Yes there is something decidedly wrong with companies trying to make more money than their product or service warrants. Greed is not okay. These games already make a mint as it is. Millions of dollars a month even with as little as 100K subscribers and that's on top of box sales. Companies thinking they deserve excessive profit is the reason why we are in a depression and I find it disturbing that many consumers actually embrace these greedy tactics.
So..your telling me that more than $15.00 a month is excess? I'm sorry but MMO's have been around for about 10 years now, based on that, and an annual cost of llving rise about 4%, you would get about 22bucks a month sub cost if it keep the same trend.
Then raise the sub price. If your game is good enough people will pay to play it.
There is no excuse in what you are saying for the pathetic model of Pay to Achieve gaming.
Let me ask you this spanky.
Do you / have you played WoW for any extended period of time?
Then you've played a game with microtransactions.
Character transfers, account splits, name changes, faction changes, etc etc. are all simple, and automated procedures that Blizzard charges out of the ass for. They've made millions, yes millions, from these simple microtransactions that are completely VOLUNTARY and UNNECESSARY to playing the game. They also give players no innate advantage.
Get over yourself and your holier-than-thou attitude.
This is not a pay to achieve game. This is a pay to buy useless cosmetic shit you can get easily through gameplay anyway.
Did you read the original post? These MTs are clearly different with the line "3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game."
Hmm, here's another that can't tell between account services and ingame RMT item mall.
Doesn't matter what it is..micro transactions , account services..they're all the same. Its a transaction of a small amount of money in order for something to happen in game. It started with UO...and its pretty much not going away. I think someone can't tell between old style Asian Cash Shop mall game and games that have services available outside of the game. Games built around cash shops suck we can all agree to that...but there aren't any like that made in the US because who the hell would play 50 dollars for that. But games for years since UO have had some sort of transaction services tied too it and we've accepted it and we should just get over the terminology and stop crapping our pants because someone uses the word microtransactions instead of 'account management' or 'character changes'.
In UO you could pretty much buy a master archer or a master wizard adn be pure pwnage from day 1 that you log in. Hell the games' economy was so crappily inflated people spent money for gold so they could get started in UO. I think if that money had gone to UO it would probably helped the team out instead of causing the bloated gold farmer job market. Atleast with the character 'leveling' system it was a microtransaction with Origins and no one cried then so why are people boo hooing over some Costume peices and Character respecs (which can be earned in game too) that don't give stats I mean seriously?!
Doesn't matter what it is..micro transactions , account services..they're all the same. Its a transaction of a small amount of money in order for something to happen in game. It started with UO...and its pretty much not going away. I think someone can't tell between old style Asian Cash Shop mall game and games that have services available outside of the game. Games built around cash shops suck we can all agree to that...but there aren't any like that made in the US because who the hell would play 50 dollars for that. But games for years since UO have had some sort of transaction services tied too it and we've accepted it and we should just get over the terminology and stop crapping our pants because someone uses the word microtransactions instead of 'account management' or 'character changes'. In UO you could pretty much buy a master archer or a master wizard adn be pure pwnage from day 1 that you log in. Hell the games' economy was so crappily inflated people spent money for gold so they could get started in UO. I think if that money had gone to UO it would probably helped the team out instead of causing the bloated gold farmer job market. Atleast with the character 'leveling' system it was a microtransaction with Origins and no one cried then so why are people boo hooing over some Costume peices and Character respecs (which can be earned in game too) that don't give stats I mean seriously?!
I think it is rather pathetic that they need so much of our money. Monthly costs should be enough for a game, server transfers, expansions, items and so on shoud all be free within the game.
MMOs are overpriced. They charge me for every possible way and that is greedy. And F2P games are in many case better, at least they don't cost to get and have monthly fees.
What is the next thing they will charge us? A fee fore every alt? Optional stuff like housing that only people paying with cash gets?
It sucks, the only light in the darkness is upcoming Guildwars 2. If it becomes the next big game it would force the other companies to cut down on the stupid fees, I don't mind paying a rather huge monthly fee but then it should be the only thing I need to pay.
