Micro transactions, yes please!

Battleborn Battleborn General Discussion
#102

It was announced that Battleborn would have microtransactions for cosmetics. This is entirely fine, but these systems are either included in release, or months after the fact when the development team has established enough goodwill to warrent people giving them more money.

Most of the games that have these cosmetic microtransactions, like Dota, are F2P. They are not $60 now and up to $70 later if you really want to have everything the game has to offer.

As for the DLC, it has simply been promised but with very little information surrounding what those PvE missions will be like. I enjoy doing PvE in Battleborn, but in general the missions are not very well structured and can be very buggy.

#103

Yeah, without an ETA in that dlc or any information about its content either.

And about the skins, repeat after me: Taking something that is already in the game at release, pull it out and ask more money for it in a AAA game paid on full price is BAD and disrespecful.

Iā€™m not a crybaby girl that wants everything free. Even when Iā€™m an old school gamer (Iā€™m 34 years old, Iā€™m not new to the videogame rodeo) I play several free to plays where I purchased things, from LOL to Smite, FTP mmos like DDO or LOTRO or Blade and Soul, DCUOā€¦ I play from time to time, the only games right now that Iā€™m playing everyday is FFXIV, a sub game in where, as is a game I like, I even pay for me or as present for friends, flluff in the store. I donā€™t want everything free or my first step in the forum would have been when they dropped the price of the gaming asking something in return. No, Iā€™m a gamer that is tired of publishers than doesnā€™t look for their games, doesnā€™t care about their reputation, doesnā€™t learn from errors and are shady in their practices.

I want my moneyā€™s value and when I buy a game after playing a beta, I want the full game as I saw it, I want the full game if I paid the full price. I donā€™t want the company to take things there and that and asking for more money as I didnā€™t already paid enough.

Man, bring new skins, new T2 never seen, the T3, Iā€™ll pay them if I like them, but donā€™t ask me for more in something that was already part of my game experience and never, ever they said otherwise despite a lot of threads in this very same forum asking for the skins, an ETA in those and if they were about to be release in faction packs so people could use them or not.

No info and they are asking moneyā€¦ and the money I already paid in advance, the season pass, still doesnā€™t have even information about its content.

Itā€™sā€¦ insulting.

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#104

Guys, I just want more people to play the game. I donā€™t care about micro transactions if they donā€™t bring in MORE players. Sure, it has its uses, but what use is keeping the game alive when players are dropping left and right. I get we are trying to get players back, but would it be too much do something else? Like make it F2P? (Of course reward us loyal players with free skin and DLC and etc.) This game needs more players man. Micro transactions can wait

#105

2 questions and Iā€™ll stop.

Why do we have to know everything? Other game developers release dlc as they finish it, why canā€™t Gearbox?

When did they ask us for more money? As I understand it the marketplace is completely optional and for the benefit of those wanting exact skins. This isnā€™t panhandling.

#106

Because other devs in other games can market the word ā€˜Soonā„¢ā€™ and get away with it because: 1, the game is doing allright; 2, they arenā€™t trying to pull something like this.

And they are asking for money from the very same moment they took something in game and they are trying to sell it. Something people were waiting for, something people really wanted and something people asked a lot about it. They saw the interest in the T2 skins in people and in the place of releasing them as they were about to do (and was normal too do because they were already in the game in beta), they decided to sell them. And no information was given prior to the leak of the currency and part of the store about those skins at all.

They are juggling in what people knew was coming, trying to market itā€¦ and in a game that has every day less people on pc, they are playing with fire.

Skins could be optional, thatā€™s true but for me doesnā€™t matter if itā€™s a skin, a character, a mapā€¦ if is already in the game at release in a full price game, I expect to have it with the game, not appart in microtransactions.

And about giving info in the dlc, first is to show respect for people not only that paid upfront but also is still playing the game, and second, they are asking money with microtransactions without giving even a hit, a freaking hit, in the seasonā€™s pass content as if we that have it paid with toy money. I donā€™t want the first dlc right now (even when Borderlands 2 had it first dlc I guess a month and a half after released, I could be wrong) but I want info on my money, specially now that Iā€™m seeing them trying to get their hands in more money as if this game is the Titanic and they want to milk it before it sinks.

