cost 10-20€. It's not like they all have the same price so apparently they can choose the price. I believe the maker of the game just decide a minimum price like when a new game is released it is more expensive but then the prices drop. Even at release there is often a difference of about 10-20€ depending on the store.

In this case I chose Fable 3 because it is made by Microsoft and still it is extremely overcharged in their own xbox live store compared to retailers. I really would like to know the idea behind this.

Can someone from Microsoft please respond to this. Right now it just feel like the subject is avoided. Is that because there is in fact no good reason for the high prices?

I think this question deserves an answer.

Hey Schiz, I'm sorry that we haven't responded here. Unfortunately, there is no official comment on Marketplace pricing. However, we do try and release free games from time to time for users who enjoy Marketplace games but don't want to buy. Full House Poker and Doritos Crash Course Challenge come to mind as two recent free games. :-)

I have purchased games, like Lara croft and the guardian of light amongst others. However I do not purchase the big games because of the pricing.

How can I get an answer to this question if you cannot answer it? I can't see why Fable 3 should be so very expensive. It would be more sales and more profit if the pricing was resonable. This way of purchasing games is the future and offers a win-win situation for both parts as it is very simple and fast way of purchasing a game and for Microsoft/Xbox it means no distribution, burning discs, making covers, shipping and so on. The game just needs to be on a server and be downloaded. Yet it seems as if Xbox have not realised the potential if used correctly.

What if Spotify cost 100€ every month? Same idea. Would not be anywhere near as successful as now when the price is right at about 10€.

This is exactly how the pricing works now on xbox live with the big games, not arcade games. It is vastly overpriced and that just slows everything down and loses the point of having this wonderful opportunity for everyone. Why not sell the games at a resonable price and still make a profit but provide a better service and more sales?

I agree. I would download new games such as mw3 and ghost recon future soldier. I can't understand why it would cost more to simply download it? Would save on discs, can't resell games which they are always trying to stop us doing. Make it cheaper and people will use it!!!!!!

Most brick and mortar stores will refuse to carry a game if it's being sold cheaper in digital distribution form.  So while you may be able to find some places selling these games new for cheaper, MS has to match the suggested retail price so physical retailers don't boycott those products.