So the announcement has apparently been made that the Star Wars based Bioware MMO is going to be Free To Play, But With Micro Transactions So Not Actually Entirely Free Really.
Or FTPBWMTSNAEFR if you want the short, catchy abbreviation.
I had a quick ponder on this over a coffee this morning – I always do my best thinking early in the day whilst hovering above a heavily caffeinated hot beverage – and I think I’ve come up with the perfect plan for Bioware/EA’s extreme money making scheme:
Bioware has stressed that the game will be about story, that your character will make choices and be able to affect how NPCs react to you. As we all know Bioware RPGs, we all know that this is most likely going to be done through conversation paths, where you hear the NPC say something and then you pick one of three or so options in response, usually the responses follow the lines of the I’m A Good Guy statement, I’m An Ambivalent Fop statement or I’m an Evil Bad Guy Grrrr statement.
And now, a micro-transaction charge will be made every time you make a dialogue decision.
This also ties-in nicely with the management bullshit bingo full house term mid-session game, because you now get nobbled for payment in the middle of each session of play.
Accept a quest? Payment!
Ask for a reward? Payment!
Tell a random passer-by that you don’t want to rescue their pet space <Star Wars animal> that’s stuck in a tall <Star Wars vegetation> because you’re an evil bad guy, grrr, grrr? Payment!
If anyone at Bioware or EA wants to discuss my fee for this idea, please contact me via moneymoneymoneymoneymoneymoney @ this domain. Thank you.
I spent over $1000 on WoW throughout the years. (Subs, boxes, expansions).
I cannot see how I could possibly spend that much in a F2P, RMT game.
The choice on how and where to spend my money, instead of under a “subscription” umbrella is VERY enticing to me. People with different playstyles can focus on different things. Like Hotpants? $2! Like leveling? +50% XP potions – $2! Like Vanity Pets? $2! Like playing for free? NOT $2! Have fun!
But, yeah, can I invest in your business model? It just might work! =)
I never, ever, want to find out how much I’ve spent on WoW. Not least because most of my expenses will be due to name changes, and also, in the not too distant future, gender/appearance changes.
Those are gender changes to my characters by the way, just in case it wasn’t clear and people thought that I myself changed gender in order to play the game.
We’re definitely interested in micro transactions here at KiaSA Towers, and certainly won’t dismiss them out of hand; they could well be a cheaper and more flexible option for casual MMO players like ourselves.
The only problem we foresee is that Zoso will go bankrupt buying one million hats for his main character, and I’ll go bankrupt buying one hat for each of my one million characters.