I do think you lot are taking a sky is falling attitude to these Micro Transactions. There is another possibility. Champions Online is a game in which indiviuality of look is important. Character concept is vital and you will want as many options as possible to allow you the ability to get the look just right.
Lets take wings as an example. Your Bioshock a insect based character so you want insect wings and you want choices you want to be able to look at buttefly, moth, dragonfly, fly wings etc. Sparrowman on the other hand wants to look at bird wings (eagle, sparrow, hummingbird etc). Then there is Irondude he wants robotic wings with gears and mechanical bits. All these options are wanted because sparrowman really desnt want dragonfly wings and Bioshock realy doesnt want metal wings. The soloution is to make em all but that takes time and time is money. Because as well as all these costume ideas we also want new content, new missions more villans etc.
The soloution is Micro transactions if enough revenue can be generated by it they can make more exotic and interesting custom bits available for you to purchase these bits are there to hel you enjoy the game more and allow you to fine tune your look. I suspect that when they implement the usual rewards for time in service (ie 6month 1 year 2 year etc) the rewards themselves will be in the form of points which you can spend.
Now lets look at what the team actually say ...
1) Microtransactions enable us to have a larger development team
2) Microtransactions are mostly aesthetic (costume pieces, pets, etc.)
3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game.
The first point I have already covered the MTs can ay for the people who are focused on maing them.
The second make sit clear that MOST of these items are purely cosmetic which matches what I said previously
Ahh I here you scream its the THIRD point we think is the game killer look at it peole can buy uber gear....
BUT look at it again firstly the word IF and secondly can be earned in game. My guess is this is there to allow people who really want those shoulder ads which give +5 energy regeneration but lets be honest non of the options of look matched their concept the abillity to get ones which look cool (to them).
NOWHERE DOES CRYTIC MENTION THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE ALLOWED OT BUY NEW POWER SETS OR MAJOR GAME EFFECTS ITS JUST ARTISTIC STUFF AND COSMETIC ITS THERE FOR THE LOOK !!!
So take a deep breath and repeat after me " The sky isnt falling everythings going to be OK".
Well the way i see it is..If the game does not do well with pay to play..It would not take long to switch to free to play..With all the free to play games out there,getting players is going to be a chore for these Pay to play games..They better hope like hell, if there game not better than WOW (Figure of Speech) then it ain't shit..
Some people rob you at gun point..Others will rob you at "Ball Point Pen"
NOWHERE DOES CRYTIC MENTION THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE ALLOWED OT BUY NEW POWER SETS OR MAJOR GAME EFFECTS ITS JUST ARTISTIC STUFF AND COSMETIC ITS THERE FOR THE LOOK !!! So take a deep breath and repeat after me " The sky isnt falling everythings going to be OK". Just my 2 cents Gadareth
They made a 3rd point to address non-cosmetic buyable items, so it's pretty clear that it WON'T be just cosmetic items that will be buyable.
If it was as you say, they surely would've made an official statement clarrifying that because there's a +400 page thread on the official site full of people saying they won't buy the game because of MTs for gear. No company would just let those people quit without once saying it's not true and it's only cosmetic items.
NOWHERE DOES CRYTIC MENTION THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE ALLOWED OT BUY NEW POWER SETS OR MAJOR GAME EFFECTS ITS JUST ARTISTIC STUFF AND COSMETIC ITS THERE FOR THE LOOK !!! So take a deep breath and repeat after me " The sky isnt falling everythings going to be OK". Just my 2 cents Gadareth
They made a 3rd point to address non-cosmetic buyable items, so it's pretty clear that it WON'T be just cosmetic items that will be buyable.
If it was as you say, they surely would've made an official statement clarrifying that because there's a +400 page thread on the official site full of people saying they won't buy the game because of MTs for gear. No company would just let those people quit without once saying it's not true and it's only cosmetic items.
