Paid content in videogames (DLC, loot boxes, passes, currencies, "surprise mechanics" and - new! - pay more or wait!)

Anything to do with games at all.
jawafour
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by jawafour » Thu Oct 25, 2018 12:44 pm

Trelliz wrote:From the publishers' perspective, strawberry float 'em (the customers)...

That would seem to be a pretty accurate summary, Trelliz!

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by jawafour » Thu Oct 25, 2018 12:49 pm

OrangeRKN wrote:There is nothing wrong with early price drops, and if you're willing to wait it's only a good thing. Just because something becomes cheaper it doesn't mean you've lost out - you already chose to pay an amount that was acceptable to you for the game

Uhm... I'm not sure I agree, OR. Sure, I love PES and I want to support the production of it as it is gradually steam-rollered by the behemoth that is FIFA, but I was a little frustrated when, four weeks post-launch, the price dropped ten quid. When we buy games, I feel that the price is often something we "suck up" rather than actually being happy about. To see the price slashed mere weeks later - particularly in the case of 33% on a game as popular as FIFA - is a tad galling.

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Met
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Met » Thu Oct 25, 2018 2:03 pm

So what's the acceptable cut off point to lower the price? 2 months? 6? I've bought things only to see them go on sale the next week before, is this a slight on me or just something I look at as an annoying coincidence?

If you don't think a game is worth the money it's asking for, don't buy it. That much seems obvious to me.

Everything about this just seems a bit entitled.

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Moggy
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Moggy » Thu Oct 25, 2018 2:08 pm

I agree that people only have themselves to blame for paying full price, but I can also see how annoying it is if you pay full price and then there is a sale soon after.

I wouldn’t say that was being “entitled”, more just a normal human reaction to seeing something on sale cheaper than what you paid for it.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by 7256930752 » Thu Oct 25, 2018 2:43 pm

£12-£15 seems a reasonable price to give you a four week head start and merc all the noobs that pick it up on sale.

It's a weird paradox for me as I'm sure that I've gotten better value from games I've paid full price for than stuff I've picked up on sale and never played.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by jawafour » Thu Oct 25, 2018 3:28 pm

Met wrote:...Everything about this just seems a bit entitled.

Hang on... being a bit miffed because the game you bought for £60 is now £42 is "entitled"? :lol: .

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OrangeRKN
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by OrangeRKN » Thu Oct 25, 2018 4:04 pm

Either you were happy to pay £60 for it so it isn't a problem, or you weren't happy to pay £60 so you shouldn't have bought it in the first place

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Met
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Met » Thu Oct 25, 2018 10:41 pm

jawafour wrote:
Met wrote:...Everything about this just seems a bit entitled.

Hang on... being a bit miffed because the game you bought for £60 is now £42 is "entitled"? :lol: .


Just comes across as "I paid this so everyone should regardless of changes in business and such."

Game prices drop in order to grab the people that don't want it ASAP. I don't think it's fair to try and change that just because you might buy a game at a higher price point earlier when you know full well that's the case.

They're not punishing you and you don't deserve more. You've already had more time with the game and paid what you thought the game was worth.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by jawafour » Thu Oct 25, 2018 10:54 pm

Fair enough, guys. Different views and all that :) .

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Lagamorph
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Lagamorph » Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:18 am

FTC Pledges to Investigate Video Game 'Loot Boxes'

This is potentially huge. If lootboxes are classed as gambling in the USA then it will be a massive hit (win). Being classed as gambling means any game with loot boxes gets an immediate AO rating (or even need a new rating entirely since the gambling age varies state by state, and is in some cases higher than the AO rating age), which means games like Fifa are suddenly banned from digital storefronts on Xbox and PlayStation alongside not being stocked at big retailers like Wal-Mart and Gamestop, as all of them ban AO rated games as a matter of policy.
Gambling isn't even legal in some states, so suddenly certain states could see sales of the game banned altogether or the developers would suddenly need to institute a state by state system with and without lootboxes.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Gemini73 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:44 am

I bet the AAA industry's ass puckered up at that news.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by 7256930752 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:52 am

