“iLounge has confirmed with Apple that past purchasers of iPod games will have to re-purchase the titles to play them on the recently-released iPod classic and iPod nano (with video),” Charles Starrett reports for iLounge.
“According to an Apple representative, the games will need to be repurchased because they were ‘reformatted’ for the new iPods,” Starrett reports.
“Reformatted iPod games currently include EA’s Tetris and Sudoku, as well as Namco Networks’ Ms. Pac-Man. An additional 15 titles are yet to be converted for play on the iPod classic and new nano. Each game sells for $4.99, and no further guarantees of compatibility with other devices, such as a computer, iPhone, or iPod touch, are made by Apple,” Starrett reports.
Full article here.
Isn’t there some sort of natural law or something that turns righteous indignation into ridiculous dramatization when talking about figures under US$5?
Okay, okay, don’t bite our heads off! In the most extreme case, if you bought all 15 or so iPod games for your old iPod and you figure that you loved them all so much that you’ll eventually need to replace each and every one of them, then we’re talking about $75.
$75 whole bucks!!! Is there no justice in this world?! You Maniacs! You blew it up! Ah, damn you! God damn you all to hell! Grab the pitchforks and we’ll light the torches! We march on Cupertino tomorrow!
Yeah, it does devolve directly into ridiculous dramatization, no matter what. But, yes, we know, it’s the principle that counts. Apple, make this right somehow. And, while you’re at it, get somebody in there to explain Mr. Multi-Billionaire Steve Jobs how to treat regular paying customers because he’s obviously lost touch with that bit of basic good business practice recently.
The problem here is that the “new” games are pretty much the old games, but Apple wants to charge anyway. If Apple made substantive improvements to the games and upgraded them to real 2.0 versions, there’d be no issue. Apple should have figured out a way to make the games compatible with their new iPods and not charged game owners for the “reformatting.” Apple knows which users bought which games, right? So let game owners re-download the “reformatted” games free of charge.
Seriously, this should have never passed through Apple’s approval process (if there is one). Obviously to anyone who’s ever bought or sold anything, customers would be pissed, regardless of the prices involved. Come on, Apple get your act together, this sort of nickel and dimeing good paying customers to death over picayune iPod games is beneath you (disclaimer or not). It’s cheap; something that Dell or Microsoft would try to pull (if they could figure out how to collectively sell more than three devices, of course). Apple, you can do better than this, can’t you?
[11:15pm EDT: To reiterate, we think people should keep in mind that these are $5 games we’re talking about here while we also wonder just what the heck is going on with Apple to make such an obviously bad decision. Think about how the customer would feel, Apple. You’ve racked up two quick strikes recently. We’re watching.]
Hm… its really not that bad. At nintendo, you buy VC games, ya gotta buy them all over again (5-10$) each for your new wii.
Its baloney, yes. The worst, no.
Though, I did expect a bit better from apple.
You early adopter gamers are just a bunch of whiners. WHINE. WHINE. WHINE. If it was worth the $5 to put it on your old iPod, and you had the dough to pony up for a new iPod, then it’s worth the $5 to buy it again.
What do you want? A store credit?
Whiners!
PS: Go pay $5 to play games at am arcade. The next time you go back, you’ll have to pay to play again.
Weenies.
Like PPC to Intel and Universal Binaries and OS9 to OSX. Times and operating systems change. At M$ you’d probably have to repurchase all your music to get an upgraded zune; wait a minute, that’s impossible because the zune got flushed.
Ahhh, yes, looks like we’re gonna need a little more cheese over at that table of new iPod owners…
I took a bite of my apple and inside was a worm – wearing a turtle neck shirt.
well I’ve got to put my 5cents in!
I recently purchased an iPod Classic (Upgraded from an iPod Photo) and I brought the first game Pac-Man and was so excited that I could (finally!) play a game on my iPod. But low and behold, it didnt work even though the itunes store said it would.
I wrote an email back to apple when I used the “Submit a report’ function when you receive the invoice from them and explained that even though they state (on iTunes and their website) that games do play on the Classic, not ALL the games work, especially I just paid AUS$7.59 for a game that does not work.
They did reply in 24hours, they asked me to check if the mac was authorized and I had the latest iTunes, which I did, and then they refunded my money back as a iTunes store credit. They also pointed out that they have now re-designed iTunes iPod games to ensure us iPod Classic and new Nano can tell which games we can play on the new iPods.
I hate to say it but I was impressed with the level of service and they listened to my feedback
Well done Apple Customer Care!
Hah–can’t beat reading a good old Chuck Heston quote at midnight.
Thanks for the memories, MDN!
This is getting ridiculous. All of a sudden people think they are entitled to stuff for free. The games still work on the iPod you bought them for. It cost money to re-do the games for the new iPod. Apple has all rights to charge for the new version of the games.
Get over it.
So, if I understand correctly, these games were converted from one operating system to another, even if the end device is still an iPod. If you paid $5 for a Windows game, and then switched to Mac, wouldn’t you have to pony up the $5 again? They’re both computers, though.
I think the “transparency” of Apple’s products is what is causing the real concern. Under the hood is an entirely new operating system for the new ‘pods.
MDN, nice change on your Take. I think you nailed it on the head..
Keep in mind though, there is a lot people with not alot of disposable income…they buy an iPod, which is a BIG deal to them, as there not the demographic to follow the latest and greatest…
and for this to happen is really, really bad. I say this as a stockholder and a Mac Salesman. And for some people 75$ IS a lot of money, for such forced and unnecessary obolescence.
MDN is right. Let’s have perspective here. After all, it’s only $5. And they’ve called Apple to the matt, sort of.
Is that better, MDN?
Fine. Let’s hear you guys when Apple decides we need to rebuy all our songs for the next iPod iteration.