As in all these discussions we have the extremists I read the third line as some items may have stats because the item they will be replacing has stats. of those 400 + a lot are screaming and a few are saying they wont buy. BUT before they will clarify it any further I suspect they are trying to find a way to word it so that people wont do what people are doing now and add extra meaning to the phrases.
Let me ask you this spanky. Do you / have you played WoW for any extended period of time? Then you've played a game with microtransactions. Character transfers, account splits, name changes, faction changes, etc etc. are all simple, and automated procedures that Blizzard charges out of the ass for. They've made millions, yes millions, from these simple microtransactions that are completely VOLUNTARY and UNNECESSARY to playing the game. They also give players no innate advantage. Get over yourself and your holier-than-thou attitude. This is not a pay to achieve game. This is a pay to buy useless cosmetic shit you can get easily through gameplay anyway.
Did you read the original post? These MTs are clearly different with the line "3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game."
Did you read the original post? Number 3 says *IF* a MT has any sort of game effect, it can also be earned in game. Not *WHEN*, but *IF*. That means it's not for certain. It also means that even if you can some day in the future buy an item that gives you a whole 10 extra damage, you can get the same thing by just playing the game. OHNOES mt are da debil!
i was at walgreens the other day and was standing in line waiting to pay for my advil. i was looking around noticed all of the stuff at the checkout line you could get while you had to wait. magazines, chapstick, candy, drinks etc... etc.... well im a sucker for reeces cups and i couldnt help myself so i picked up 2 packs and i had to get a rootbeer as well. i paid for my stuff and left the store thinking, that kind of reminds me of the item mall people keep pissing and moaning about for this game. did i really need those reeces cups and rootbeer? nope i didnt but they were there and available so i got them. think of the item mall as the checkout line, they have all this stuff there to buy while you wait but you really dont need to buy it.
What is the next thing they will charge us? A fee fore every alt? Optional stuff like housing that only people paying with cash gets?
The answer is: they will charge for everything they can which will increase their overall profits. If their research tells them that they will make more money from selling alt slots than they will lose from pissed-off customers quitting, then that is what they will do, because suits run the companies, not gamers.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Let me ask you this spanky. Do you / have you played WoW for any extended period of time? Then you've played a game with microtransactions. Character transfers, account splits, name changes, faction changes, etc etc. are all simple, and automated procedures that Blizzard charges out of the ass for. They've made millions, yes millions, from these simple microtransactions that are completely VOLUNTARY and UNNECESSARY to playing the game. They also give players no innate advantage. So, it's your stance that it's okay because Blizzard does it? They didn't do it when I started playing. If they had, I wouldn't have. Get over yourself and your holier-than-thou attitude. But, frankly, I AM holier than thou. This is not a pay to achieve game. This is a pay to buy useless cosmetic shit you can get easily through gameplay anyway.
Once again - we have no idea 'how easily you can get it through gameplay'. If it's so very easy, then no one will pay for it.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Itll be pretty easy to put most of this to bed once the NDA is removed. Im no longer worried about MT.
What makes you think Beta tells you what will be offered for sale 6 months from now?
People are worried about game changing purchases, yet are totally unaware of how stats work in CO and why uber sword of pwnage wont be available and why.
Fluff items that have an in game effect will be earnable in game as stated, People need to understand how you get fluff items in game and how they work.
Im not for the MT store and think its greedy, but people are worrying about it for the wrong reasons. Once the NDA drops, it will be possible to put those fears to rest.
People are worried about game changing purchases, yet are totally unaware of how stats work in CO and why uber sword of pwnage wont be available and why. Fluff items that have an in game effect will be earnable in game as stated, People need to understand how you get fluff items in game and how they work. Im not for the MT store and think its greedy, but people are worrying about it for the wrong reasons. Once the NDA drops, it will be possible to put those fears to rest.
If there was some tiny bit of information that would really put fears about MTs to rest, then Cryptic would have spat it out already.
