Legacy Micro-transaction?

[Ancen]

Because of the number of people like me who look at how much they have (230k), their level (45), and go "Screw it, $3 for the ability to make a Miraluka commando now? Sure. Oh, another $2 for the character slot so I can make them. Sure."

 

It sucks, but knowing me, I'll be lucky to save up 5 million before the game goes offline.

 

Translation: "I can't play well or understand how the economy of the game works, so I should be entitled to buy it for a paltry amount of real-life cash and win the game!"

 

Nothing personal, but we're paying a subscription fee for a premium MMO, not "buy to win" mechanics. Earn the stuff in-game or do without it.

[xinski]

Am I the only one that looks at the legacy system and see that it screams that it would be perfect for micro-transactions to buy the unlocks?

 

You're @*%#ing High!

[Fiachsidhe]

Yet WoW is still going strong. You can stand on your principles, but there was a time when people said they would never pay a subscription to play a game. Those people still exist, but they are insignificant.

 

How's Cryptic doing?

What's that? All of their games are free to play now? Atari dropped them, and they were bought by a Chinese company? A company infamous for cash shops, that end up charging literally hundreds of dollars to thousands of dollars for things like getting your mount up to it's maximum speed.

 

Here's the problem with your response. Blizzard incorporated their cash shop late in the game, long after attaining unprecedented success, that no one outside of Asia has been able to come close to reproducing.

There are so many players who'd buy a punch in the eye from Blizzard, it's frightening. These are the same players who had already given up their maiden names to marry Diablo 3, a year ago.

 

At this point, Blizzard can do ANYTHING, save murdering their customers, and not take a big hit in subs (even then, they still might). Their success is completely irrelative to their cash shop. Cryptic started out from the beginning with them, and look how they ended up. SWTOR does not have the clout to pull that off. No one really does, save Blizzard.

 

The wave of the future, may arguably be microtransactions, but that is only after subscriptions die out.

Edited April 26, 2012 by Fiachsidhe

[marseluswallace]

I believe you should pay for character transactions, simply because thats how its always been. EQ back in the day(2000) made you pay for that. However, when it comes to weapons, armor, mounts, and content like our most recent patch...I say hell no. I would rather see everything come out in one big expansion pack where the devs have all the time in the world to make great, then to continuously pay for content that is certifiable crap(i.e. Star Trek Online, DC Universe). DC Universe being the biggest offender.

[Sharee]

Take your microtransactions and shove them somewhere the sun doesn't shine

[ElectricFlea]

MT would kill this game IMO for two main reasons:

 

SWTOR is set a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. It's space fantasy and part of it's appeal is that it's so far removed from someone's real life. I don't want how much money I earn in real life to have any bearing on my success, power, or even convenience in the game world.

 

The second reason is that MMO's rely on always having goals to aspire to. As soon as one achieves all of their goals, they'll get bored and inevitably leave.

 

If BW introduced MT, the temptation for me to purchase them would be too great to resist. But at the same time I would be destroying a huge part of my gaming experience.

 

I'm reasonably confident BW are smart enough not to do this, right BW?

[Jestunhi]

No.

 

10char

 

I'd far rather keep it p2p instead of f2p with a cash shop (and I certainly have no intention of using a cash shop *and* a subscription).

 

However if, down the line, the game fails using the p2p model and needs to turn f2p with a cash shop legacy doesn't really effect balance and would be the perfect thing to have in cash shops to avoid it being a requirement to spend loads in order to be competitive.

[corbanite]

should micro transactions ever arise in this game that shall be the day I do vote with my wallet and leave.

 

this. If you want to give bioware extra money then just send it to them I am sure they wont say no.

Edited April 26, 2012 by corbanite

[Tiaa]

Legacy MT's only if this game goes free to play.

[flankster]

Am I the only one that looks at the legacy system and see that it screams that it would be perfect for micro-transactions to buy the unlocks?

 

Seriously how many of us would rather drop $5-$10 in a micro-transaction for the GTN on our ship rather than plop down $5million credits??

 

Dare we start a petition asking for EA to graciously take more of our money?

 

 

Edit: I mean micro transactions in addition to the current ways of unlocking not as a replacement.

 

ware straight jacket much???

[DieAlteHexe]

the question then becomes, are there enough of you, willing to give enough money, to cover the loss of those of us who will stop playing the day this happens?

 

Last time I looked (admittedly about a year ago) it worked very nicely for LotRO.

 

That said...I'm a bit skittish about MTs.

[BenjaminminU]

No thanks, i'd rather just save up the credits and get these items, hit over 100k credits for the first time in months yesterday, so i should hopefully be able to afford that mailbox soon. But if they change it so i have to pay £2-3 i would be so annoyed because i've already paid for my subscription.

[Rabrac]

No, never add microtransactions in this game. If you pay a subscriptions then everything should be obtainable with in game money.

[Tal-N]

I'm all for the convenience items being MTs. The prestige items are another matter though.

[Tal-N]

No, never add microtransactions in this game. If you pay a subscriptions then everything should be obtainable with in game money.

 

Expansion packs are MT bundles. Games have had expansion packs for years and I would say you have purchased them yourself in the past. DLC is a micro-transaction and Bioware already have had that with Mass Effect.

[Lord_of_Mu]

No, I'd rather not let real money give any kind of in game advantage.

 

Do I support an in game cash shop? No

 

Do I support paid services like character transfers, customizations, renames and race changes? Yes. Because they don't follow the line of pay to win. No clear advantage is given to a player that buys a service to edit their character or change their server.

