It’ s a growing trend: Free games. At least, that’s what you’re told when you initially start playing. Soon though, you find out that the game has many built-in methods for paying real-world money for in-game items. iOS and Facebook games (primarily Zynga), really got the trend off and running the past few years. “Go ahead and play for free ya scamps,” the game says, “What’s that? You want the radish for your farm that’s the only way to gain a level? That’ll be 10 bucks”
Ok, so that may be an extreme example, but the point is that it used to be when you bought a game, you bought the whole game, not just a fraction of it. While some may make the argument that “freemium” games or free-to-play models are helping the industry (especially some MMOs) in today’s bad economy others would be more than happy to cough up a few bucks to have the full game at their disposal.
On a similar note, I couldn’t help being a bit miffed when I looked at the downloadable content (DLC) for the this year’s annual WWE offering, WWE 13. In this case, you are paying $59.99 for a game, but in order to get the full experience you will end up paying $0.99 to $19.99 for each item you wish to unlock. I used to really enjoy (*cue old man “back in my day” voice*) getting my new wrestling game, or any game for that matter, and working tirelessly to unlock new characters, skins, and play modes. These days, it seems the features that were once a reward for skill and a dedication to gameplay are replaced with the ability to receive instantaneous gratification. Essentially telling our youth playing the game ,”Money is the only way to get what you want in this world.”
I understand that “freemium” games and DLC are two separate things, but you can’t deny they are both ways to deny the gamer a full featured experience without tossing out cash. Whether you need to purchase crystals to keep playing that Bejeweled clone longer, or new multiplayer maps, it looks like games are moving further away from the consumer and much closer towards the company’s bank account.
What’s your take on it? Is this emerging trend hurting games by not fully fleshing out the game, or does it help by giving more people access to games that may not have otherwise been able to afford it. Sound off in the comments section.
Weekend Brunch is a weekly discussion post to get gamers thinking and have their opinion heard about the industry they love. It’s a light-hearted conversation just like you’d have with the family at brunch. Except without your creepy uncle.
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