As a discerning PC game purchaser who takes time to decide where your limited gaming budget will go, Flash Sales help ensure that only the titles you want the most will end up in your shopping cart. If you're on the fence and haven't made a decision when the timer expires, you have saved yourself money by not buying a game that you weren't altogether sure you wanted to buy.

Ultimately, Flash Sales help you get more bang for your gaming dollar:

- as a smart consumer, you're more likely to buy only the games that you've already researched and want to play and not buy those that you have not spent the time researching, thus reducing the likelihood of making a reflex purchase before the timer expires.

- for those games you DO buy, you're getting a discount.

Very pro-consumer. : )

Edit: this is a semi-satirical response to the notion that flash sales are anti-consumer. The text above maybe makes that not so obvious. Read below if you want my actual position on the matter - which is not pro-flash sale - and explains why I disagree the anti-consumer notions.

Not to mention completely missing the discounts on the games that you would have immediately bought. Less money spent on videogaming and ridiculous backlogs. You'll be happy for that next time you enter a bookshop*, spot a classic at the cinemateque, or face valid charity requests.

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*) I mean, happy to be able to add to that other backlog.

See you on the 21st

Bullshit. For one thing, we don't know what games will be available at what dicounts next, so we can't make the best possible decision on how to spend our money. For another, the ticking clock is obviously meant to have people make impulsive decisions. Only this time the clock is rather generous.

Finally, no store would implement a sale gimmick designed to help customers save money, as that is not in the store's interest. If you really belive any company these days is looking out for your best interest, you're delusional.

Airplane thread.

Huh?

Flew right over your head.

Sorry. I guess I just don't get teh joke. I mean, so the point of the thread is to be exactly like that other thread? Ok... my bad :P

; ) It's a counter to the other one.

Ultimately, it comes down to the customer making decisions:

- If they haven't had time to check out the game to their satisfaction, then buy on a lark or don't buy. The smart consumer waits to do their research (I have purchased on a lark, so there's that). For the customer who buys on the Bright-Shiny-Object method, the sale format doesn't really change this behavior.

- If they aren't certain that this will be the best deal on the game, then they take the risk to buy it now or wait for a different sale. Either way, the customer still has the opportunity to get a discount from the regular price.

- If a customer is on a tight budget and isn't certain whether to buy the game currently flashed or to wait to see if another, more-desired game comes up later, then there is the option to wait for later sales where all of the discounts ARE listed upfront. A budget means making those decisions all the time, so passing up on this sale isn't a problem.

- If the customer has low impulse control, that's not gOg's fault, and it's not gOg's lookout. If it's truly a problem for a customer then I think it's just the tip of the iceberg and not holding this type of sale isn't going to make a difference. Is it gOg deliberately trying to take advantage of those people? No. It's just a different way to drum up excitement for the same titles that have been on sale umpteen times already in the past year.

- If a customer has already done the homework and knows which games are at the top of their Wanted list, and has taken the time to look at the spreadsheet (I don't remember who maintains it) showing the historical discounts, then the Flash Sale isn't much different than other sales: either the discount is good enough for the customer to buy the game, or it isn't. The sale format doesn't change that.

Despite what gOg says in the FAQ, I'll be surprised if - for the last day or two - they don't put every flashed game into the general sale pool. They've done this in the past, and it would seem a bit foolish to miss out on the weekend shoppers who didn't catch the earlier flashes. gOg knows that not everyone lives and breathes on this site and that people do have lives outside of watching for sale prices, so my guess is that all of the titles will show up all at once for the remainder of the sale starting, say, Saturday.

As to the flashes themselves, it's not much different than if one logged on for the first time all week and is catching the very end of the sale period. The only problem I can find with the format is for people on a strict game budget. And even then, there is always always always the option to wait. The only way for it to be customer-unfriendly (assuming a discount is bad for the customer) is by voluntary participation.

Ultimately, gOg are offering games at discounted prices. That's it. One can choose to save money at this time, do it later during a different sale, buy at full price at some other time, or not buy at all. I, personally, am not finding this to be an anti-consumer format, considering that most of these games will be on sale again at least once more between now and the Summer Sale.

I personally don't consider flash sales good or bad. They just are, just like Flash Gordon.

It is not like they will cure cancer and cause overpopulation, nor will they resurrect Hitler who will take care of that overpopulation.

Adobe Flash (Player) though... god damn I hate it! Good thing it is becoming a thing of a past, but some stupid sites still seem to use it.

Honestly, I don't find flash sales to be pro or anti consumer. It's more about increasing website traffic than increasing sales (full credit to zeroxxx for the link)... gotta do something to drum up some publicily and compete with Valve I suppose.

Granted, back in the day I remember this one guy being quoted as saying " Heavy discounts are bad for gamers, " so maybe this is just a way to lessen the damage? Rip the band-aid off quick and all that.

Edit: Formatting silliness

Where's the "Flash sales are neither good nor bad for the consumer" thread? :)

If you like them, go ahead and take part.

If you don;t like that, then don't buy anything.

Either way you;re casting your vote with your wallet. I seriously doubt no one at GoG is paying attention to the sales numbers on these things. Charts and graphs galore.

Pretty much my position, though the starting post posits they're helpful and not just neutral. But hey, forum threads are free.

My other backlog (books) is several times larger than my games backlog.

My suggestion: if you don't like Flash sales, don't spend any money during the sale period and send a message to Support letting them know this (without being rude) If the sale doesn't do well, GOG probably won't revisit it for a long time. Speak with green.