Indie studio introduces a unique temperature-based pricing system for its snowman game
The price of A Good Snowman is Hard to Build depends on the current temperature in London
An indie developer has come up with a unique weather-based way to charge for their game.
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build is a puzzle game that was originally released in 2015, and is usually priced at $14.99.
However, to celebrate the game’s 10th anniversary, developer Draknek & Friends has decided to implement a new permanent pricing model based on the temperature.
Specifically, the game’s price will change every hour on itch.io depending on the current temperature in London, according to weather forecast website OpenWeather.
At the time of writing, for example, the temperature in London is 9.2°C, meaning the game is priced at $9.20.
Although the game is available on Steam, the new pricing scheme is only active for its itch.io version, because Steam doesn’t allow the price to be automatically changed, let alone on an hourly basis.
The new pricing scheme naturally means the game will get cheaper when it’s night-time in London, and will rise during the day.
It also means the game will be much cheaper during the winter and far more expensive than its normal $14.99 Steam price during the summer, which is somewhat appropriate given that the premise involves building a snowman by rolling balls of snow around.
The developer notes that should the temperature drop to 0°C this does mean the game will be free for that period, but notes that anyone hoping to actually get paid for claiming the game when the temperature drops to minus figures will be out of luck. “Nice try,” they said. “The game will be free.”
They also joke that anyone feeling particularly generous can pay by Fahrenheit or Kelvin measurements should they wish, meaning the current $9.20 price for 9.2°C would instead become $48.56 (48.56°F) or $282.35 (282.35°K) respectively.
The studio is currently working on The Electrifying Incident, a puzzle game using the same character from A Good Snowman is Hard to Build, and will presumably be hoping this new temperature-based payment scheme will generate interest in its new game.
