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Demystifying Micro-Transactions in Champions Online
ThomasN7
87.18.7.148Member CommonPosts: 6,690
Ten Ton Hammer: There’s been a lot of speculation about what the Cryptic Store will offer which seems to be sparking quite a bit of controversy recently. Do you think the concept of micro-transactions is something that the western market simply hasn’t completely warmed up to yet?
Bill Roper: Actually I think it really has. I think a great example of that is Rock Band. That game is based wholly on micro-transactions and has a really high cost of entry, you know? With Rock Band you’re not just buying the game, you’re buying all of the peripherals and equipment, so you’re plopping down 150 to 200 bucks on the game, and then people really get into the fact that they can go and download constant content for the game. It’s become so popular that they’re moving into user-generated content now.
So I don’t think it’s something that is beyond the western market. Arguably iTunes does that, besides the fact that people will go online and buy stuff from Amazon. It’s all the fact that they’re OK with saying, “I want to get stuff when I want to get it.” Certainly the idea of micro-transactions has been around a lot longer than that too, where people have paid, for example, even memberships into clubs that would let them get things at a reduced rate. People just have an idea that they’re going to pay for what they want to get.
For us micro-transactions definitely are not the thrust of the business. I’ve seen a lot of people where… everybody in their head when they hear a term they don’t like automatically overlays the absolute worst case scenario on top of it, right? So I think that was something that we really tried to get across to people - and will continue to do so - that the game is not “based” on micro-transactions.
The idea is wanting to be able to have things there that players can get if they want to, but they don’t negatively impact the balance of the game. It’s not like we’re expecting players to go and purchase things through micro-transactions that then give them some huge leg up. All those things I think people get worried about, but really the focus is on having things that are fun, cosmetic or are things that are more account-wide and maintenance based.
World of Warcraft has micro-transactions and people don’t even think about it. Their micro-transactions are fairly steep at times - like $25 to move your character to another realm – and that’s account-wide micro-transactions. WoW also, if you think about it, does micro-transactions through their card games as well, right? It’s an interesting cross-over where it’s a physical product and you’re buying this other game, but that game has cards that can give you effects in-game. And people have gone out and spent a ton of money on that. Granted, they do get a secondary game out of it, but they’re also paying a pretty steep price for that. So they are paying for another game but they kind of have the perks of having in-game items.
Ten Ton Hammer: And SOE has something very similar with the Legends of Norrath game, only in that case even the card game is based on virtual items.
Bill Roper: Right. So for us, the things we’re looking at with micro-transactions are more along the lines of being fun for players to have that aren’t going to be doing anything to disrupt or upset the balance of the game, or give someone who decides to use micro-transactions any kind of leg up on anybody else.
Ten Ton Hammer: It seems like a main concern centers on the notion that MTs can potentially negate the efforts of tackling high-end content, or that you might be removing certain ‘carrots’ in the game.
Bill Roper: Absolutely not. The thing is there will be a lot of things we’ll never micro-transact. And one of the things we put out there – less because it’s planned, and more because it’s making sure people understood it – was the fact that if we were to ever put anything out that did have a game effect, there would be a way to earn it. I think that’s really important.
If there was some item that had an effect in-game that would give you - I’m going to make something up, so this is not an item in-game or anything – so something that gave you maybe an increased energy regeneration rate or something along those lines, there would be a way for you to get that in the game. I think that the biggest thing though, with the items that people are going to get though micro-transactions there will be some things where maybe that will be the only way you can get them yet none of them are things where you might say, “man, I can’t believe I didn’t get that” whereas there’s tons and tons and tons and tons more things that you can only get by playing the game.
So again, micro-transactions aren’t the focus, a lot of things are simply going to be, I guess you’d say, ‘vanity’ items. But we want to have things like that in the game that players do push for and want to get.
The way I look at it, from a player’s standpoint, there are certain things I’ve wanted in MMOs where I’m like, “man, I really should get that item.” I know that if I was part of a big giant guild and we did raids over and over again, and I got on the list that maybe I’m going to get that item. And it’s not even because that item has a gameplay effect; it’s that cool mount, or that cool pet that is a super rare drop or that kind of thing. I don’t have that kind of gaming time, and I’m not part of a big giant guild so it would be tougher to get some of those kinds of things too. But if I had the opportunity to get something that was similar or something that I felt was equally cool, so not even necessarily the exact same thing, I might say, “Oh cool, I’m going to buy this cool pet for myself.” I don’t think that negates from the enjoyment of my game, or the enjoyment other people have with their game because they’re going to be getting stuff that’s equally as cool if not cooler by playing, but they didn’t have to spend any money on it.
To read page 2 just click on the link below!