Lagamorph wrote:FTC Pledges to Investigate Video Game 'Loot Boxes'

This is potentially huge. If lootboxes are classed as gambling in the USA then it will be a massive hit (win). Being classed as gambling means any game with loot boxes gets an immediate AO rating (or even need a new rating entirely since the gambling age varies state by state, and is in some cases higher than the AO rating age), which means games like Fifa are suddenly banned from digital storefronts on Xbox and PlayStation alongside not being stocked at big retailers like Wal-Mart and Gamestop, as all of them ban AO rated games as a matter of policy.
Gambling isn't even legal in some states, so suddenly certain states could see sales of the game banned altogether or the developers would suddenly need to institute a state by state system with and without lootboxes.

Would be pretty amazing for a golf Cristiano Ronaldo or a cosmetic item to be considered more dangerous than an AR15.

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Moggy
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Moggy » Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:59 am

Hime wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:FTC Pledges to Investigate Video Game 'Loot Boxes'

This is potentially huge. If lootboxes are classed as gambling in the USA then it will be a massive hit (win). Being classed as gambling means any game with loot boxes gets an immediate AO rating (or even need a new rating entirely since the gambling age varies state by state, and is in some cases higher than the AO rating age), which means games like Fifa are suddenly banned from digital storefronts on Xbox and PlayStation alongside not being stocked at big retailers like Wal-Mart and Gamestop, as all of them ban AO rated games as a matter of policy.
Gambling isn't even legal in some states, so suddenly certain states could see sales of the game banned altogether or the developers would suddenly need to institute a state by state system with and without lootboxes.

Would be pretty amazing for a golf Cristiano Ronaldo or a cosmetic item to be considered more dangerous than an AR15.


That's America for you. They protect the kids by making the drinking age 21, but sell ammunition in supermarkets.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Trelliz » Wed Nov 28, 2018 8:37 am

Good. It is high time that the industry is hoist by its own petard. As Jim and others have been saying for years, if it doesn't regulate from within someone else will come and do it with much worse results.

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Knoyleo
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Knoyleo » Wed Nov 28, 2018 10:48 am

Hime wrote:
Lagamorph wrote:FTC Pledges to Investigate Video Game 'Loot Boxes'

This is potentially huge. If lootboxes are classed as gambling in the USA then it will be a massive hit (win). Being classed as gambling means any game with loot boxes gets an immediate AO rating (or even need a new rating entirely since the gambling age varies state by state, and is in some cases higher than the AO rating age), which means games like Fifa are suddenly banned from digital storefronts on Xbox and PlayStation alongside not being stocked at big retailers like Wal-Mart and Gamestop, as all of them ban AO rated games as a matter of policy.
Gambling isn't even legal in some states, so suddenly certain states could see sales of the game banned altogether or the developers would suddenly need to institute a state by state system with and without lootboxes.

Would be pretty amazing for a golf Cristiano Ronaldo or a cosmetic item to be considered more dangerous than an AR15.

You're talking about a country that already banned Kinder eggs for being dangerous, ahead of banning guns.

pjbetman wrote:That's the stupidest thing ive ever read on here i think.
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by 7256930752 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 12:33 pm

Trelliz wrote:Good. It is high time that the industry is hoist by its own petard. As Jim and others have been saying for years, if it doesn't regulate from within someone else will come and do it with much worse results.

Do you think it would be better if instead of the game chance for a small fee we just had items that could be bought? Is it the gambling element and protecting children that you see as most important or the purity of gaming? I only ask because I'm sure some kids are probably still spending their parents money in Fortnite skins and this isn't because they were seduced by gaming, they just wanted shiny things.

I ask because the industry is changing, the one time purchase often mostly judged in the first seven days for a project that takes a number of years is not working across the board. Personally I don't mind that additional work on my games is funded by people by entirely optional content that is nearly always cosmetic in nature. That said the big games that have these items tend to be the ones that are mostly successful in the original sales anyway so I realise that isn't saving your B tier game from failure but I'm certain that something is going to change and the one off payment method will soon be over. Hopefully services like Game Pass will help developers recoup money in the long term so it's a win for everyone.

