Am I (are we) just getting older and jaded or are the sales just really more lousy?
Edit: Only 2 dailies right now are 75%+ and both have been cheaper/bundled otherwise. I remember getting AAA titles for $20 $25 or less the year they released back in college. Batman AA was totally one of them.
Here's a link which shows 2011 winter daily sales
http://slickdeals.net/f/3798608-steam-holiday-sale-2011-daily-list-days-1-14-extras
This one shows the first couple days for the 2010 winter sale
http://forum.groovypost.com/deals/steam-winter-sale-2010-live-dec-20-thru-jan-2-t96494.html
I'm not sure what to make of this but thought I'd throw it out there. I do think a factor is Early Access hurts the value of a sale from the consumer's perspective. There are two sales in the daily feature that are both getting just a 33% discount which may have gone to other games that could be 75% off or more. I do think, as well, that the length of time we've been using Steam and the rise of bundles have hurt how we perceive sales. Bundles have made the sale of nearly any indie game a non factor, as we'll either already own the game or refuse to buy it in fear of it being in a bundle in the future. Obviously, the length of time influences the fact that there are simply less games we're able to buy. This being said, there are things Steam
could do, but won't, to increase how interesting a sale is. They could stop featuring games like Just Cause 2 and GTA IV, which are ALWAYS featured, and have been for years, and mix in games that are older or more obscure. They could also refuse to feature early access titles so they could feature other ones instead. They won't do either of these things because Steam is in it to make money, which isn't necessarily an interest which coincides with having a good sale. This is proven by the annoying (and sometimes stupid) buying habits of the average Steam user. Just look at the top sellers right now. Far Cry 4 is wasting a featured slot at $48 and is the #1 seller right now. Counter Strike is the #4 seller despite being released in 2012. Dayz is the #5 seller despite being over a year old and the fact that the sale still have a week left, so people
should be waiting to see if it gets featured. Same principle goes for ARMA 3. A lot of people have asserted that Steam "isn't trying" anymore, I think that's not true. They
are trying, but they're trying to maximize profit, which means catering to the majority of their audience.