People are worried about game changing purchases, yet are totally unaware of how stats work in CO and why uber sword of pwnage wont be available and why. Fluff items that have an in game effect will be earnable in game as stated, People need to understand how you get fluff items in game and how they work. Im not for the MT store and think its greedy, but people are worrying about it for the wrong reasons. Once the NDA drops, it will be possible to put those fears to rest.
If there was some tiny bit of information that would really put fears about MTs to rest, then Cryptic would have spat it out already.
And yet they haven't.....
Why? Free marketing supported by trollers all around the net. At the last minute they will release the info and ... taran... trollers posts will go to where they belong.... void... and lots people attention will be in the game.
Keep going trolls! *have a cookie*
For anyone really interested about the game... http://champions-online.com/ Register now and check the forum! Hurray
Why? Free marketing supported by trollers all around the net. At the last minute they will release the info and ... taran... trollers posts will go to where they belong.... void... and lots people attention will be in the game. Keep going trolls! *have a cookie* For anyone really interested about the game... http://champions-online.com/ Register now and check the forum! Hurray
That's positively absurd - and yet for Cryptic...
Let's look at their PR efforts so far.
They've tried the illegal, sending staff into CoH to recruit beta players...
They've tried censoring topics that make them uncomfortable on their own forums...
They've tried months of silence on aforementioned uncomfortable topic...
They've announced a last minute lifetime subscription - which in this market is an admission that pre-order sales are low...
But even so, I don't think their PR people are stupid enough to attempt what you've described, especially since your theory depends on the game being especially good - an assumption not supported by the NDA still being in place at this late stage.
Why? Free marketing supported by trollers all around the net. At the last minute they will release the info and ... taran... trollers posts will go to where they belong.... void... and lots people attention will be in the game. Keep going trolls! *have a cookie* For anyone really interested about the game... http://champions-online.com/ Register now and check the forum! Hurray
That's positively absurd - and yet for Cryptic...
Let's look at their PR efforts so far.
They've tried the illegal, sending staff into CoH to recruit beta players...
They've tried censoring topics that make them uncomfortable on their own forums...
They've tried months of silence on aforementioned uncomfortable topic...
They've announced a last minute lifetime subscription - which in this market is an admission that pre-order sales are low...
But even so, I don't think their PR people are stupid enough to attempt what you've described, especially since your theory depends on the game being especially good - an assumption not supported by the NDA still being in place at this late stage.
*have a cookie*
They are not doing anything, trolls are ;-) Did you notice how CO has being in the hotspot for the last 2 weeks... is hard not to see at least 1 post on the last 5 updates of this site. And for free lol.
Originally posted by kal08 *have a cookie* They are not doing anything, trolls are ;-) Did you notice how CO has being in the hotspot for the last 2 weeks... is hard not to see at least 1 post on the last 5 updates of this site. And for free lol. *another cookie*
Remember how much activity was on the Darkfall forums when it released?
Or how about the flurry of activity when SWG implemented the NGE?
That's the kind of "free publicity" that CO is currently enjoying....
While I understand alot of peoples resentment for item stores and other charges. Its basically nature of the beast in terms of char name changes and char trasnfer services. Those have been around awhile now and contrary to popular belief are not easy to do. Therefore charging a minimal fee discourages the lemming factor. Having people take advantage of the feature and abuse it. Also lets look at reality. Hardware keeps going up in price so does costs to run a MMO but have you noticed most MMO are still running price structures that are 5 to 10 yrs old. How do you think these companies can continue to offer these price points and stay operating. They can not unless they come up with other ways to offset the cost. I have a question for most not happy about item malls and other features in P2P games. Would you rather have these options in game where you do not have to bother with them or would you rather be forced to pay 20+ a month instead to play your game ?
I am seriously not defending the item stores. I hate them very much. But I have also not seen a item store yet in a P2P MMO that offers game altering items of the same quality as end game items. For that matter I have not even seen free to play games offer end game items outright. While I dispise stores I think alot of people have major misconceptions about them. They think people will walk in and walk out with full sets of powerful items and be gods of the game. In free to play games this tends to work at low levels but at max levels it takes a combination of hard work in the end game areas to get rare items and then you buy your items from the stores. In P2P at the very least they will follow this model I hope. But I saw this same issue come up in EQ2 when they put in the store.
