Why Are Call of Duty Games So Expensive?

Modern Warfare 3 is not even out yet but according to Electronic Theatre, the RRP (recommended retail price) of the game is £54.99. As expensive as that may sound, the RRP for the past two Call of Duty games here in New Zealand is also, (if not more) expensive than it is in the U.K. Call of Duty: Black Ops has a RRP of $NZD155. This converts to around £75.99!

It’s almost common knowledge in New Zealand that video games are more expensive there than in anywhere else in the world; but nothing has ever reached the astronomical price of Call of Duty: Black Ops and Modern Warfare 2. The price is just for the standard edition of the game too I might add.

Gamers in the USA are luckier as Call of Duty: Black Ops costs $USD59.99. This is how much many new releases are priced at over in the USA and games rarely get more expensive than that. The only time a game is priced over $USD59.99 is if it for a special edition of the game.
Why are gamers in the U.K. and New Zealand getting Call of Duty games at such a high price? Games are usually £39.99 in the U.K. and $NZD119.99 in New Zealand. How come Call of Duty games are priced well over the normal RRP of most other games?

Activision knows that Call of Duty games are in high demand. No matter what your opinion is of the franchise, the games manage to sell millions of copies worldwide and it does not look likes its popularity is going away anytime soon. I understand Activision is a multibillion dollar company that wants to make a profit out of the games it publishes.
However, this still does not justify why Activision has to price Call of Duty games higher than pretty much everything else out on the market. Both Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty Black Ops have sold over 20 million copies worldwide. I’m pretty sure Activision can still make a profit out of the games if they were priced at the normal RRP of £39.99 and $NZD119.99 in the U.K. and New Zealand respectively.
Do you think its fair/right that gamers outside the USA have to pay extra just for the standard edition of a Call of Duty game?
What’s your opinion of this? Let us know!
*Note the high RRP is for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the games.

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