We all understand that free-to-play games still basically want your money, yes? That’s the whole point of the business model. But the question is always what should be charged for, a question that is much harder to answer, since every potential answer can be rather fraught. Sure, it’s easy to say that you should just charge for cosmetics and outfits… but if that’s your only real source for good cosmetics, suddenly that starts feeling a bit gross.
My personal feeling is that cosmetic items and access to content are perfectly fine to charge for, but not things so basic as access to hotbars and the like (no, Star Wars: The Old Republic, no one is forgetting that). At the same time, I feel conflicted about things like buying more bank space in games like Star Trek Online, which don’t require that purchase but sure encourage it… it’s complicated, in other words. So what do you think is right to charge for in a free-to-play MMO? For that matter, what things do you actually think you would buy?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