Source: www.tentonhammer.com/node/71536
Comments
Typical Bill Roper on this topic - dancing the dance of a million maybes, mights and I don't knows.
It boils down to two pages of bland assurances and "love me, love my MTs".
He is right though, many Americans do microtransactions everyday but yet they will complain about companies selling items you do not even need to buy from a cash shop. Amazing how that works.
It's hilarious how he tries to spin Blizzard's account out of game service with his ingame RMT shop.
Or itunes ... /facepalm
Maybe if itunes were giving the music via subscription and the lyrics via RMT, then he'd have a foothold for comparison.
He is right though, many Americans do microtransactions everyday but yet they will complain about companies selling items you do not even need to buy from a cash shop. Amazing how that works.
Clearly you drink the cryptic koolaid.
His examples are flawed. WoW has no RMT. YOu can not buy items for ingame use. YOu MAY win one thru chance in playing the card game. But those items are pure cosmetic and there is no item mall to puchase said cards or cosmetic items.
Guitar hero/Rockband isnt a mmo.
THe problem is that there are idiots who are willing to spend money to get a leg up on others who cant aford to, or unwilling to spend the money. They clealy have stated they will offer in game items that are not just cosmetic. That will do more harm to game sales than anything else.
Roses are red
Violets are blue
The reviewer has a mishapen head
Which means his opinion is skewed
...Aldous.MF'n.Huxley
My guess is that DC Online and others are waiting to see how the CO RMT+subscription model will be received, so they can act accordingly.
Hahaha.. Bill Roper.. How the heck did he ever get another job?
So many fail comparisons. The MT in WoW features no item shop. And because you get some vanity pet out from a random chance when you purchase their TCG or attend to an event it does not get even close to an item shop, you're not even directly purchasing the items. And there are no vanity costumes, only pets.
I dont really trust people dancing around subjects or filling blanks with pointing fingers to other companies trying to draw bridges. And neither fancy words to smooth the edges leaving people clueless on what is really happening.
If it was just cosmic items as only for show and looks I would accept it. But on the other hand if it was something that gave you a boost in game that you can buy when ever you want I dont accept it. And if only the interviews where like that people would have it easier to catch the bottonline. Then again if someone would wanna hide something the best way to do that is to use fancy words with a nice cherry ontop going around the subject and pointing fingers to justify what can easily be said with 10 sentences insted of 2 pages of poetry.
-There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.
It's a company, it's out to pump money out of us anyway it can, it's just a bit much when Roper is waving a flag about how he's going to pump it out of as many holes as he can at once. I'm not going to justify his choices by agreeing it's ok because someone else did it (just in no way, shape, or form the way we are), if we were ready to pay a monthly fee to have the ability to buy the cool stuff in a game no one would say a word about this. There would be silence on this front people would just be gabbing about how they hope they let you buy a cape because it's not including in the basic $50+$15 a month game.
If there is a negative reaction to something it must be because we do not like it, and as consumers we have every right to tell them to cram it up their ass sideways. It's something we should be doing a lot more often here in the good 'ol USA. They survive by our whims, corps do not subjugate us to their whims. I mean, yet. Well except insurance companies and then there is...come to think, maybe they do. MUST BUY MTS IT IS ONLY FAIR TO MR. ROPER. MUST BUY PURCHASE BUY PURCHASE!
Edited for an it. But since I'm here again I'd like to point out I hope they fail, and fail hard at trying to set this new industry standard. It's a step back for the consumer and I fear enough people with be apathetic that it may succeed.
I came across this a few weeks ago while snooping around trying to find info on the microtransactions. What a world....
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=214608
What brought you to working on Champions Online?
Roper: After we closed Flagship studios - the company I had for five years - I was looking for whatever my next opportunity was going to be in the gaming industry. I actually just wanted to get into the beta for Champions Online. And through a mutual friend of mine, I ended up having an email with one of the designers and he emailed me saying he wasn't sure he could get me into the beta because it was closed to industry. I said that I was technically not in the industry right now - because I was between positions. He was like: "Really? Maybe you should talk to my boss." So I came in and met the CEO and directors, and they said they'd love me to come and work on the team. So when I was given the opportunity to choose which product I wanted to jump onto, I chose Champions - I played Champions as a kid so I was familiar with all the concept and ideas.
"Between positions" is Vulgar Latin for, "just finished destroying a company and locking it's corpse into litigation."
World of Warcraft has micro-transactions and people don’t even think about it. Their micro-transactions are fairly steep at times - like $25 to move your character to another realm – and that’s account-wide micro-transactions. WoW also, if you think about it, does micro-transactions through their card games as well, right? It’s an interesting cross-over where it’s a physical product and you’re buying this other game, but that game has cards that can give you effects in-game. And people have gone out and spent a ton of money on that. Granted, they do get a secondary game out of it, but they’re also paying a pretty steep price for that. So they are paying for another game but they kind of have the perks of having in-game items.
