You don't. Why, do you feel the need to do so?
You don't. Why, do you feel the need to do so?
Yes. Because I see a difference between paying for digital content that's mine to keep after the point of purchase, like traditional DLC, and putting quarters into the slot over and over again to buy virtual currency or affect the rate of XP gain or gain the ability to play the game more than I'd otherwise be able to in a given period of time. I see how these types of digital purchasing can blur based on implementation, but there's still a meaningful distinction to be made.
Shrug. I just don't see anyone using those terms to differentiate between one-time and repeated purchases in that manner. But language is fluid, so that could change.
So did anyone here get one?Originally Posted by Falcon554
Well if you're buying digital currency, you'll be buying something permanent for your character in essence. It seems the terms have evolved a bit. It did go from all DLC being called microtransactions to just plain old commonly accepted DLC. And microtransaction does invoke a negative connotation while DLC generally doesn't even though they're the same thing.
Don't expect many responses. Among the terms of the NDA for the closed beta is that you can't even say you're in the beta. That's specifically explained in the first email you get.
-Tom
Can you say you are not in the beta tho?
If you signed up for the beta it was probably in the fine print that you can't.
Tom's definitely in beta you guys. :D
Checked my spam filter for a beta invite, but it wasn't there. It wasn't a total loss, though. I found a surefire method to enlarge my penis!
Yeah, I got the penis enlargement beta invite as well.
Once GW2 goes live anyone can get it, but it will be called a "macrotransaction."
Didn't they specifically say they wanted to restrict the shop-stuff to vanity items and such?
Now it's a matter of paying to avoid playing?
Maybe I'm remembering this wrong, but it seems to me this is exactly what they've said they wouldn't do - over and over. I guess I've imagined it.
Last edited by DKDArtagnan; 03-21-2012 at 02:09 AM.
It sounds pretty close to PLEX in Eve which works great. If tons of people buy gems, it would just devalue the currency in comparison to gold. Then a player has the option of buying gems with gold or purchasing them to spend on MT items directly.
Maybe they'll fuck it up but as described I have no issues with this. Also, fuck gold farmers (although they'll still be around).
I'm hoping I'm getting something wrong about it.
But, essentially, you can buy in-game gold with real money (regardless of what occurs in between) - and you can buy items with in-game gold.
They've already mentioned that max-level items are "on the same level" more or less, but then we have developers using figures like "10% more efficiency overall" - which means I can buy my way to power. 10% might not be a big deal - but it's there and it matters.
But I'm not really worried about the launch status of all of this. I'm worried that they'll figure out how much money they can make - by slowly introducing more and more powerful items - and gradually change their minds. This is what has happened to ALL other F2P MMOs I know of - and I consider it almost inevitable when dealing with human nature.
It corrupts the design process.
I truly hope I'm just pessimistic here.
I can deal with this kind of thing in Diablo 3 - because it's not really a competitive game at heart - and the RMAH is (AFAIK) player-based only. So, there's no design corruption that I can detect.
Sounds like every other F2P out there.
I guess they had to do something like this.
I hope the gameplay won't suffer because of this as it, sadly, always does in F2P MMOs in my opinion.
You buy gems, which is the currency used in the MT shop which in GW1 contained cosmetics and convenience items. You earn gold in game. Gems can be bought and sold on the AH for gold. Have you played EVE? That's as competitive as it gets and the PLEX system works great there.
Have some spare cash and want a cool outfit or another character slot or a realm transfer or whatever? You buy it like GW1. Have tons of play time but little cash? Buy some gems on the AH. Want some gold? Go farm it or buy gems to sell on the AH... but if the AH is flooded with gems it starts dropping the value.
I haven't played EVE after they introduced that system. Is it universally praised and loved by all EVE players?
Is ANYTHING in this world universally praised? C'mon, man. :)
To answer your question, though, I never encountered complaints about it. Its a popular system.
I get that, but I seem to recall a very negative backlash when they first introduced this.
However, if the actual implementation is positively received by people who would otherwise not appreciate this kind of transaction dealing with real money - then I guess there are examples of it working to the benefit of the design and user.
I don't follow EVE, so I honestly have no idea about the general reception.
