Re: Planetside 2 Store - 10 minutes of required viewing for SOE

[Vancha]

I felt this deserved it's own thread.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vide...rotransactions

Arguably every Extra Credits video ever made is required viewing for SOE, but this is the newest one and it seems very well timed with the recent discussions about how RMT should be handled in PS2.

[Bags]

I hate his voice so much.

Anyhow, here's the TL : DR of the video:

1.) Don't sell power, sell convenience / looks
2.) Don't sell joke crap in a serious game (not from the video...)
3.) Get as many people playing as possible
4.) Allow alternative methods of acquisition, even if slow
5.) Ponies

And yes, Sony should watch.

[CutterJohn]

I think he worries way too much about players being butthurt about something they are getting for free. Though he's probably right. Gotta love that well developed sense of entitlement in those playing something for free.

[Ranik Ortega]

Originally Posted by CutterJohn

I think he worries way too much about players being butthurt about something they are getting for free. Though he's probably right. Gotta love that well developed sense of entitlement in those playing something for free.

I think that vid is in response mainly to CCP. And believe me the meltdown directed at CCP was well deserved if you kept up with the leaks that occured and all the communication botch ups that followed.

[CutterJohn]

I saw a bunch of whining about trivial nonsense, and people taking a game far, far, far, far, far, far, far(i can keep this up a while), far, far, far too seriously.

[Ranik Ortega]

Originally Posted by CutterJohn

I saw a bunch of whining about trivial nonsense, and people taking a game far, far, far, far, far, far, far(i can keep this up a while), far, far, far too seriously.

Then you weren't paying much attention

[Vancha]

Originally Posted by CutterJohn

I think he worries way too much about players being butthurt about something they are getting for free. Though he's probably right. Gotta love that well developed sense of entitlement in those playing something for free.

The point is that treating the "free" players well is better off for the game. If you fuck them over, the profit from an unfair RMT system is outweighed by the loss of the "free" players, who not only keep the game alive but are more likely to become RMT customers the longer they play.

[krnasaur]

That guy nailed it. Dead on what microtransactions should be.

[EightEightEight]

Amazing Video If the people in the US would take the info from this video I think more people would pay the free2play games

[LordReaver]

They have already made it clear that they are going to do it right.



I prefer to buy everything all at once. I don't want to have to deal with making transactions every time I find something I like.

I would like to see games try a level system. You start off with the bronze level. Pretty much works the way trials work now. You get very limited access, but it lets you peek at the game. Then you have a silver level. It gives you a little more access than the trial version. Good for casual people who don't really care about the game. Then you have the gold version, which gives you full access.

This gives people the option to really put only how much money they want into the game. It's the difference between test driving a car from a lot, to renting a car, to buying one.

[Malorn]

Good video.

I think it actually has good value for us as well as SOE. Players around here are used to the subscription model and many of us have fears over microtransactions, mainly due to the fear of being scammed into paying more money than we think we should be paying. We're all certainly willing to pay for stuff, but we're also used to knowing the costs up-front as opposed to having the hidden cost. Of course the real 'hidden cost' is when power is put into the mix, because then you have to pay to compete and that changes everything.

The video makes good points about why free-to-play is good and how more players helps the health of the game. I'm in complete agreement there as I've said in other posts.

Something the game didn't mention is that the younger players that don't have cash wont' always be that way. Sometimes college players get jobs (which affects play time, thus helping reinforce the value of paying money for convenience), and college players eventually graduate and start earning a lot more money with which they can feel free to blow on your game. I was in college during PS1 and was a bit tight on cash, while now it is a much different story. Lifestyles and economic situations will change with players.

Smed seems to be aware of this already though, and he has indicated several times, including an interview here with PSU that they will not be selling power and discussed the the 'free to play elements'. The video does a good job of describing the real values.

Good point hitting home about convenience though. Cert training speed, experience accrual rate, and services like custom outfit decals are all great targets for microtransactions. You don't require any of those to be effective in the game and have balance.

Of course I already said most of this in the Business Model thread

[Soothsayer]

Originally Posted by Bags

2.) Don't sell joke crap in a serious game (not from the video...)

Yeah, I turn off pumpkin heads/santa hats at the earliest opportunity.

[Lartnev]

Originally Posted by Vancha

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vide...rotransactions

Excellent video, thanks for sharing . I want a micro-transaction-raptor plushie.

Did anyone else watch the "Never split you player base" and think of Core Combat?

And yeah, I think what I've heard from SOE so far is they've got the microtransactions stuff on the right path.

[artifice]

Sony has already proven with EQ2X that they have no freaking clue on how to run a f2p game while EQ2 has shown us that they will milk us for money even in a subscription fee game.

[Hamma]

Care to provide examples for those who don't play that game?