GENERAL FEEDBACK
I love Apple products as much as anyone else who reads macdailynews as well as maclife and macworld everyday.
That being said… The MDN take at the end of this and many other articles is just plain grating. It’s like saying Office or iWork shouldn’t work on a new or upgraded computer.
Apple makes great products and as a stock holder has done wonderful things in the last 4 years…. but it is a corporation that focuses on the bottom line as it should and just because it’s apple doesn’t give them a free pass on nickel and dimeing its customers.
MDN… lighten up… you don’t have to defend EVERY little decision made by Jobs and Co.
You are all a bunch of whiny babies!!! You need to leave Steve alone…right now!!! You all buy a new game system. i.e. wii ps3 xbox and have to buy new games on it… right?!?!?! Let’s see what a big deal we can make out of nothing!
“Hrondar: Fine. Let’s hear you guys when Apple decides we need to rebuy all our songs for the next iPod iteration. “
There is a big difference between games and songs. Games are like programs and songs are like documents. Older documents you should always be able to open. Older programs are not like that. That’s life!
MDN is so far up Apples arse it can see straight. Oh yes, and there are all those advertisers to keep happy too, most of who are in fact Apple!.
What all of you who think that ” there is no reason to be angry for only 5$ ” don’t understand is that the problem is not the 5$ ( or more ) , it is the “intention” which is behind Apple decision.
Apple knew perfectly that they could take the risk to take this decision and ask customers to re-pay for games they’ve already paid before. They knew perfectly that for-5$-only the risk of a “revolt” was low. And that is pure corporate cynism. This is what is “behind” the act, behind the decision.
Apple is falling more and more in that kind of “corporate cynism” with too many bad decisions of this kind. By doing this , they are destroying the “Apple” spirit and, i have said it before in other forums, it is a big big mistake.
First, because people ALWAYS understand the “intention” which lies behind the act ( the corporate guys are so greedy and blind that they always forgot this ) . Two, because it is a short term strategy ( okay, they will make money out of these new games but also they will make people angry to re-pay for them ) . And three: somebody should remind to Jobs and Apple corporates the reality of the “karma boomerang” – i.e that every bad act you’re doing will come in “boomerang” sooner or later and there will be a price for it. And whether you agree or not , you can be sure that cynical decision after cynical decision will stay in the mind of consumers. In two words , each time Apple is not taking care of their customers only for greed , Apple is putting one more nail in its coffin. And – even if their products are of great quality ( and i love them ) – they are taking the risk to become a company that people will hate , and more precisely because they will have destroy the idealistic image of its origin.
But there is worst than that : what makes our reality ( of all of us ) unbearable is precisely all that cynism that we feel each day .
And to have Apple participating to all that is simply unforgivable.
I think it’s all about what a previous poster said about transparency. If Apple let people know that they would have to repurchase their games for the classic due to the new OS, probably nobody would have a problem with it. It would also have helped if they had upgraded the games at the same time.
But, like disabling bluetooth and inputting contacts on the iPod touch, it does seem cheesy, cheap and disrepectful to its customers. It reeks of Dell and Microsoft.
If they keep pulling crap like this, the MS fanboys will jump up and down and point out that Apple’s business practices are no better than Mr. Softy’s. And they’ll be at least partially right.
Glad the author has come to see it my way. First you tell iPhone customers, “well that’s technology” after a $200 price cut after only two months. Now I will point out the two SIMS games were only available for a few weeks before you decided to obsolete them. If you no longer sell a compatible iPod to play these games, and your are so called “re-formatting them” to now play on the new iPods as well as the older iPods, Apple should allow customers to re-download them for free. How dare they charge again for the very same thing! If they stick to this I would be leary of buying any content from them, that is only natural!
Ha Ha MacSuckers. just wait until they charge to “update” your whole music collection for a new incompatible iPod.
I’ve heard of the Kool-aid jokes but this MDN take is an overdose of the sweet nectar. How can anyone justify Apple making people re-purchase games they already paid for?
Un-real. I’m disappointed by the new gen of Apple users. It may be time to swith to Linux, because Apples becoming a beast like MS. Screw the people.
Tiem for me to stop visiting MDN, Your takes are really kissing the as of Apple.
Yeah, $5 or not, this is wrong. Justify it in your mind however you want to Apple (and apologists), but this is just wrong.
I still love Apple, but I have to say that this makes me respect the company just a little bit less than before. My eye is on Apple too, and I hope they make an announcement over the next couple days to renew my trust. Please Apple, do not become the next MS. Please.
There is an argument to be made that when you buy electronic games you’re buying them for that device or at least that model. when you buy games for one of the consoles, until recently it has in no way been the case that you’d expect old games to work on new systems. That said, the iPod is hardly a full fledged gaming platform and it’s likley that if people have to repurchase then they just won’t and they probably won’t buy any more subsequently and as such it makes sense to make them compatible on an ongoing basis.
Well those that blindly follow steve and Apple will always spin things in Apple’s favor. The writing is on the wall, or at least it’s beginning to appear that way. Apple is turning into the next Microgreed.
Sorry but this smells even worse then Apple’s taking advantage of the early iPhone customers. There is no reason for anyone to have to repurchase games for a new ipod. When they switched to OSX they included a way for old programs to work. When they switched to Intel they included a way for old programs to work. They should have done the same here or allowed previous purchasers to download the updated version of the games.
I don’t have any games but I still think this is wrong. Apple is 2 for 2 this month in pissing people off. BTW, that planned $100 credit for the iPhone was weak and this shaft to iPod gamers is even worse.
I’ll bet that most of those games ended up on kid’s ipods and not on ipods of those that make 100k a year. For a kid $5 is a lot. It also effectively increases the cost of the new ipods.