Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
Surprisingly, it seems a great deal of the playerbase is aware of what Blizzard is trying to do, and are quitting accordingly. I absolutely fucking hate Kotick. He is both a terrible man and an idiot of a CEO. He treats consumers like shit, and his investors are getting out of there before it all collapses on him.
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
Then we are in agreement. "Best" does not equal "Most right now". Which is what I said. And what I feel this particular move is. You are correct, nobody is being forced to purchase them. Nor are they forced to pay a subscription. And some, self included, are choosing to stop for it. Regardless of if you think it is "hysteria" or "raving" or "trivial" or "pathetic."
It's a choice. I don't begrudge the company for doing it. I don't begrudge people for deciding it doesn't matter to them. However, I do show them respect for their decision even if I do disagree and feel that some people are close minded and short sighted.
The columnist completely missed the point of why people are complaining.
WoW is a f'ing CASH COW for Blizzard. The amount of money it makes for Blizzard/Activision is STAGGERING. So what does Blizzard do? The offer vanity pets for...$10. TEN DOLLARS.
Let's just be honest here. Can we just drop the ruse and rename the game World of Greedcraft? This has nothing to do with the controversy of microtransaction, blah, blah, blah...it has everything to do with a VERY RICH game company crossing the greed line.
You can peek into the future knowing perfectly well Blizz is going to charge people for ... what? XP enhancers? Come on, be specific, what is it? If you are making a forcast, be specific. Or you are just blowing smoke.
Doomsday theory all around, we will lose Califonia to earthquake and Texas to hurricanes b/c some game is charging $10 for a pet. Greenbacks will lose 50% of its exchange value and the american budget will gain another $500 billion deficit b/c Blizz changes their charging scheme. Oh yeah, Blizz also will sell you tokens to kill a boss that is hard to kill, that will translate to the Republicans winning all state governor's seats.
None of you works for Blizz. No one knows what Blizz has in plan. So far its just 2 pets, and half of the earnings from one pets goes to charity. Everything else you whinners QQ about are just your own fairy tales.
Trying to make an unspecified pretentious projection and saying that Blizz will somehow sometime in the future offers more sales thru the cash shop is not a prediction. If Blizz does not do it in 2010, you can predict it to happen in 2011 or LATER. You will never be wrong. If Blizz sells anything else, anything you never foresee, you can pretend to claim you knows Blizz is coming. I predict that one of you, and everyone of you, is a bisexual. If you are not yet now, you will be, sometime. If you are not yet, when you died, you surely will be a bisexual ghost. Prove me wrong.
My dear lord.... World of Warcraft is the intellectual property of Blizzard entertainment. You subscribe, and they grant you access to the game content. It is perfectly reasonable for Blizzard insert some worthless fluff for the handful of people who want something that marks them out as "leet" or whatever, and charge them actual money for it. If you don't want it, don't buy it. Your game experience will be exactly the same
And if they charged for every piece of new gear and content coming out from now on my game experience would still be exactly the same. That's not the point. The point is there was an unspoken "understanding" between Blizzard and a portion of the community and they chose to break it. Which is completely within their rights. As it is within people's rights to not like it and communicate such.
"Unspoken understanding"...<rolls eyes> In other words, some people have deluded themselves in to adopting a certain perspective, and then get hysterical when others don't abide by their delusion? This is a totally trivial issue. Anyone who doesn't want one of those *vanity* pets is under no obligation to purchase one.
The columnist completely missed the point of why people are complaining. WoW is a f'ing CASH COW for Blizzard. The amount of money it makes for Blizzard/Activision is STAGGERING. So what does Blizzard do? The offer vanity pets for...$10. TEN DOLLARS. Let's just be honest here. Can we just drop the ruse and rename the game World of Greedcraft? This has nothing to do with the controversy of microtransaction, blah, blah, blah...it has everything to do with a VERY RICH game company crossing the greed line.
Define(in non subjective terms) this "greed" you speak of. No doubt its one or the other of; "Someone has more than me!" or "someone has more than I believe they should!".
The columnist completely missed the point of why people are complaining. WoW is a f'ing CASH COW for Blizzard. The amount of money it makes for Blizzard/Activision is STAGGERING. So what does Blizzard do? The offer vanity pets for...$10. TEN DOLLARS. Let's just be honest here. Can we just drop the ruse and rename the game World of Greedcraft? This has nothing to do with the controversy of microtransaction, blah, blah, blah...it has everything to do with a VERY RICH game company crossing the greed line.
