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The Daily Grind: What do you buy in MMOs?
Every so often I like to be nosy and pry into your personal finances. Wow, you blow through a lot of Candy Crush microtransactions, don't you? And your Pez eBay purchases have gotten out of control. But let's just pretend that I don't have unparalleled access to your checking account and ask you to share what you buy in MMOs with real money. Looking back, probably my biggest purchases from the past six months were a subscription to WildStar, various cosmetic outfits and minipets in Guild Wars 2, the new mission packs in The Secret World, and a ghost companion in Neverwinter. What do you buy? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Origins of Malu will offer F2P with limited lives and permadeath
Origins of Malu has a few interesting ideas regarding its business model that Burning Dog laid out today in a post. The studio prefaced the plan by assuring fans that the title will have "no pay-to-win, no matter what." The game will offer a hybrid business model, with both subscription and free-to-play options. Sub fees will be "low" and come with bonuses and store currency. If you opt for the free-to-play angle, you'll only have a certain number of lives per day. Spend all of your lives, and you'll either need to stop playing for the day, buy more, or play with the risk of facing permadeath. Free-to-play won't be restricted otherwise, but may contain ads on the loading screen. Burning Dog said that some of the items that it will sell in its cash shop are housing items, vanity gear, lives, and pets.
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MechWarrior Online's Bullock on golden mechs and future content
Pirahna Game's president Russ Bullock is listening to the playerbase of MechWarrior Online. He is very aware of the number of complaints that have come in after a recent announcement of the pre-order sell of Clan 'Mechs, with prices ranging from under $30.00 to $500.00 for a gold-plated version. Although the complaints come from a range of topics, many concentrate on the timing of the announcement. After all, the developers only recently announced the Project Phoenix pre-order program. Some players see this new DLC pre-order only as a chance to make more money in lieu of producing more content. Other complaints stem from the prices of the pre-orders, and it's easy to see why. When we sat down with him recently, Bullock explained the costs in a few ways. First, the highest-priced items are simply collector's items. They look cool and do not have extras that go along with them that give them an advantage during combat. Second, all of the 'Mechs on the list can be paid for with in-game funds once released, minus some of the non-combat bonuses attached, meaning that any player who wants to can continue to pay nothing at all. Bullock wanted to emphasize that despite all of this, he knows that what the playerbase is really asking for is community-based features.
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Rise and Shiny: Zombie Pandemic
I really want to recommend Zombie Pandemic, a browser-based, post-apocalyptic "MMORPG" by Pixel Pandemic. I really do. The problem is that I can see you sitting down to play a cool-sounding game, recommended by me, only to leave it within an hour because its server issues literally make the game unplayable at times. It's such a shame because there are several great ideas going on in the game and several systems and mechanics that rely heavily on real timing and, you know, the server running smoothly. During my time with the game this week, I had the game reset a good portion of my progress, kill me with server burps, and block me from purchasing item shop goods. Yes, that's right... not only did the game prevent me from playing at times, but it also prevented me from giving it money. Still, I'm going to tell you why I liked the game and why you should still check it out. It's a great game for players who enjoy zombies, post-apocalyptic survival, board games, and relatively deep storylines.
Stick and Rudder: On Star Citizen's cash shop
Remember last time when I said that Cloud Imperium's decision to release a playable pre-alpha Star Citizen module was a risky move? Forget that. I mean, it still kinda was, but this particular story had a happy ending. Star Citizen's first public-facing in-game deliverable has been live for over a week now, and for all intents and purposes it was a smashing success.
Chaos Theory: A guide to The Secret World's tokens and currencies
In life and in games, the overarching method of commerce involves currency. Occasionally, you might find a game (or a friend) that will work with the bartering system, but that is far from the norm around these parts. Then you have The Secret World. TSW has the best -- or worst, you could say -- of both worlds. Bet you didn't know you would take up coin collecting when you started playing, did you? With a plethora of different currencies that can be spent only at certain places for certain things, players have keep tabs on whom they can spend what with and where said whos actually are. Wondering what those Credits of Ca' d'Oro are good for? What about whether Sequins of Solomon Island can be used in Transylvania? This handy guide will help demystify coin collecting and show you the ins and outs of all those tokens filling up your wallet.
See World of Warcraft's item store in action
World of Warcraft's new item store is currently on the test server in preparation for its release with Patch 5.4. Instead of waiting until the store goes live in the game to check it out, you can get a sneak peek at the store now courtesy of AdriaCraft. The following video shows the store interface in action as a player opens it up to purchase an XP potion (or two or three or four). The prices are just for the test server, so it's no guarantee that it will be the same when it's pushed to live. The item store and its contents are the subject of much speculation these days after Blizzard posted an article teasing pets, seesaws, and cosmetic goodies. You can check out the store preview video after the jump.