After it launched and people begain to see exactly what the so called game altering items were alot of the unrest and anger went away besides the annoying login screen that everyone hates. I have a feeling Champions may follow the EQ2 route. Which is basically small game altering items but nothing that compairs to end game. Most items of value in the store are cosmetic related. With a game like this I would not be suprised if that is the model they follow at least we can hope. I do not think they will be that stupid as to put end game loot for sale in the store with no effort but to type in your credit info and click buy. That model would sink any P2P game. Most of the confirmed information about the store has shown it leaning towards the EQ2 model. Before people get out there pitch forks and torches and the linch mobs start maybe we should see exactly what they will list.
Well, I stayed clear off Everquest II because of the item mall introduced. I have no problem if P2P games charge more, as long as they keep the principles that make them P2P intact. Once they introduce the RMT item mall, the game design alters to accommodate the item mall, not the world design. The only reason these companies have not introduced top gear in the item mall, is because of how unpopular the whole system is. Once the system starts gaining some passive acceptance, believe me, you would be able to buy just about anything you can afford.
I agree there that is why basically we need to keep up the distaste towards it. EQ2 is not bad at all with there item mall its basically a big joke what is offered in it. Everything is basic crap accept the abilty to buy name changing tokens and server trasnfer tokens. If Champions mall ends up being similar to EQ2 then all this backlash really wont be as bad as its being made out to be. I am hoping this is the case. They had to state game altering items in EQ2 because you could buy temp items which charges and other things that raised stats. But like stated in other post the raise was a joke nothing ever was gained from these items that would be worth using in game accept as a novelty item. The stat raise would not even be enough to counter npcs that were considered trival in terms of damage.
I agree there that is why basically we need to keep up the distaste towards it. EQ2 is not bad at all with there item mall its basically a big joke what is offered in it. Everything is basic crap accept the abilty to buy name changing tokens and server trasnfer tokens. If Champions mall ends up being similar to EQ2 then all this backlash really wont be as bad as its being made out to be. I am hoping this is the case. They had to state game altering items in EQ2 because you could buy temp items which charges and other things that raised stats. But like stated in other post the raise was a joke nothing ever was gained from these items that would be worth using in game accept as a novelty item. The stat raise would not even be enough to counter npcs that were considered trival in terms of damage.
You left out EQ2's experience boost potions...
And as many have pointed out before, if all the concern about CO's MTs is unwarranted, Cryptic could simply have laid their MTs on the table to put said concerns to rest.
Comments
So..your telling me that more than $15.00 a month is excess? I'm sorry but MMO's have been around for about 10 years now, based on that, and an annual cost of llving rise about 4%, you would get about 22bucks a month sub cost if it keep the same trend.
Then raise the sub price. If your game is good enough people will pay to play it.
There is no excuse in what you are saying for the pathetic model of Pay to Achieve gaming.
Let me ask you this spanky.
Do you / have you played WoW for any extended period of time?
Then you've played a game with microtransactions.
Character transfers, account splits, name changes, faction changes, etc etc. are all simple, and automated procedures that Blizzard charges out of the ass for. They've made millions, yes millions, from these simple microtransactions that are completely VOLUNTARY and UNNECESSARY to playing the game. They also give players no innate advantage.
Get over yourself and your holier-than-thou attitude.
This is not a pay to achieve game. This is a pay to buy useless cosmetic shit you can get easily through gameplay anyway.
Did you read the original post? These MTs are clearly different with the line "3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game."
Doesn't matter what it is..micro transactions , account services..they're all the same. Its a transaction of a small amount of money in order for something to happen in game. It started with UO...and its pretty much not going away. I think someone can't tell between old style Asian Cash Shop mall game and games that have services available outside of the game. Games built around cash shops suck we can all agree to that...but there aren't any like that made in the US because who the hell would play 50 dollars for that. But games for years since UO have had some sort of transaction services tied too it and we've accepted it and we should just get over the terminology and stop crapping our pants because someone uses the word microtransactions instead of 'account management' or 'character changes'.
