What are microtransactions? Without simplifying it too much, microtransactions are where a player can purchase virtual goods for real money. A few examples of microtransactions you may have seen would be weapon skins in Call of Duty, extra moves in Candy Crush, and new plants in Plants vs Zombies 2. Many free-to-play games contain microtransactions.
So why did I bring this topic up? Well it started when I read an article on PushSquare. The article talked about how in raid mode of Resident Evil: Revelations 2 you will be able to bring yourself back to life using crystals which can be obtain by purchasing them. While I currently don’t know more then what the article said it made me think about the good side and the bad side of microtransactions.
Let’s start with the good side. Personally I believe microtransactions are good, if they don’t alter the game in anyway by not giving players access to them, and those who choose not to use them still have an equal chance of winning. This means things like costumes in Dota 2, or weapon skins in Call of Duty. These microtransactions don’t take anything away from anyone else that is playing the game and it doesn’t make them better than you. These items are just mainly cosmetic items. The one exception to this rule is in games like Shin Megmai Tensei 4 or Bravely Default. These games, besides giving players the ability to change the difficulty at any time, also have small microtransactions to make the game even easier. Shin Megmai Tensei 4 gives you the ability to buy armor that helps make the battle with the first boss easier and Bravely Default allows the player to buy special potions to use a special powerful move. Both of these games are single player which means that just because they are stronger in their game doesn’t mean they can influence yours.
However, microtransactions can also be really bad and there are a lot of examples of games doing microtransactions completely wrong. As I said in the above paragraph as long as they don’t alter the game, or give anyone an unfair advantage. The games I am mainly talking about here are the “Pay-to-win” games. In these “Pay to win” games a player can well pay to get best gear and equipment that is basically impossible to get without paying. These games make it almost impossible to enjoy them without paying and it sucks. A few examples of these types of games are DeadBreed, where those who pay can use artifacts to increase their stats, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Phantoms, where players can buy stronger guns using real world money.
Overall, I don’t think microtransactions are a bad idea as they keep many great games free, such as Team Fortress 2 or League of Legends. However, there are also plenty of games that microtransactions ruin. I personally don’t like microtransactions, but I understand that they are a necessary evil in some cases.
What is your opinion on microtranscations? Do you like them, hate them, or don’t care about them either way?
References
http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2015/01/youll_be_able_to_pay_to_reanimate_yourself_in_resident_evil_revelations_2 — Resident Evil: Revelations 2 microtranscations
http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/10/bravely_default_to_feature_optional_special_attack_abilities_as_microtransactions — Bravely Default’s microtranscation
Pictures from
https://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Fancy_Fedora — Team Fortress 2 Fedora picture
http://www.callofduty.com/blackops2/dlc/micro-items — Call of Duty Weapon skin picture
Microtransactions are an essential strategy for almost any free to play game. These are the backbone to what keeps the game alive for developers since nothing is truly “free” from their side of things. In my opinion, I am supportive of in-game microtransactions that do not give unfair advantages over other players, however some games make it harder to realize if advantages are being given or not. An example is being able to buy items such as experience boosts to level faster in Tera, a lesser known MMORPG that resembles a final fantasy theme.
In general, MMOs or games with markets for in-game items are perfect examples. Take Diablo 3, which had an auctionhouse for both in-game currency and real money where players were able to buy and sell in-game items. These items arenot purely cosmetic, thus it was able to become a “pay-to-win” type game for many people. Blizzard ultimately decided that this is not what they wanted and removed the auctionhouse entirely because, in my opinion, the fun in diablo is finding the best gear possible.
Another game which I feel does microtransactions well is Counter-Strike. The latest installment, Global Offensive, allows players to collect random skins or crates at the end of matches. The crates can be opened by the player and will contain a random skin worth a varying amount of money. The marketplace on Steam allows players to pay real money to obtain skins for the game along with the crates that drop in games. The catch to the crates is that you must purchase a key for $2.49 to open each crate. These types of microtransactions help support the game, professional tournaments, and the developers and do not alter any player’s stats or give a player anything other than a choice in what they want their guns to look like. The marketplace has generated it’s own economy essentially with item skins that range from $0.03 to over $400.