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OrangeRKN
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by OrangeRKN » Wed Nov 28, 2018 1:26 pm

Hime wrote:Do you think it would be better if instead of the game chance for a small fee we just had items that could be bought? Is it the gambling element and protecting children that you see as most important or the purity of gaming? I only ask because I'm sure some kids are probably still spending their parents money in Fortnite skins and this isn't because they were seduced by gaming, they just wanted shiny things.


The only problem I have with Fortnite's approach is how everything is massively overpriced (but apparently people are willing to pay that). Titanfall 2 did it pretty perfectly by having everything purchasable at a clearly marked price - I actually bought an avatar in that because it was reasonable. Loot boxes are awful because there is no guarantee that you get what you want (and in fact the odds are normally incredibly low), and they are designed to keep you buying. Microtransactions can be much more honest and in that case I don't have a problem with them, unless the content seems cut from the main game which is still being charged full price for.

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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by 7256930752 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 2:01 pm

OrangeRKN wrote:
Hime wrote:Do you think it would be better if instead of the game chance for a small fee we just had items that could be bought? Is it the gambling element and protecting children that you see as most important or the purity of gaming? I only ask because I'm sure some kids are probably still spending their parents money in Fortnite skins and this isn't because they were seduced by gaming, they just wanted shiny things.


The only problem I have with Fortnite's approach is how everything is massively overpriced (but apparently people are willing to pay that). Titanfall 2 did it pretty perfectly by having everything purchasable at a clearly marked price - I actually bought an avatar in that because it was reasonable. Loot boxes are awful because there is no guarantee that you get what you want (and in fact the odds are normally incredibly low), and they are designed to keep you buying. Microtransactions can be much more honest and in that case I don't have a problem with them, unless the content seems cut from the main game which is still being charged full price for.

Can all the Fortnite skins be earned with in-game currency? AFAIK all games with loot boxes have systems so that they can be earned playing the game so you don't need to buy them. I totally get your point but I can't get on board with spending £30 on a skin is fine because you know what you're getting but optional additional loot boxes are ruining the lives of children. Neither of these things have had any impact on the games I play outside of cosmetics so it doesn't really impact me, if however this is about protecting the vulnerable then must forms of entertainment will need to be shaken up. For instance you better not let these children watch a football game.

We'll see what happens. I wouldn't use the States in America that will embrace this as any sort of moral benchmark though. I'll bet the place that embrace this also condone racism, gay bashing and gun ownership.

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Knoyleo
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by Knoyleo » Wed Nov 28, 2018 3:46 pm

Hime wrote:Can all the Fortnite skins be earned with in-game currency? AFAIK all games with loot boxes have systems so that they can be earned playing the game so you don't need to buy them. I totally get your point but I can't get on board with spending £30 on a skin is fine because you know what you're getting but optional additional loot boxes are ruining the lives of children. Neither of these things have had any impact on the games I play outside of cosmetics so it doesn't really impact me, if however this is about protecting the vulnerable then must forms of entertainment will need to be shaken up. For instance you better not let these children watch a football game.

lol wut?

How is watching football in any way comparable to games introducing children to skinner box/gambling mechanics under the cover of cosmetic items?

pjbetman wrote:That's the stupidest thing ive ever read on here i think.
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PostRe: Paid content in videogames (DLC, season passes, micro transactions and loot boxes)
by 7256930752 » Wed Nov 28, 2018 3:49 pm

Knoyleo wrote:
Hime wrote:Can all the Fortnite skins be earned with in-game currency? AFAIK all games with loot boxes have systems so that they can be earned playing the game so you don't need to buy them. I totally get your point but I can't get on board with spending £30 on a skin is fine because you know what you're getting but optional additional loot boxes are ruining the lives of children. Neither of these things have had any impact on the games I play outside of cosmetics so it doesn't really impact me, if however this is about protecting the vulnerable then must forms of entertainment will need to be shaken up. For instance you better not let these children watch a football game.

lol wut?

How is watching football in any way comparable to games introducing children to skinner box/gambling mechanics under the cover of cosmetic items?

Have you seen the adverts played during football games?


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