2 Likes
#107

I have no problem with micro tansactions in games for skins.

That being said, I donā€™t think I could really justify spending roughly 4 bucks on any of the current skins(MAYBE the Kleese one).

Need a little more work done on skins to make them worth that much. If they have custom spell effects than yeah Iā€™d buy them for sure(possibly even pay more depending on how much different/cool the effects are from basic).

#108

In my (very) brief time with League, I couldnā€™t understand the whole skin phenomenon. I couldnā€™t comprehend why people would spend all that money on a cosmetic itemā€¦

ā€¦and then I saw Alien Invader Heimerdinger

http://www.leagueoflegendsskins.com/images/champions/splash/Heimerdinger_1.jpg

#109

Would not say its to ā€œkeep it thrivingā€ as that implies it is thriving to begin with.

We know that is not the case, and they were already going to nickel and dime the consumers. They planned these before the game even released, it was just never made cleae what they were selling.

It mostly looks bad now because the game didnā€™t sell well and failed to retain players.

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#110

It shouldnā€™t be the responsibility of the consumers to ensure the gameā€™s finances are covered. Thatā€™s on 2K and GBX. Their business, and their finances. I paid $125 AUD when I pre ordered the digital deluxe. I paid top dollar to ensure that I would both support this game as much as I could and so that I could get ALL of the content by purchasing the season pass. Now, Iā€™m looking at another $95 AUD to buy all of the skins and taunts they have announced so far. Skins and taunts that I was under the impression were already part of the game and I would have access to, no question.

I donā€™t care if GBX need more money at this point. They are a business that made a game based around their budgeting and available finances. If their business model failed, if they canā€™t afford to keep it running - even after they factored in the income from season pass and digital deluxe purchases - then that is entirely on them and IN NO WAY should be the responsibility of the consumers to ā€œfixā€ for them by spending extravagant amounts of money on cosmetics that should have already been part of the game.

What they should have done, is told us that they had plans to implement microtransactions, but due to the current state of the game they would be putting them back into the game for free. Now thatā€™s some PR that would bring people back and increase sales. Not this poor cash grab to ā€œhelp keep the lights onā€.

3 Likes
#111

Not to mention the Delay of the T2 skins. Now we know why they were delayed.

#112

Goddamn 2K ruining our GBX! :rage:

shakes fist

#113

I understand your sentiment, but there are tons of reasons that things just donā€™t work this way.

No it is not your responsibility to do anything at all after you make your purchase, but itā€™s also not their responsibility to support the product beyond what they are contractually obligated to (the specific things they promised in the Season Pass and Digital Deluxe)

All other promises stated or implied are ā€œsubject to change,ā€ as youā€™ll find if you read over the TOS/EULA/Terms that we all sign before starting to play.

All of this is to say, that no one actually wants the relationship to work this way, and it doesnā€™t.

  1. GBX is supporting the game because itā€™s in their best interest and ours.
  2. We are happy to accept the ā€œfreeā€ hot-fixes and patches they release, that they are under no obligation to do. This point is important. Our purchase price in no way obligates them to support the product ever. Absolutely no support is promised or implied in the purchase of a software product like this.
  3. To continue to fund this social contract, 2k needs to feel like theyā€™re getting their monies worth, so they introduce micro-transactions.

I donā€™t want to change your mind about buying skins, I want to inform you about how the system is structured.

I completely understand that you feel that your purchase price paid for support, but it didnā€™t and it doesnā€™t, no matter what game you purchase (unless itā€™s explicitly stated somewhere, like some subscription MMOs).

As for what they could do, they really canā€™t, they can certainly lobby for something like that but ultimately something so closely related to the bottom line is likely the publisherā€™s call and not the studios.

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#114

Youā€™re not telling me anything I donā€™t already know or understand. I just canā€™t agree with your attempt to defend or justify the microtransactions in this specific situation though. I wholeheartedly blame 2K for the MTā€™s themselves, but GBX have to take responsibility for the reason that they are needed. If you canā€™t fund an online pvp game that you know requires updates and hotifxes without needing nearly $100 of MTā€™s on top of the upfront $125 price tag that includes a season pass THEN DONā€™T MAKE ONE.