Lets be honest here, you are not in a position to judge who is making more money than he is worth. Maybe you are earning more than you are worth. Maybe.
The columnist already addressed the point you are pretending to sell on moral ground. Every business is in for money. Unless the customers are stupid, Blizz is successful in making money b/c they keep customers happy, a lot of them. Instead of feeling jealous and calling them greedy, why not appreciate the effort and length Blizz went to meet client needs.
If you think that greed is an issue, which I also feel is an issue of concern, you should be reconsidering the current basis of market capitalism. Poking a player who plays along the current mechanism is unfair. Stop trying to sell the theory that Blizz open the way to greed. Greed is already everywhere in market capitalism.
My dear lord.... World of Warcraft is the intellectual property of Blizzard entertainment. You subscribe, and they grant you access to the game content. It is perfectly reasonable for Blizzard insert some worthless fluff for the handful of people who want something that marks them out as "leet" or whatever, and charge them actual money for it. If you don't want it, don't buy it. Your game experience will be exactly the same
And if they charged for every piece of new gear and content coming out from now on my game experience would still be exactly the same. That's not the point. The point is there was an unspoken "understanding" between Blizzard and a portion of the community and they chose to break it. Which is completely within their rights. As it is within people's rights to not like it and communicate such.
"Unspoken understanding"...<rolls eyes> In other words, some people have deluded themselves in to adopting a certain perspective, and then get hysterical when others don't abide by their delusion? This is a totally trivial issue. Anyone who doesn't want one of those *vanity* pets is under no obligation to purchase one.
TacBoy has his own understanding that he forgot to speak to Blizz or someone on that side, unspoken understanding indeed. Now Blizz is responsible for honoring every unilateral unspoken dreams from every gamer or would be gamer or their dog. Poor Blizz, they need a quite some years to clear the backlogs of every dreamer and their dreams, and a vet to read dreams of dogs.
I have an unspoken understanding that everyone who read my post on MMORPG should pay for my words, $1 per letter. Please donate the money to "Feed the troll funds". Thank you.
TacBoy does fully recognise that Blizz has the full rights to levy charges. He feel that is something of concern and air it here. Fully within his rights. So its all fair.
Originally posted by maimeekrai If you haven't noticed, the cost of living is constantly going up. Things are more expensive to produce these days, including software. Wrong. So, instead of jacking up the monthly sub fee and raising box prices, Blizzard is getting creative and adding new optional items you can buy and services you can use, to help game development. I guess you'd rather pay more per month?
Yes, and that's the fair and honest way to raise extra income. IF they needed it, which they clearly don't.
From the looks of this recent article (dated today), no they definetly don't need it, lol.
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
The same can be said of those who use emotional appeal in the spirit of greed.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Your entire rant is ridiculous. If paying 10 bucks for a pet does not enhance your in game experience, than Blizzard would not be trying it and people would not be buying it. It doesn't matter if it's fluff or not. If you can't get it by paying your monthly fee and playing the game it shouldn't be there in the first place.
Our spirit was here long before you
Long before us
And long will it be after your pride brings you to your end
Originally posted by maimeekrai If you haven't noticed, the cost of living is constantly going up. Things are more expensive to produce these days, including software. Wrong. So, instead of jacking up the monthly sub fee and raising box prices, Blizzard is getting creative and adding new optional items you can buy and services you can use, to help game development. I guess you'd rather pay more per month?
Yes, and that's the fair and honest way to raise extra income. IF they needed it, which they clearly don't.
From the looks of this recent article (dated today), no they definetly don't need it, lol.
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
The same can be said of those who use emotional appeal in the spirit of greed.
Emotional appeals are used to manipulate the thoughtless. Clearly defined terms are necessary to clear communication. But thats the last thing that some wish to see happen.
Trying to make an unspecified pretentious projection and saying that Blizz will somehow sometime in the future offers more sales thru the cash shop is not a prediction. If Blizz does not do it in 2010, you can predict it to happen in 2011 or LATER. You will never be wrong. If Blizz sells anything else, anything you never foresee, you can pretend to claim you knows Blizz is coming. I predict that one of you, and everyone of you, is a bisexual. If you are not yet now, you will be, sometime. If you are not yet, when you died, you surely will be a bisexual ghost. Prove me wrong.
I disagree with the general point of your post, and I don't believe in ghosts, but DAMN that was funny.
