A perfect complement is a good that has to be consumed with another good. The indifference curve of a perfect complement will exhibit a right angle, as illustrated by the figure at the right. Few goods in the real world will behave as perfect complements. One example is a left shoe and a right; shoes are naturally sold in pairs, and the ratio between sales of left and right shoes will never shift noticeably from 1:1 - even if, for example, someone is missing a leg and buys just one shoe.
The degree of complementarity, however, does not have to be mutual; it can be measured by cross price elasticity of demand. In the case of video games, a specific video game (the complement good) has to be consumed with a video game console (the base good). It does not work the other way: a video game console does not have to be consumed with that game.
Read more about this topic: Complementary Good
Famous quotes containing the words perfect and/or complement:
“You are disdainful and magnificent—
Your perfect body and your pompous gait,
Your dark eyes flashing solemnly with hate,”
—Helene Johnson (b. 1907)
“A healthy man, indeed, is the complement of the seasons, and in winter, summer is in his heart.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)