In UO you could pretty much buy a master archer or a master wizard adn be pure pwnage from day 1 that you log in. Hell the games' economy was so crappily inflated people spent money for gold so they could get started in UO. I think if that money had gone to UO it would probably helped the team out instead of causing the bloated gold farmer job market. Atleast with the character 'leveling' system it was a microtransaction with Origins and no one cried then so why are people boo hooing over some Costume peices and Character respecs (which can be earned in game too) that don't give stats I mean seriously?!
I think it is rather pathetic that they need so much of our money. Monthly costs should be enough for a game, server transfers, expansions, items and so on shoud all be free within the game.
MMOs are overpriced. They charge me for every possible way and that is greedy. And F2P games are in many case better, at least they don't cost to get and have monthly fees.
What is the next thing they will charge us? A fee fore every alt? Optional stuff like housing that only people paying with cash gets?
It sucks, the only light in the darkness is upcoming Guildwars 2. If it becomes the next big game it would force the other companies to cut down on the stupid fees, I don't mind paying a rather huge monthly fee but then it should be the only thing I need to pay.
I do think you lot are taking a sky is falling attitude to these Micro Transactions. There is another possibility. Champions Online is a game in which indiviuality of look is important. Character concept is vital and you will want as many options as possible to allow you the ability to get the look just right.
Lets take wings as an example. Your Bioshock a insect based character so you want insect wings and you want choices you want to be able to look at buttefly, moth, dragonfly, fly wings etc. Sparrowman on the other hand wants to look at bird wings (eagle, sparrow, hummingbird etc). Then there is Irondude he wants robotic wings with gears and mechanical bits. All these options are wanted because sparrowman really desnt want dragonfly wings and Bioshock realy doesnt want metal wings. The soloution is to make em all but that takes time and time is money. Because as well as all these costume ideas we also want new content, new missions more villans etc.
The soloution is Micro transactions if enough revenue can be generated by it they can make more exotic and interesting custom bits available for you to purchase these bits are there to hel you enjoy the game more and allow you to fine tune your look. I suspect that when they implement the usual rewards for time in service (ie 6month 1 year 2 year etc) the rewards themselves will be in the form of points which you can spend.
Now lets look at what the team actually say ...
1) Microtransactions enable us to have a larger development team
2) Microtransactions are mostly aesthetic (costume pieces, pets, etc.)
3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game.
The first point I have already covered the MTs can ay for the people who are focused on maing them.
The second make sit clear that MOST of these items are purely cosmetic which matches what I said previously
Ahh I here you scream its the THIRD point we think is the game killer look at it peole can buy uber gear....
BUT look at it again firstly the word IF and secondly can be earned in game. My guess is this is there to allow people who really want those shoulder ads which give +5 energy regeneration but lets be honest non of the options of look matched their concept the abillity to get ones which look cool (to them).
NOWHERE DOES CRYTIC MENTION THAT YOU ARE GOING TO BE ALLOWED OT BUY NEW POWER SETS OR MAJOR GAME EFFECTS ITS JUST ARTISTIC STUFF AND COSMETIC ITS THERE FOR THE LOOK !!!
So take a deep breath and repeat after me " The sky isnt falling everythings going to be OK".
Just my 2 cents
Gadareth
Well the way i see it is..If the game does not do well with pay to play..It would not take long to switch to free to play..With all the free to play games out there,getting players is going to be a chore for these Pay to play games..They better hope like hell, if there game not better than WOW (Figure of Speech) then it ain't shit..
Some people rob you at gun point..Others will rob you at "Ball Point Pen"
They made a 3rd point to address non-cosmetic buyable items, so it's pretty clear that it WON'T be just cosmetic items that will be buyable.
If it was as you say, they surely would've made an official statement clarrifying that because there's a +400 page thread on the official site full of people saying they won't buy the game because of MTs for gear. No company would just let those people quit without once saying it's not true and it's only cosmetic items.