LOL and well done.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Your entire rant is ridiculous. If paying 10 bucks for a pet does not enhance your in game experience, than Blizzard would not be trying it and people would not be buying it. It doesn't matter if it's fluff or not. If you can't get it by paying your monthly fee and playing the game it shouldn't be there in the first place.
So you are saying you would feel left out when you play WOW and don't have / can't afford one of those pets? Would the game experience be any less to you?
Gimme a break ...
My guess is most people would be much more satisfied about getting a rare, hard to get dropped pet than having one of these pets-for-cash.
Your entire rant is ridiculous. If paying 10 bucks for a pet does not enhance your in game experience, than Blizzard would not be trying it and people would not be buying it. It doesn't matter if it's fluff or not. If you can't get it by paying your monthly fee and playing the game it shouldn't be there in the first place.
Quoted for truthiness.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
No shit Sherlock. Yes Corporations have a responsibility to make profits. That's usually done by making a good game. Since WoW has long neglected that basic side of the equation we now see this. First vanity pets, second epic gear. It's all good in the name of the almighty corporation making an honest buck. Until you realize that you have a playerbase based on a subscription based principal. Not a Sub + RMT. So it's all fine and dandy now. Go buy your pets to your hearts content all while paying your monthly sub fee. Just know that me and a lot of others in this thread know it will not stop there. So you maybe win the argument at this very moment, but mark my words, you and every supporter in this thread is going to be named in the future when the real change goes live. It will be a hallow victory though since the genre, as we know it, will be lost.
Originally posted by Ruyn No shit Sherlock. Yes Corporations have a responsibility to make profits. That's usually done by making a good game. Since WoW has long neglected that basic side of the equation we now see this. First vanity pets, second epic gear. It's all good in the name of the almighty corporation making an honest buck. Until you realize that you have a playerbase based on a subscription based principal. Not a Sub + RMT. So it's all fine and dandy now. Go buy your pets to your hearts content all while paying your monthly sub fee. Just know that me and a lot of others in this thread know it will not stop there. So you maybe win the argument at this very moment, but mark my words, you and every supporter in this thread is going to be named in the future when the real change goes live. It will be a hallow victory though since the genre, as we know it, will be lost.
When the other shoe drops, and we say "I TOLD YOU SO", they will have their fingers in their ears singing "LALALALA".
But, we will know we were right, and so will they.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Your entire rant is ridiculous. If paying 10 bucks for a pet does not enhance your in game experience, than Blizzard would not be trying it and people would not be buying it. It doesn't matter if it's fluff or not. If you can't get it by paying your monthly fee and playing the game it shouldn't be there in the first place.
Quoted for truthiness.
Lol, or you can realize that it is Blizzard who is determining the business model, not you. So you can say "It shouldn't be there" all you want. That's just your opinion. I'd like to point out that there's all those expansions you don't get paying the monthly fee either. I guess those shouldn't exist either.
These companies do not need millions of subscription fees ON TOP of retail priced games,remember most the mainstream games aren't giving their software away for free (initial release) OR the price of one month's "rent", to maintain their servers. What are we paying for if not improvements and minor updates like this? This pay a full priced retail package + monthly subscription fee + expansion packs + microtrans and for some cases a premium for customer serivce is getting way out of hand. It's greed. There is a different between looking at the bottom line and going out of your way to see what you can get away with until someone says enough. Well I am saying it, enough. I don't pay microtrans on subscription fee based games. Period.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
Save all your anger for when (or if) something truly game-breaking occurs.
The outrage that a simple exclusive item (with semi-good intentions) is creating is absurd. All the rage seems to come from what everyone fears this 1 "cashshop" item might turn into, but surprize it hasn't happened yet and likely never will. So instead of quitting the game and ranting about what this action may lead to, wait and save your breath for when it actually happens!
The WoW community never ceases to amaze me.. boycotting something that doesn't exist is truly amazing.
Originally posted by Uronksur Lol, or you can realize that it is Blizzard who is determining the business model, not you. So you can say "It shouldn't be there" all you want. That's just your opinion. Nope. They're not getting my money anymore. They are losing. I don't just mean for WoW, either.
I'd like to point out that there's all those expansions you don't get paying the monthly fee either. I guess those shouldn't exist either.
You can start waving bye-bye to free content patches. They will be scaled back and you will see content offered for sale in some way. Keys to new dungeons, for example.