Take a tour of RIFT's free-to-play store
One of the most-asked questions that we've seen following RIFT's free-to-play conversion is, "What does the in-game store look like?" This must be a universal query because the folks over at Rift Junkies have put together a video that takes players on an in-depth tour of the shop and its offerings. You can watch the full video after the break, but be warned: You might come away from it with your pockets a little lighter.
The Think Tank: What elements make up your perfect business model?
The topic of the MMO business model is a hot one lately as studios are in the Wild West of experimentation, discovery, and limit-testing. New games are going free-to-play every week it seems, and we, as consumers, are accepting more and more as these business models become standard. But that's certainly not always the case. Among the Massively staff, pricing opinions run the gamut, and we're not afraid to tell you what we think. That's why this week's Think Tank column is all about how we would assemble our own perfect business models from the pieces of others. Who does it right? Who does it wrong? Read along for more on our thoughts for the perfect business model.
SWTOR fan site posts cartel market poll results
Following BioWare's promise that the studio's made substantial changes to its Cartel Market in Star Wars: The Old Republic, fan site Darth Hater polled over 2500 players about how they use the item shop (if at all). The results are quite fascinating. Most of those polled (89%) are still subscribed and have made purchases from the Cartel Market (87%). Only half of those polled spent real money on store currency, but of that sample, most had spent over $20 and 26% had spent over $100. The most popular purchases on the Cartel Market from this survey were random Cartel packs (80%), legacy unlocks (61%), armor (33%), and XP boosts (20%). 22% of those surveyed said that they were disappointed with the market, while 40% were satisfied with it.
The Perfect Ten: Absolutely ridiculous cash shop selections
This past week, the Money Gnomes at Turbine tested the waters with the idea of selling a $50 horse in Lord of the Rings Online. Oh, not just any horse, mind you: It's a toy hobby horse. For $50. The representative who asked for feedback on the item and price-point probably caused herself internal hemorrhaging by stating, "This is not a joke." The fans responded, "Of course, and the sky is made out of blue cheese." At the very least, it allowed the more creative players to come up with humorous expressions of incredulity. The fun finally came to an end when the studio announced that the "experimental" price point was a failure. Of course, this is by far not the first time a game studio's attempted to sell a ridiculous item, an item with a ridiculous price point, or both combined. If you sell it, after all, the rubes will come. So in the spirit of a $50 hobby horse that costs something like $20 in real life to acquire, here are 10 completely ridiculous items that we've seen in MMO cash shops.
The Daily Grind: How much did you spend in cash shops last month?
I had a dream last night. And since I know how popular telling other people about your dreams is, here I go: I dreamed that I was writing a blog post detailing what money I spent on MMOs last month between subscriptions and cash shops. Then I woke up and decided that I have a very boring dream life and that this might make for a good Daily Grind topic. The truth is, I probably spent about $35 in November on MMO cash shops, and that was all in one place: Guild Wars 2. I wanted to snag a few of the Halloween offerings, bump up my inventory space, and enlarge my bank. I'd say that $35 was pretty high for me compared to an average month, as I'm usually only tempted to take out my wallet when an absolute must-buy goes on sale. So fess up: How much did you spend in cash shops last month? Be honest as the IRS is watching you! Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Vanguard expands F2P perks, introduces lockboxes
Vanguard has become even more accommodating to free players as today's update lifted the restriction against such players using uncommon items. SOE says that this now opens the door for free players to equip almost 20,000 additional items and weapons. It seems that Vanguard isn't able to escape all the trends of free-to-play, however. As the Festival of Gloriann rolls in next month, so do new lockboxes to the game. These lockboxes have a chance of containing a rare item like festive horses and cool pets, but are only openable by using cash shop-purchased keys. The patch also contains tweaks to the newly opened City of Brass, a resurrection gem in the marketplace, and performance tweaks.
SWTOR lead dev addresses free-to-play concerns
Star Wars: The Old Republic players are checking out the game's potential free-to-play changes on the test server, and serious concerns about some of the restrictions have prompted a response from BioWare. Lead Designer Damion Schubert wrote a lengthy forum post to state that the team's been observing the test server and has decided to make a few changes to the F2P restrictions. In particular, free players will now get two quickbars instead of one, can experience five PvP warzones a week instead of three, and will find the temporary lock timer for items bought in the cash shop reduced. Schubert said that a more detailed post is incoming; it will spell out details for preferred status players, who include any former subscribers to the game. He also addressed the controversy over the store selling endgame mod crystals to low- and mid-level characters by explaining that it will not unbalance the game: "We're still philosophically avoiding putting any stat advantage at this level that subscribers cannot earn through reasonable normal play."