3 Likes
#115

Fair play.

I would say it will be difficult to find many games of this type (AAA, multiplayer-focused, substantial Live teams) that will be able to completely avoid any kind of micro-transaction. At least those made after, say, 2013.

I would further speculate that this will be the case for at least the next half-decade, until some clever person comes up with a new way to support peopleā€™s salaries for years of support without needing MTs (it used to be subscriptions, which were way worse).

Since I believe these two things strongly, my goal in these discussions is to make the cash shop as non-invasive as possible, not try to change the reality of the marketplace (as I see it).

#116

The conversation is comparing the system to other MOBAs, which only have a select few ā€œfreeā€ skins that you could earn in game. All of the others came in paid packs or paid separately. Were it gameplay related content that was purchasable (not gameplay altering), then yeah make it earnable through game. Otherwise, you really arenā€™t missing out on anything by not buying it.

#117

See, thatā€™s what I thought I was paying for/supporting by purchasing the digital deluxe. Thatā€™s why Iā€™m particularly disagreeing with the points you made about the MTā€™s being a thing to help support the gameā€™s lifespan. I fell like I shelled over more than enough to support the game, but now they ask for more? Iā€™m more salty about it all because this is the first game I have ever paid full price for and pre ordered with season pass upfront. I was late to the Borderlands franchise - my absolute favourite game series - and this was the first new game from 2K&GBX since then so hells yeah I was gonna back them on this. I gave them as much money upfront as I possibly could to support the game, the devs, and the future of the business. Now Iā€™m told that they want another chunk of money (more than a full priced new release game would cost me) for the skins and taunts I thought were just part of the game, and that itā€™s supposedly to help support the game? Itā€™s too much. You can argue ā€œjust donā€™t buy them thenā€ but thatā€™s a redundant suggestion when they should have been part of the base game to begin with. How would you feel if Galileaā€™s shield had to be purchased via MT? The mid thrall camps on incursion had to be purchased via MT? thatā€™s what it feels like to me, a fundamental part of the game cut out, and still costing the DDE/SP holders who supported the game extra real money

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#118

All fair points.

I definitely get why you are upset, I didnā€™t buy digital deluxe (I bought Season Pass), nor do I have to pay crazy AUS prices, so this is a bit easier for me to swallow.

As I mentioned before, I also come at this from the perspective that Digital Deluxe (which everyone is doing) and Season Passes (which people have been doing for years), are basically tools to artificially inflate the base game price, since people have refused to pay more than $60 USD for games since the mid-90s. [Think of them like 3D movie tickets]

There is nothing I can say that will make you happy about this, but I am happy at least weā€™ve been able to discuss this civilly. I look forward to the day when the industry finds the solution to this mess, because it kills me to see people upset over this sort of stuff, rather than just enjoying the games.

3 Likes
#119

After all your words about how MTs are necessarily required to only justify the costs of development, do you believe skins and taunts for 1,5 character are enough to justify it? You avoided any numbers in your reasons.

And even you are interested in only a couple of characters at best, that just confirms my opinion.

#120

Iā€™m not sure what you want me to say, but at no point did I claim that every person had to buy every skin to make micro-transactions a viable business model.

That seems a bit silly.

Iā€™m interested in the characters Iā€™m interested in, as are most people, I suspect.

This isnā€™t any different than any other game that has micro-transactions. While there are a handful of people in League who have bought thousands of dollars worth of skins, most buy a handful.

Iā€™m not sure what point youā€™re trying to make here.

My claim is that micro-transactions help to fund the game, and are used to support the Live Teams, not that the only way to support GBX is to empty the cash shop.

#121

Itā€™s not only bad itself, itā€™s especially bad when even a customer accepts such a bureaucratic pretext. That means they, pretexts, would thrive further. If you buy a $60 always-online game and devs just shut down servers after a week, would you still be portraying how normal it was, and that you didnā€™t pay for the support?

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