I'm sure they will be sly about it - like the charity PR move.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Save all your anger for when (or if) something truly game-breaking occurs. The outrage that a simple exclusive item (with semi-good intentions) is creating is absurd. All the rage seems to come from what everyone fears this 1 "cashshop" item might turn into, but surprize it hasn't happened yet and likely never will. So instead of quitting the game and ranting about what this action may lead to, wait and save your breath for when it actually happens! The WoW community never ceases to amaze me.. boycotting something that doesn't exist is truly amazing.
I'm going to be polite and simply ask why - since we have seen this slippery slope effect in other games - you think it won't happen in WoW?
As for me personally, the charging extra for content that should have been included in the subscription fee (meaning everyone playing has a fair chance at it) is enough to show that Blizzard has no respect for their customers. I don't do business with people who treat me with contempt.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Originally posted by Uronksur Lol, or you can realize that it is Blizzard who is determining the business model, not you. So you can say "It shouldn't be there" all you want. That's just your opinion. Nope. They're not getting my money anymore. They are losing. I don't just mean for WoW, either.
I'd like to point out that there's all those expansions you don't get paying the monthly fee either. I guess those shouldn't exist either.
You can start waving bye-bye to free content patches. They will be scaled back and you will see content offered for sale in some way. Keys to new dungeons, for example.
I'm sure they will be sly about it - like the charity PR move.
Wow! How long have you been able to see the future?! Thats really amazing man! Can you tell me what I'm going to have for lunch tommorow! Or can you help me win the lottery or somthing??!?!!?!?!? I mean, since you obviously know what Blizzard's going to do you can help me with the easy task of picking winning lottery numbers right!!!
Comments
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
Surprisingly, it seems a great deal of the playerbase is aware of what Blizzard is trying to do, and are quitting accordingly. I absolutely fucking hate Kotick. He is both a terrible man and an idiot of a CEO. He treats consumers like shit, and his investors are getting out of there before it all collapses on him.
http://www.havenandhearth.com
The Best New Sandbox Game Out There.
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
Then we are in agreement. "Best" does not equal "Most right now". Which is what I said. And what I feel this particular move is. You are correct, nobody is being forced to purchase them. Nor are they forced to pay a subscription. And some, self included, are choosing to stop for it. Regardless of if you think it is "hysteria" or "raving" or "trivial" or "pathetic."
It's a choice. I don't begrudge the company for doing it. I don't begrudge people for deciding it doesn't matter to them. However, I do show them respect for their decision even if I do disagree and feel that some people are close minded and short sighted.
The columnist completely missed the point of why people are complaining.
WoW is a f'ing CASH COW for Blizzard. The amount of money it makes for Blizzard/Activision is STAGGERING. So what does Blizzard do? The offer vanity pets for...$10. TEN DOLLARS.
Let's just be honest here. Can we just drop the ruse and rename the game World of Greedcraft? This has nothing to do with the controversy of microtransaction, blah, blah, blah...it has everything to do with a VERY RICH game company crossing the greed line.
Doomsday theorists and crystal ball readers.
You can peek into the future knowing perfectly well Blizz is going to charge people for ... what? XP enhancers? Come on, be specific, what is it? If you are making a forcast, be specific. Or you are just blowing smoke.
Doomsday theory all around, we will lose Califonia to earthquake and Texas to hurricanes b/c some game is charging $10 for a pet. Greenbacks will lose 50% of its exchange value and the american budget will gain another $500 billion deficit b/c Blizz changes their charging scheme. Oh yeah, Blizz also will sell you tokens to kill a boss that is hard to kill, that will translate to the Republicans winning all state governor's seats.
None of you works for Blizz. No one knows what Blizz has in plan. So far its just 2 pets, and half of the earnings from one pets goes to charity. Everything else you whinners QQ about are just your own fairy tales.
Trying to make an unspecified pretentious projection and saying that Blizz will somehow sometime in the future offers more sales thru the cash shop is not a prediction. If Blizz does not do it in 2010, you can predict it to happen in 2011 or LATER. You will never be wrong. If Blizz sells anything else, anything you never foresee, you can pretend to claim you knows Blizz is coming. I predict that one of you, and everyone of you, is a bisexual. If you are not yet now, you will be, sometime. If you are not yet, when you died, you surely will be a bisexual ghost. Prove me wrong.
And if they charged for every piece of new gear and content coming out from now on my game experience would still be exactly the same. That's not the point. The point is there was an unspoken "understanding" between Blizzard and a portion of the community and they chose to break it. Which is completely within their rights. As it is within people's rights to not like it and communicate such.