Star Wars: The Old Republic transmits free-to-play video
The race toward free-to-play is gaining momentum for Star Wars: The Old Republic. BioWare's been talking the transition up quite a bit lately, and has just released a new video giving players an overview of the differences once the change is made. While most of it is old news to those following the game, there are a few new tidbits worth noting here. One of these is clarification on character creation restrictions; BioWare revealed that the three free-to-play races are Human, Cyborg, and Zabrak. Previous subscribers are targeted for hugs and love with the F2P transition, as BioWare is not only granting them instant preferred status but also handing them currency to spend in the Cartel Market. Speaking of which, the market is briefly shown in the video with the following categories: featured, newly added, packs, cosmetic, unlocks, equipment, and consumables. Check out the video after the jump and let us know -- are you going back to SWTOR for F2P?
Additional Guild Wars 2 store items revealed
With Guild Wars 2's headstart on Saturday, players with some extra spending money may be planning their initial purchases in the game. Meticulous scouring of Guild Wars 2's online gem store has revealed five new options for future players, including one nice freebie. Three of the recently added items are armor skins costing 500 gems each. These come in Primevil, Krytan, and Profane varieties. There's also a nifty Guild Wars 2 logo hat, which is currently marked at zero gems, meaning that it's a potential free item for players. Finally, for 2000 gems, one has the option to upgrade the standard edition of the game to the digital deluxe version.
The Daily Grind: Which MMO has the best business model?
Free-to-play MMO business models come in all shapes and sizes. There are those that are completely free, those that sell only cosmetic items and nothing else, those that nickel-and-dime you to death with cash-shop barriers, and those that offer VIP packages so players can still sub and get everything that a normal subscription game would offer. With so many existing MMOs making that F2P conversion, it's safe to say that the market hasn't really figured out the perfect business model yet. Or has it? Let us know which MMO has the best business model in your opinion, be it subscription, free-to-play, or any combination. Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Chaos Theory: The (F2P) future of The Secret World [Updated]
[Ed: Look for an official Funcom statement regarding the anon tipster email at the end of the article.] Scott Jennings ended a blog entry about The Secret World with a telling phrase this past week. "This is why we can't have nice things," he said. This was preceded by what can only be called a lament, as Jennings laid out how Funcom did something that most MMO developers are loath to do these days: It made an original game. And the reward for such was a dismal quarterly report and a round of layoffs. That The Secret World attempts to break from the putrid post-World of Warcraft MMO mold is not up for debate. What is debatable is whether breaking from said mold can be profitable.
The Summoner's Guidebook: Items and runes for League of Legends' attack damage champions
Attack damage is a universal thing for most League of Legends champions to build. Even characters that do not normally build AD are commonly played as AD in "joke builds." AD champions also have some of the widest variety of items available. There are a fair number of caster and tank items and a handful of hybrid items, but items that bolster physical attacks are everywhere. This can cause some confusion in what to build, and today we're going to talk about what gives you the most bang for your buck. This article will focus heavily on offense rather than defense for AD champions. We'll cover defense in a later week.
ArenaNet president defends microtransactions and in-game RMT in Guild Wars 2
MMOs have to make money; that's a fact of life (and of business) ArenaNet President Mike O'Brien knows quite well. In an interview with VentureBeat, O'Brien explained how the studio is handling the monetization for Guild Wars 2 and blasts RMT companies for their practices. O'Brien addressed why Guild Wars 2 is being offered not as a straight free-to-play title but as a retail product with an up-front cost. "The answer is we're really focused on creating the highest-quality MMO, not the lowest-cost MMO," he replied. "I think Guild Wars 2 is one of the best values in gaming, period. Where else can you get this many hours of enjoyment, of content, of polish, of replayability, for $60?" He also took the opportunity to expand upon his own blog post covering microtransactions from a few weeks ago. "Creating a microtransaction system that doesn't upset or alienate your player base is straightforward, once you clearly define what's in-bounds and what's out-of-bounds," O'Brien stated. He says that ArenaNet wants to be "open and honest" with players regarding the in-game store options and promises that these will be "non-essential additions to the game and convenience services" only. O'Brien also had strong words about the shady practices of RMT companies, practices that ArenaNet is trying to combat by offering its own in-game RMT system. "Where there's a real profit incentive, someone out there in the world will lie, cheat, and steal to make that profit, " he said. "By letting players trade directly with each other, we take the power away from RMT companies and give it to the entire playerbase."
