Just so, so many of my friends are playing Genshin Impact these days — and not just playing, but gushing over the fun, the beauty, and the gacha business model. Wait, what? Yes, I’ve actually seen many people both defending and approving of the game’s use of the controversial gacha model of character acquisition and improvement, saying that Genshin Impact does it much better than elsewhere in the genre.
If this term is unfamiliar to you (bless your soul), gacha games basically revolve around acquiring lootboxes that pay out random characters and upgrades. There’s usually a way to earn them, but the much faster way is to jam your credit card into your computer’s motherboard somewhere and pay for as many pulls of that slot arm as you can before you’re broke and destitute.
Considering that Genshin Impact appears to have tamped down on some of the more egregious use of gacha design, what do you think about such practices coming to MMOs?
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!
