OOTP 9 Pricing Policy

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About U.S. and non-European Pricing for OOTP 9
You may have noticed we've raised the list price for OOTP 9 to US$39.99 in the U.S. this year. This will also be the price for any customers outside of the U.S., but not in Europe. Each year, we worry about the price point for the game. Here's a little information about the U.S. pricing.

In the past, we have consistently priced OOTP below the going market price for PC computer games. Unfortunately, over the past year, the exchange rate for U.S. dollars to Euro has gotten progressively worse for us in Germany, to the point where we have been forced to raise prices to deal with the unfavorable exchange rate. For example:

$35 U.S. dollars 1 year ago = €27
$35 U.S. dollars today = €22
$40 U.S. dollars today = €25

So, despite raising the price by $5 this year, we will actually be realizing 8% less profit from sales due to the poor exchange rate. We also considered releasing the game priced in Euro this year, but we felt that this would only be confusing to the majority of our buyers in the U.S.

About European Pricing for OOTP 9
The game currently pre-orders for €24.99, and will list for €39.99 for all customers in Europe. We understand that in strict dollar equivalents, this means that Europeans will pay more than U.S. customers for the game. We'd like to explain this, and while it probably won't make European customers happier, at the time this is our pricing policy.

Since we are based in Germany, we must pay a 19% tax on all sales in Europe. So, we must sell the game for at least 19% more than we do in the U.S. But, more relevant in this case is simply the going rates for products in Europe compared to the U.S.

Most computer games cost more in Euros than they do in dollars, and the same goes for many other products. A quick search turns up examples like this:

iTunes song: $0.99 vs €0.99 (equivalent of $1.60)
Call of Duty 4 (Xbox 360): $56 vs €49.45 (equivalent of $80)

Examples like these can be found throughout Europe. To be sure, there are other examples to be found that don't follow suit, but at this time we feel fairly comfortable that this pricing structure is not unfair, especially given that you can pre-order the game in Europe for about half of what most new computer games would cost in Europe.

I'd like to stress that we're always willing to listen to polite commentary on this policy, and we will always openly consider how to create a pricing structure that benefits both us and our customers. However, if at some point the pricing structure changes, it will be on a go-forward basis only, just as putting a product on sale doesn't mean that everyone who bought it before the sale gets money back.

Again, we're very sorry if the pricing policy disappoints you. Ultimately, the choice of where to spend your hard-earned money is yours, and of course we will continue to provide a demo so that you can test-drive the game and make an intelligent buying decision. We do hope you will consider buying OOTP 9, because we feel it's a great value, even moreso if you pre-order!

About Purchases Outside of the U.S. and not in Europe
When the pre-order started, customers outside of the U.S. and not in Europe were charged in Euros. This was incorrect, and has been corrected in our online stores. If you pre-ordered, and fall into this category, please see the section below about our money-back guarantee, and contact us accordingly. We apologize for the inconvenience!

Money-Back Guarantee
OOTP Developments has a 14-day money-back guarantee. If you need a refund for some reason, please do the following:

• If you have a PC license, contact support@elicense.com with your Order ID and request a full refund.
• If you have a Mac license, contact support@ootpdevelopments.com with your Order Number and request a full refund.

Thanks very much,

The OOTP Developments Team