In the case of fighting games this generation, the repurchase of games that we already own or have owned in the past makes a lot of sense due to the development of online play but it is costing us due to the way things change and emerge.
I personally am the proud owner of at least two games that I've purchased more than once and there is no doubt in my mind at some point I'll be doing it again...and again, and again, and again. There are a few reasons why what seems to be an atrocious spending habit makes complete sense to do.
The first being the most obvious is developer support. Xbox Live's first generation gave us a great deal of online gaming which included titles like Capcom Vs Snk 2, Street Fighter III: Third Strike, and Guilty Gear XX Reloaded. The advent of Xbox Live's last gen console Xbox 360 fostered in the discontinuation of Xbox Live's service on the first generation Xbox and it's even fair to say that many of the titles that I spoke of earlier may have been terminated long before XBL officially shutdown.
There is fear of this occurrence again given the current generation of consoles are in full swing but just when this will happen is only speculation at this point. At least two of the fore mentioned titles made their way back to XBL but it came with a price and while it wasn't asking for much it's clear that many had to once again dig in their pockets to take advantage of what was offered...in a "shut up and take my money" sort of way.
The presence of online play has greatly affected the urge to repurchase amongst some other bells and whistles coupled with the "new and improved" line that often times gives us a promise that things will be better this time around and in some cases they are.
The nature of netplay and the technology used to make it better is often included in our reasoning for repurchase. It's the primary reason that convinces me it's worth it. Another reason that has now recently come into my decision making is the availability of a title on a new platform.
Often times, the activity of one platform being greater versus the other drives our reasoning as there is a chance to play more individuals who enjoy the game making all the sense in the world and a small price to pay for the fun you will have.
My hopes is that my repurchasing days will be few and in between and I believe this is now possible with what Steam has in mind this current generation. Steam's platform does a great job of complementing the multifarious world of PC and with their latest creation, Steam Box, an OS that is created to consolize what we know as PC and turn it into a more TV friendly device, I believe I've happened upon something that may just stop my impulse to repurchase or at least stop me from doing it as much in the future.
While there is no sign of what will become of Xbox Live and Playstation Network for the last gen consoles, I can be confident that Steam will help quell my habits in ways that I thought were not going to be possible. With the influx of content coming from well known fighting game developers like Arc System Works, the purchase, play, repeat syndrome may slowly be coming to an end.