"Unspoken understanding"...<rolls eyes> In other words, some people have deluded themselves in to adopting a certain perspective, and then get hysterical when others don't abide by their delusion? This is a totally trivial issue. Anyone who doesn't want one of those *vanity* pets is under no obligation to purchase one.
Define(in non subjective terms) this "greed" you speak of. No doubt its one or the other of; "Someone has more than me!" or "someone has more than I believe they should!".
Lets be honest here, you are not in a position to judge who is making more money than he is worth. Maybe you are earning more than you are worth. Maybe.
The columnist already addressed the point you are pretending to sell on moral ground. Every business is in for money. Unless the customers are stupid, Blizz is successful in making money b/c they keep customers happy, a lot of them. Instead of feeling jealous and calling them greedy, why not appreciate the effort and length Blizz went to meet client needs.
If you think that greed is an issue, which I also feel is an issue of concern, you should be reconsidering the current basis of market capitalism. Poking a player who plays along the current mechanism is unfair. Stop trying to sell the theory that Blizz open the way to greed. Greed is already everywhere in market capitalism.
And if they charged for every piece of new gear and content coming out from now on my game experience would still be exactly the same. That's not the point. The point is there was an unspoken "understanding" between Blizzard and a portion of the community and they chose to break it. Which is completely within their rights. As it is within people's rights to not like it and communicate such.
"Unspoken understanding"...<rolls eyes> In other words, some people have deluded themselves in to adopting a certain perspective, and then get hysterical when others don't abide by their delusion? This is a totally trivial issue. Anyone who doesn't want one of those *vanity* pets is under no obligation to purchase one.
TacBoy has his own understanding that he forgot to speak to Blizz or someone on that side, unspoken understanding indeed. Now Blizz is responsible for honoring every unilateral unspoken dreams from every gamer or would be gamer or their dog. Poor Blizz, they need a quite some years to clear the backlogs of every dreamer and their dreams, and a vet to read dreams of dogs.
I have an unspoken understanding that everyone who read my post on MMORPG should pay for my words, $1 per letter. Please donate the money to "Feed the troll funds". Thank you.
TacBoy does fully recognise that Blizz has the full rights to levy charges. He feel that is something of concern and air it here. Fully within his rights. So its all fair.
Yes, and that's the fair and honest way to raise extra income. IF they needed it, which they clearly don't.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6239235.html?tag=latestheadlines;title;3
From the looks of this recent article (dated today), no they definetly don't need it, lol.
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
The same can be said of those who use emotional appeal in the spirit of greed.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Chavez y Chavez
Good article. I think I would buy one and call it George if I still played WOW.
As long as item shops are only offering cosmetic upgrades only I don't mind about them.
My brand new bloggity blog.
Your entire rant is ridiculous. If paying 10 bucks for a pet does not enhance your in game experience, than Blizzard would not be trying it and people would not be buying it. It doesn't matter if it's fluff or not. If you can't get it by paying your monthly fee and playing the game it shouldn't be there in the first place.
Our spirit was here long before you
Long before us
And long will it be after your pride brings you to your end
Yes, and that's the fair and honest way to raise extra income. IF they needed it, which they clearly don't.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6239235.html?tag=latestheadlines;title;3
From the looks of this recent article (dated today), no they definetly don't need it, lol.
Who gets to define who needs more of what? Blizzard has an obligation to its shareholders to make the best profit possible. Simply because they have made billions, doesn't remove that responsibility. Those who use emotional appeals to "greed" are entirely missing the objective of business.
The same can be said of those who use emotional appeal in the spirit of greed.
Emotional appeals are used to manipulate the thoughtless. Clearly defined terms are necessary to clear communication. But thats the last thing that some wish to see happen.
I disagree with the general point of your post, and I don't believe in ghosts, but DAMN that was funny.
LOL and well done.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
So you are saying you would feel left out when you play WOW and don't have / can't afford one of those pets? Would the game experience be any less to you?
Gimme a break ...
My guess is most people would be much more satisfied about getting a rare, hard to get dropped pet than having one of these pets-for-cash.
My brand new bloggity blog.
Quoted for truthiness.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Well, more the shareholders of Activision lest we forget that it was after that buyout that we saw more and more revenue streams for Blizzard.
Shareholders don't have "needs" they have "wants" and those wants are "As Much As Possible" which is why people say... it will not stop at this. And it won't.