What a strange example. $25 to move your character to another realm is reasonable, because youve chosen to move your character. It has no effect on the game bar you getting onto a new realm. Not everyone uses the service, and there is no real need to unless youre desperate to move for whatever reason. They even offer free transfers off low pop realms or overcrowded ones. It has absolutely nothing in common with buying in game items to make your character stronger.
The card game, again its completely optional and is not needed to enjoy the game. People buy the cards because they want to play the card game, not neccessarily because theyre desperate for cosmetic items, which themselves arent game changing anyway.
What the hell is he bringing up itunes and amazon for??! Is he that desperate to justify Cryptics decision to grab as much $$$ as they can by comparing an MMO to Rockband? With Rockband you know what youre getting into straight away, and once you buy the peripherals theyre yours - you dont pay rent on the Guitar or the game discs each month, your experience cannot be lessened because some other guy down the street downloads more songs than you, you own all of your own high scores and Activision cant suddenly remove your Guitar from your house for no reason.
Whats he going to use as comparison next - grocery shopping? "people eat the food and drink the milk, and theyre back the next week buying more. We see this as a similar experience to our in game cash shop whch we're putting in on top of a normal subscription fee".
How the man has a job at all after the complete meltdown of FSS, Hellgate and Mythos I dont know.
The problem is simple here - RMT & Monthly subs are 2 types of subscriptions period, thus they basicly want you to pay 2 subs, which is great for them not so good for us (maybe if they reduced the monthly sub to maybe $6/7 a month with a Item shop, then maybe it could work).
Imho - ffs just charge 1 type of payment method and stop being greedy and finding more ways to drain our resources from our hobbys.
The fact is the in-game item was like a prize. It was to generate interest in another game (and fleece us a bit more I'll admit), not to find a steady flow of income from turtle mounts. We see it, he see's it, it's called "clutching for straws." And to be clear I do not object to them charging for moving toons or name changes. I think it's greedy, but I do not object. This is a whole different beast it will not only effect game play it will effect every bit of additional content there-after.
This is just stupid and greedy... he is trying to justify having a monthly sub + microtransactions though comparing it to itunes???
Will not be playing this game no matter what now.
If WoW = The Beatles
and WAR = Led Zeppelin
Then LotrO = Pink Floyd
Greedy people, greedy company.
Box sales and monthly sub should be enought for you.
box sales: 40 $ x 200k players = 8 million dollars on release.
monthly sub: 15 $ x 200k players = 3 million dollars per month
And its not enought?
Come on!
Money comes from creativity not from schemes!
That's the strange thing - I think the game had the potential to be quite popular minus this payment model.
They've not only handicapped CO with these MTs, but they're fast earning themselves a reputation for being.... I dunno shifty? They won't give straight answers to simple questions about their product - but they want people to buy it.
It beggars belief.
Ok so you go to a sports event, lets say baseball. You want that cool looking foam hand with your teams logo on it. Do you have to buy it to enjoy the game, no. Will it make the team play better, no. It s the same damn thing you DON T HAVE TO BUY IT, TO ENJOY IT, period. Stop trying to bash it for something it isn t. If and only if I buy the game and something thats MT, is so hard to get in game then I make get upset, but I m willing to bet that isn t going to happen. What people need to realize we all do some sort of MT daily and don t even realize it. It s so a non issue, I have no idea why people worry about it.
Just as an FYI, Bill Roper said in this interview that some items will only be available via MTs.
Just as an FYI, Bill Roper said in this interview that some items will only be available via MTs.
Yep, but nothing that will effect our gameplay. Thats why I could care less.
Here's what I don't understand.
When a PR mouthpiece like Roper starts shoveling comparisons that don't add up, why doesn't the interviewer call them on it and say, no, Bill you can't really compare iTunes to Champions Online because of a, b, and c.
Instead, we get an article that's a fluff piece and nothing more than an opportunity from Cryptic to get its message out to potential consumers.
I can't stand it when these game sites allow the subject of the interview to direct the interview. Grow some balls.
This isn't journalism, its free advertising.
interviews for products of any kind are always like this, has nothing to do with cryptic, nothing to do with mmorpgs, nothing to do with games. the critical voices only shimmer through in previews and reviews, there is no such thing as a critical interview of products.
It's completely true - because everyone who visits the site to read the interview is a statistic for the people who advertise on the TTH site. More interviews = more visitors to the site = more money for TTH. So they're going to be journalistically lite so game developers give them more interviews.
I think most of us are smart enough to know this and treat those "interviews" as precisely what they are.
Still, it would be nice if there was some site that took themselves at least a little bit seriously.