I know that *seemingly* most people like the cash-shop implementation used in DDO and LotR - for instance, but I personally HATE what it does to the design. So do the handful of friends I have who play them - though the level of hatred differs. I guess you could say a couple of my friends "shrug" at it - and don't seem to think it's a big deal. Certainly not enough to stop playing them.
But I stopped playing LotR a while ago, and the F2P model is a big reason why.
Guild Wars 2 won't have anything on the store that makes you pay to get access to more of the game like a F2P model though. Nor will it have anything that lets one player have an advantage over another. They've stated this quite clearly.
Temporary (leveling) buffs and vanity items I have no problems with.
Well let me say that I generally despise F2P games, the cash shops, etc. I'm right there with you on that. I never had a problem with PLEX, though, because it's something that has a tangible value (30-day subscription), but you can sell it in game to other players if you want. It accomplishes two things:
-Cuts out the "gold sellers" to a degree.
-Allows people with more time than money to play for free and those on the opposite end of the spectrum to get a cash infusion.
There's a critical design choice there, though. You're not buying ISK, you're buying PLEX. No cash shop is generating ISK, it still has to be obtained in game through normal game means.
It sounds like the GW2 system operates on a similar system. You can buy items in the cash shop (a "subscription" item doesn't work since there's no subscription cost) or you can sell tokens to buy costumes or character renaming tokens to other players for in-game currency. That in-game currency is still earned through playing the game, though, you're not generating it through the item shop. If people flood the market with Gems, the value of Gold vs Gems just goes up and up.
If they added an epic kickass sword to the item shop, then I'd start having problems, but they say they're not going down that road and they were smart enough to not do so in GW1 so I'll take them at their word.
Interesting comments coming from Arenanet about microtransactions:
You can buy EVERYTHING on the store with gold you acquire in the game, which means you'll definitely have something to spend gold on now.Here are a few important clarifications about our microtransaction system. First, that gold is coming from other players. So somebody must have an abundance of gold if he trades it to a player. The system is not adding new gold from the outside.
Second, take into account the gem/gold trading system. Everything that is in the store will basically be available for gold with this system - so it doesn't really matter what is in the store, as it is also available for players who play and don't want to spend additional money. Hope that helps! ~RB2
But, shouldn't there be a big arrow going from Marketplace to Upgrades? Or will there be no equipment to sell/buy on the marketplace? What else would you be trading on the Marketplace?
I appreciate the intent of the pic to show that real money can't influence the playing of the game, but that doesn't quite look right. Unless the only things you're trading on the Marketplace are more vanity items and crafting materials (but not actual crafted goods).
Right, how do you get upgrades? Only through being awarded things in-game, like how you get honor points to buy PvP gear in WoW? Or can you spend gold to get upgrades? If you can, then that means you can spend real money to get upgrades.
From that diagram it looks like the only way to get upgrades is through PvP and PvE. It looks like the marketplace is for something other than upgrades. Is that right?
Maybe you need Glory and Karma to equip an item but item can be bought from marketplace. Just a guess.
Yeah, the diagram is misleading.
But it does highlight the point that someone who is playing the game will have access to more upgrades - through Karma and Glory, in addition to the ones available through Gold.
Besides, why the hell do you care how that person bought his sword? Whether he was grinding gold for 10 hours or bought the required gold for $20, how does it affect you, if you also have the same options?
You don't want to spend RL money? Fine, just go grind that gold, just the way you'd do it if RL money wasn't an option at all.
What I don't understand though, is why do people think this system will cut out the gold sellers?
Gold sellers will still farm gold, drive the price of gems up, stockpile the gems and sell them for RL money, cheaper than ArenaNet will. Seems like a valid market niche for gold sellers.
I guess it will be safer to buy gems from ArenaNet but it all depends on what kind of discount gold sellers (they'll have to be renamed to gem sellers, hehe) will be able to provide.
How do you "stockpile the gems and sell them for RL money"? You already buy the gems for RL money. How come you don't see this problem with PLEX in EVE?
This system doesn't eliminate the gold sellers, but it gives customers a legitimate option to use that cuts into the gold seller market.
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