 

Do I support fluff items like pets? No. while pets are cute and fun, I'd rather earn them in game.

 

Do I support Expansions and DLCs? Yes.

 

Should SWTOR adopt micro-transactions? In the form of an in game cash shop with lock boxes and pay to win. Absolutely NOT! Paid services and expansions are about as far as I'm willing to go.

[dazednconfuzed]

No.

 

10char

 

This.

 

/ManyChar

[Lazzer]

No. They are not. You simply refuse to even consider the possibility of them not being bad.

 

1) Paid character transfers

2) Paid character name/legacy-name changes

3) Paid character gender changes

4) Paid cosmetic items, such as mini-pets (that a very large portion of the player base doesn't care about at all)

5) Paid extra character slots (beyond the original 8 we all paid for, that many people will never even use all of...)

6) Paid extra "fluff" customizations, such as in-ship cosmetic features that the "Sims-hating-elitist-end-game-powergamers" would flip out over if they felt development effort was being "wasted" on them. (Let access to the features be available through in-game means as well, via rare drops/raid items/etc.)

 

Micro-transaction does not always mean "pay-to-win." Many times it means making available "niche" features that only appeal to a smaller subset of the customer base without taking development effort away from the core game. Micro-transactions can fund the development of such features.

 

You also didn't watch the video.

 

1, 2 & 3 are not micro transactions but customer service deals and changes in your account not in your game itself.

 

4, 5 & 6 are micro transactions and will spoil the game, things like vanity pets and "fluff" people work hard to get and see as status symbols.

 

Nothing in game should be buyable with real money, changes to your account are not in game and I don't really care about.

[illgot]

No.

 

10char

 

Hell, I would rather spend another 100 dollars to unlock all legacy items account wide than grind/pay for them one by one.

 

But then again I have a real job and know how to work my finances.

 

1, 2 & 3 are not micro transactions but customer service deals and changes in your account not in your game itself.

 

4, 5 & 6 are micro transactions and will spoil the game, things like vanity pets and "fluff" people work hard to get and see as status symbols.

 

Nothing in game should be buyable with real money, changes to your account are not in game and I don't really care about.

 

Anything you pay outside of your subscription is a micro-transaction. Don't fool yourself or let companies do your thinking for you.

Edited April 26, 2012 by illgot

[Lazzer]

Last time I looked (admittedly about a year ago) it worked very nicely for LotRO.

 

That said...I'm a bit skittish about MTs.

 

A lot of people left when LotRO brought out skirmishes as it broke the depth of the game, they went F2P with micro transactions not P2P with micro transactions and when they changed they gave all existing subscribers silver, gold or platinum accounts with varying content depending on their subscription (life time subscribers got all MT stuff and all new expansions for free as part of their existing contracts). Only new subscribers had to go the pay to win route.

[Calsetes]

Translation: "I can't play well or understand how the economy of the game works, so I should be entitled to buy it for a paltry amount of real-life cash and win the game!"

 

Nothing personal, but we're paying a subscription fee for a premium MMO, not "buy to win" mechanics. Earn the stuff in-game or do without it.

 

Wow, thanks for making completely wrong assumptions there. I do know how to play. I just don't have the time to sink into the game to save up 1.5 million credits to unlock something I want to do as a joke character.

 

Also, explain to me exactly how me having a Miralukan Commando is somehow stronger or better than me having a Cyborg / Human / Mirialian / Zabrak commando? There is no difference in races other than a racial skill that is purely cosmetic, and how they physically look (other than maybe being referred to as an alien or not.)

[amantheil]

Once you start down the Dark Side forever will it dominate your destiny.

 

It's a very slippery slope that almost always ends up being pay extra to remain competitive or fail. Even if it doesn't start out with any intentions of ending up that way.

The "slippery slope" argument is a logical fallacy. It does not always end up with having to pay to remain competitive. WoW has had micro transactions for a few years now for pets, mounts, race/gender changes, server changes, and faction changes. It has not led to people paying to remain competitive since they haven't introduced paying for gear, abilities, or anything else that affects actual gameplay.

 

Given that most of the Legacy unlocks are useless fluff, I don't see what the harm is.

[Lazzer]

Hell, I would rather spend another 100 dollars to unlock all legacy items account wide than grind/pay for them one by one.

 

But then again I have a real job and know how to work my finances.

 

Why not drop another 20 bucks for Blackhole equipment per piece, 10 bucks for companion faction, 15 bucks to max a crafting skill, if I pay 50 bucks can I start at max level??

[illgot]

Why not drop another 20 bucks for Blackhole equipment per piece, 10 bucks for companion faction, 15 bucks to max a crafting skill, if I pay 50 bucks can I start at max level??

 

because LEGACY has nothing to do with buying equipment.

 

I would explain more but that post right there shows me how little you understand MMOs, micro-transactions, and the difference between fluff and game impacting items.

[Lazzer]

Also, explain to me exactly how me having a Miralukan Commando is somehow stronger or better than me having a Cyborg / Human / Mirialian / Zabrak commando? There is no difference in races other than a racial skill that is purely cosmetic, and how they physically look (other than maybe being referred to as an alien or not.)

 

Just like with the vanity pets people are collecting such things are seen by the people that work to achieve them as a status symbol for them to wear, to me paying for a Miralukan Sith instead of earning it is like paying 10 bucks to increase your PvP rating on the leader boards, it has no effect on your character but it is something earned and to be proud of.