They made a 3rd point to address non-cosmetic buyable items, so it's pretty clear that it WON'T be just cosmetic items that will be buyable.
If it was as you say, they surely would've made an official statement clarrifying that because there's a +400 page thread on the official site full of people saying they won't buy the game because of MTs for gear. No company would just let those people quit without once saying it's not true and it's only cosmetic items.
As in all these discussions we have the extremists I read the third line as some items may have stats because the item they will be replacing has stats. of those 400 + a lot are screaming and a few are saying they wont buy. BUT before they will clarify it any further I suspect they are trying to find a way to word it so that people wont do what people are doing now and add extra meaning to the phrases.
Just my 2 cents
Gadareth
Itll be pretty easy to put most of this to bed once the NDA is removed. Im no longer worried about MT.
Did you read the original post? These MTs are clearly different with the line "3) If a microtransaction does have any sort of in game effect, then it can be also be earned in game."
Did you read the original post? Number 3 says *IF* a MT has any sort of game effect, it can also be earned in game. Not *WHEN*, but *IF*. That means it's not for certain. It also means that even if you can some day in the future buy an item that gives you a whole 10 extra damage, you can get the same thing by just playing the game. OHNOES mt are da debil!
What makes you think Beta tells you what will be offered for sale 6 months from now?
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
i was at walgreens the other day and was standing in line waiting to pay for my advil. i was looking around noticed all of the stuff at the checkout line you could get while you had to wait. magazines, chapstick, candy, drinks etc... etc.... well im a sucker for reeces cups and i couldnt help myself so i picked up 2 packs and i had to get a rootbeer as well. i paid for my stuff and left the store thinking, that kind of reminds me of the item mall people keep pissing and moaning about for this game. did i really need those reeces cups and rootbeer? nope i didnt but they were there and available so i got them. think of the item mall as the checkout line, they have all this stuff there to buy while you wait but you really dont need to buy it.
The answer is: they will charge for everything they can which will increase their overall profits. If their research tells them that they will make more money from selling alt slots than they will lose from pissed-off customers quitting, then that is what they will do, because suits run the companies, not gamers.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Once again - we have no idea 'how easily you can get it through gameplay'. If it's so very easy, then no one will pay for it.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
What makes you think Beta tells you what will be offered for sale 6 months from now?
People are worried about game changing purchases, yet are totally unaware of how stats work in CO and why uber sword of pwnage wont be available and why.
Fluff items that have an in game effect will be earnable in game as stated, People need to understand how you get fluff items in game and how they work.
Im not for the MT store and think its greedy, but people are worrying about it for the wrong reasons. Once the NDA drops, it will be possible to put those fears to rest.
If there was some tiny bit of information that would really put fears about MTs to rest, then Cryptic would have spat it out already.
And yet they haven't.....
If there was some tiny bit of information that would really put fears about MTs to rest, then Cryptic would have spat it out already.
And yet they haven't.....
Why? Free marketing supported by trollers all around the net. At the last minute they will release the info and ... taran... trollers posts will go to where they belong.... void... and lots people attention will be in the game.
Keep going trolls! *have a cookie*
For anyone really interested about the game... http://champions-online.com/ Register now and check the forum! Hurray
That's positively absurd - and yet for Cryptic...
Let's look at their PR efforts so far.
They've tried the illegal, sending staff into CoH to recruit beta players...
They've tried censoring topics that make them uncomfortable on their own forums...
They've tried months of silence on aforementioned uncomfortable topic...
They've announced a last minute lifetime subscription - which in this market is an admission that pre-order sales are low...
But even so, I don't think their PR people are stupid enough to attempt what you've described, especially since your theory depends on the game being especially good - an assumption not supported by the NDA still being in place at this late stage.
That's positively absurd - and yet for Cryptic...
Let's look at their PR efforts so far.
They've tried the illegal, sending staff into CoH to recruit beta players...