I think what bothers a lot of people is deep down the tone has changed from "We will provide an accessible product with good quality for a fair market price" to "we are popular and have seen that people have even more cash and will pay it and so we want it, open your wallets."
PS. Companies do not have an obligation to shareholders to make the best profit possible. They like to, yes, but the obligation is to provide the best long-term value by making the company the best it can be. My personal opinion is alienating a portion of your base that will give you constant revenue of $15 a month and then some in exchange for a short term revenue stream of smaller one time purchases may look good on the books intitially but is a poor move over the long term.
NO. Corporations DO have a *responsibility* to make the best profits possible. That inherently includes decisions that can impact the long term bottom line. Those that rant and rave about appeals to emotion like "greed" either have an ideological agenda, or are terribly ignorant of how business systems and markets operate in the real world. No one is being forced to purchase those *vanity* pets. They are simply being made available to those who *choose* to purchase them. The hysteria of those raving about this trivial issue would be wildly funny, if it wasn't so pathetic.
No shit Sherlock. Yes Corporations have a responsibility to make profits. That's usually done by making a good game. Since WoW has long neglected that basic side of the equation we now see this. First vanity pets, second epic gear. It's all good in the name of the almighty corporation making an honest buck. Until you realize that you have a playerbase based on a subscription based principal. Not a Sub + RMT. So it's all fine and dandy now. Go buy your pets to your hearts content all while paying your monthly sub fee. Just know that me and a lot of others in this thread know it will not stop there. So you maybe win the argument at this very moment, but mark my words, you and every supporter in this thread is going to be named in the future when the real change goes live. It will be a hallow victory though since the genre, as we know it, will be lost.
When the other shoe drops, and we say "I TOLD YOU SO", they will have their fingers in their ears singing "LALALALA".
But, we will know we were right, and so will they.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
Quoted for truthiness.
Lol, or you can realize that it is Blizzard who is determining the business model, not you. So you can say "It shouldn't be there" all you want. That's just your opinion. I'd like to point out that there's all those expansions you don't get paying the monthly fee either. I guess those shouldn't exist either.
Great post, Stradden. Common sense isn't really very common, is it?
President of The Marvelously Meowhead Fan Club
These companies do not need millions of subscription fees ON TOP of retail priced games,remember most the mainstream games aren't giving their software away for free (initial release) OR the price of one month's "rent", to maintain their servers. What are we paying for if not improvements and minor updates like this? This pay a full priced retail package + monthly subscription fee + expansion packs + microtrans and for some cases a premium for customer serivce is getting way out of hand. It's greed. There is a different between looking at the bottom line and going out of your way to see what you can get away with until someone says enough. Well I am saying it, enough. I don't pay microtrans on subscription fee based games. Period.
parrotpholk-Because we all know the miracle patch fairy shows up the night before release and sprinkles magic dust on the server to make it allllll better.
Save all your anger for when (or if) something truly game-breaking occurs.
The outrage that a simple exclusive item (with semi-good intentions) is creating is absurd. All the rage seems to come from what everyone fears this 1 "cashshop" item might turn into, but surprize it hasn't happened yet and likely never will. So instead of quitting the game and ranting about what this action may lead to, wait and save your breath for when it actually happens!
The WoW community never ceases to amaze me.. boycotting something that doesn't exist is truly amazing.
You can start waving bye-bye to free content patches. They will be scaled back and you will see content offered for sale in some way. Keys to new dungeons, for example.
I'm sure they will be sly about it - like the charity PR move.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
I'm going to be polite and simply ask why - since we have seen this slippery slope effect in other games - you think it won't happen in WoW?
As for me personally, the charging extra for content that should have been included in the subscription fee (meaning everyone playing has a fair chance at it) is enough to show that Blizzard has no respect for their customers. I don't do business with people who treat me with contempt.
"" Voice acting isn't an RPG element....it's just a production value." - grumpymel2
You can start waving bye-bye to free content patches. They will be scaled back and you will see content offered for sale in some way. Keys to new dungeons, for example.
I'm sure they will be sly about it - like the charity PR move.
Wow! How long have you been able to see the future?! Thats really amazing man! Can you tell me what I'm going to have for lunch tommorow! Or can you help me win the lottery or somthing??!?!!?!?!? I mean, since you obviously know what Blizzard's going to do you can help me with the easy task of picking winning lottery numbers right!!!