Sony Tries Arcade Pricing Scheme For PSN Download

Are you a fan of that age-old arcade pricing structure that requires you to insert a shiny ¥100 coin for a few plays of a game? Then you'll probably like Sony's new pricing test for PSN.

The company released today 100 Yen Gomibako. Downloadable via PlayStation Store, this PS3 title is just a special version of March's Gomibako, a falling blocks (well, falling garbage) puzzle game that was released overseas in June under the name Trash Panic.

The "special" part of the download is in the pricing. The original Gomibako cost ¥1,500. This download, as the name might suggest, is just ¥100.

So why the pricing change? It turns out that your ¥100 will actually get you just three play chances. Once you've played the game three times, you'll be forced to "insert" another ¥100 in order to continue playing. There's a "charge" button on the main menu screen for obtaining more credits.

There are some content differences from the main Gomibako as well. The 100 Yen Gomi Bako version includes just two modes of play: Steel and Normal. Normal mode consists of modified stages from the original release. Steel Mode was available in the original release only after you'd collected an items. Both are playable from the start here. Steel Mode is meant for beginner players.

The title and main menu screens from the new version. You can insert credits by pressing the yellow charge button.

Clear these modes, and you'll get a few goodies. Steel mode unlocks the same mode in the full version of the game, for those who have save data from that version. Normal mode unlocks five Home Rewards for PlayStation Home depending on your performance.

This version of Gomibako also features a tie-up with Sony's Mainichi Issyo, recreating that game's Toro Station segment as a stage.

Toro appears in Gomibako (left). To the right, Home Reward items.