They've tried censoring topics that make them uncomfortable on their own forums...
They've tried months of silence on aforementioned uncomfortable topic...
They've announced a last minute lifetime subscription - which in this market is an admission that pre-order sales are low...
But even so, I don't think their PR people are stupid enough to attempt what you've described, especially since your theory depends on the game being especially good - an assumption not supported by the NDA still being in place at this late stage.
*have a cookie*
They are not doing anything, trolls are ;-) Did you notice how CO has being in the hotspot for the last 2 weeks... is hard not to see at least 1 post on the last 5 updates of this site. And for free lol.
*another cookie*
It's getting released in a few weeks, what did you expect? Final Fantasy is getting plenty of threads and it's nowhere near release.
Remember how much activity was on the Darkfall forums when it released?
Or how about the flurry of activity when SWG implemented the NGE?
That's the kind of "free publicity" that CO is currently enjoying....
While I understand alot of peoples resentment for item stores and other charges. Its basically nature of the beast in terms of char name changes and char trasnfer services. Those have been around awhile now and contrary to popular belief are not easy to do. Therefore charging a minimal fee discourages the lemming factor. Having people take advantage of the feature and abuse it. Also lets look at reality. Hardware keeps going up in price so does costs to run a MMO but have you noticed most MMO are still running price structures that are 5 to 10 yrs old. How do you think these companies can continue to offer these price points and stay operating. They can not unless they come up with other ways to offset the cost. I have a question for most not happy about item malls and other features in P2P games. Would you rather have these options in game where you do not have to bother with them or would you rather be forced to pay 20+ a month instead to play your game ?
I am seriously not defending the item stores. I hate them very much. But I have also not seen a item store yet in a P2P MMO that offers game altering items of the same quality as end game items. For that matter I have not even seen free to play games offer end game items outright. While I dispise stores I think alot of people have major misconceptions about them. They think people will walk in and walk out with full sets of powerful items and be gods of the game. In free to play games this tends to work at low levels but at max levels it takes a combination of hard work in the end game areas to get rare items and then you buy your items from the stores. In P2P at the very least they will follow this model I hope. But I saw this same issue come up in EQ2 when they put in the store.
After it launched and people begain to see exactly what the so called game altering items were alot of the unrest and anger went away besides the annoying login screen that everyone hates. I have a feeling Champions may follow the EQ2 route. Which is basically small game altering items but nothing that compairs to end game. Most items of value in the store are cosmetic related. With a game like this I would not be suprised if that is the model they follow at least we can hope. I do not think they will be that stupid as to put end game loot for sale in the store with no effort but to type in your credit info and click buy. That model would sink any P2P game. Most of the confirmed information about the store has shown it leaning towards the EQ2 model. Before people get out there pitch forks and torches and the linch mobs start maybe we should see exactly what they will list.
Well, I stayed clear off Everquest II because of the item mall introduced. I have no problem if P2P games charge more, as long as they keep the principles that make them P2P intact. Once they introduce the RMT item mall, the game design alters to accommodate the item mall, not the world design. The only reason these companies have not introduced top gear in the item mall, is because of how unpopular the whole system is. Once the system starts gaining some passive acceptance, believe me, you would be able to buy just about anything you can afford.
I agree there that is why basically we need to keep up the distaste towards it. EQ2 is not bad at all with there item mall its basically a big joke what is offered in it. Everything is basic crap accept the abilty to buy name changing tokens and server trasnfer tokens. If Champions mall ends up being similar to EQ2 then all this backlash really wont be as bad as its being made out to be. I am hoping this is the case. They had to state game altering items in EQ2 because you could buy temp items which charges and other things that raised stats. But like stated in other post the raise was a joke nothing ever was gained from these items that would be worth using in game accept as a novelty item. The stat raise would not even be enough to counter npcs that were considered trival in terms of damage.
You left out EQ2's experience boost potions...
And as many have pointed out before, if all the concern about CO's MTs is unwarranted, Cryptic could simply have laid their MTs on the table to put said concerns to rest.
They haven't...