Micro-Transactions : How Much Does A Game Cost?

What's The Most You've Spent On A Game?

It's a gut wrenching question isn't it? For some the answer is a calm and collected $60, but for many it's a sweat inducing question followed by a quiet, 'I don't wanna talk about it'. But this goes to show that the price you pay is less like a simple price tag and more like an entry fee. Think of it like you're going to see a band, and the venue has a cover charge. Can you simply pay the cover charge, listen to the music and have fun? Of coarse you can, but wouldn't it be more fun to get some drinks, and maybe some food too? Well, I'm sure you can see where this poor analogy is going, so lets stop here and start by discussing how prices in the video game industry have changed.

Many may think prices have increased like almost every other commercial product, but for the most part AAA games have remained at an average of $60 since the mid-1990s. What is truly astounding is the fact that this price hasn't been touched by economic inflation. But how is this possible? Well, it's true that the market for video games are much bigger, which leads to more sales, but there's another reason, which brings us right back to our topic. The $60 price tag has gone through an evolution, and rather then change completely, it has become fluid, and will change to fit the needs of the consumer. 

There are several ways a game can do this, and one of the earliest ways is with downloadable content, or DLC. This is usually released as an expansion to the existing story line, or simply more content like new maps or guns for a multiplayer game. And publishers have begun advertising this content before they even release the core game. By doing this they can sell you added features to a game you haven't even experience yet. And by agreeing to this you'll usually end up paying an extra $40 up front for the additional content, making the game $100 now. Where this begins to become an issue is when a game promises to release about 5 expansions for $25 each, and gives you the option of a season pass for a discounted price. Which means you are not only gambling the success of these expansions for an unreleased game, but you're also gambling on whether you'll still be playing when they go past 2 expansions. But in an industry where the product could cost 100s of millions to produce, you need to bring revenue in through other means.

One of the more common of these means has become micro-transactions. A term that has become a dirty word in the gaming community especially if it meets the pay-to-win criteria. In other words, a game can now give the player the option to buy upgrades to their character, rather then have that payer earn them. And any transaction that leads to an upgrade that can give them an advantage over other players is classified as pay-to-win. But some games recognize this and try to make sure these optional purchases are purely cosmetic like new outfits for your character or other custom pieces that help you stand out. The debate aside, this business plan gives the product a nearly infinite price tag, and has become so substantial that it has created the concept of free-to-play games. These are games that rely solely on the income of micro-transactions by putting characters behind pay-walls, or in game currency that can be used as a shortcut when upgrading your character.

Today, publishers are still having trouble finding the middle ground where both micro-transactions and skillful progression can live together. One game in particular, Star Wars Battlefront 2, has found itself under fire after a Reddit post responding to player outrage became one of the most downvoted comments in Reddit history.

Gamers are clearly passionate about this newer business, but the fact that the game is based on a beloved franchise and being published by an infamous company only stokes the fire. The true testament now will be whether or not they will be monitoring feedback, and make the appropriate changes. Until then, this scenario will simply be added to another example of growing pains within the video game industry.

What do you think? Is the industry going in the right direction?