Are you with or against paying real-world money for virtual items in games ?

[younes]

I used to play Need for Speed World, and I am not against paying real money for buying some items. I used to play against a lot of drivers who bought cars and performance parts. It was for me very hard to conquer them. However, what scares me a lot is that those games can be shut down at anytime. They did that with NFSW and you cannot imagine how much of people lost their money.

 

[anaatef9]

In my opinion, real-world currency should only be used for aesthetics in games. It should not affect the performance or your ability to win an online game based on how much you paid. Real competitive games take this approach and it is fantastic. The whole micro transactions for skins or visuals in games acts as both a form of entertainment and a way to support game developers who put effort into their games.

 

[Miles]

There's a lot of games that put their players in an interesting situation. Many games offer the ability to buy cosmetics with real money and to me that's how it should be. However, lately I've noticed a drastic increase in which games and publishers sell you items that give you an edge in the game for real money. This type of business model may increase profits but at the harm of your players entertainment, especially when you're a large game studio/publisher and can afford to do what you want without consequence.

Overall I think at the end of the day it's your money, and if you feel like you're being cheated in a game, you shouldn't play it.

 

[sephyr]

depends. in general, i prefer to spend in-game currency only. however, if the game is made in such a way as you can legitimately sell virtual items for RL cash, then why not? I like crafting ingame.

 

[luispas]

I think that I'm a very materialist person, I love to buy anything that calls my attention, of course if I have the money to do it. In games, it's harder for me to be able to spend money on anything they sell, I think I'm loosing my money, because I would probably will end up leaving the game. I can honestly say that I've invested only in League of Legends, I bought RP, it's the only thing I would pay for in games.

 

[younes]

In my opinion, real-world currency should only be used for aesthetics in games. It should not affect the performance or your ability to win an online game based on how much you paid. Real competitive games take this approach and it is fantastic. The whole micro transactions for skins or visuals in games acts as both a form of entertainment and a way to support game developers who put effort into their games.

You are right! This is why I tend to prefer simulation games, even if it is online the good driver is going to win the race or whatever. So, it is fine to pay a certain amount of money in order to buy some items, and I do not mind to do that.
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There's a lot of games that put their players in an interesting situation. Many games offer the ability to buy cosmetics with real money and to me that's how it should be. However, lately I've noticed a drastic increase in which games and publishers sell you items that give you an edge in the game for real money. This type of business model may increase profits but at the harm of your players entertainment, especially when you're a large game studio/publisher and can afford to do what you want without consequence.

Overall I think at the end of the day it's your money, and if you feel like you're being cheated in a game, you shouldn't play it.

So nice to read that. Yeah, this is how modern games function as you know. The only one who has the power to choose buying things, is the player himself. In fact, they do not force players to do that. It is our choice. I have friends that still playing in Dofus. They buy things by using real money, and at the same time they sell items that they won with real money.
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I think that I'm a very materialist person, I love to buy anything that calls my attention, of course if I have the money to do it. In games, it's harder for me to be able to spend money on anything they sell, I think I'm loosing my money, because I would probably will end up leaving the game. I can honestly say that I've invested only in League of Legends, I bought RP, it's the only thing I would pay for in games.

Aha! I read you! So good to know that you know what you like to buy. I think it is better for you not to pay money for a game that probably you are not going to play it for so long time.

 

[OursIsTheFury]

I have no problem with it, as long as it doesn't help make the game easier. By all means, let them buy $300 worth of knives if it makes them feel better. But if a game sells items that makes the game easier, then I really have to look down on the game. Especially when it's online; where people have to grind through hours upon hours of time just to get up the ladder in the online rankings. You can't just buy your way to the top.

 

[sima061]

I think it's okay for things that don't actually affect your result in the game. If it let you win easier, it wouldn't be really fair. But if it's "looks related", then okay. I personally wouldn't spend money on that though.

 

[lindbergh]

If the game is free to play, I don't mind if the developers put a lot of in game purchases. I myself have purchased different items and packages from a couple of online games just to get ahead of the pack. They were just petty purchases and not that huge of an amount. These purchases also are acts of supporting the game developers for their effort of providing something free to play.

But if the game is not free to play, if you need to purchase or first in order for you to play it, then it offers you additional in game purchases (which may be considered as up sells in affiliate marketing), this is the instance which I find unacceptable. If you want to sell in game items, make the game free to play.

That's my two cents.

 

[giovanniiiii]

If the game is free-to-play, I do not have complaints regarding the game selling cosmetic items. I see it as how the game developers can earn. I spend so much money buying virtual goods in Defense of the Ancients 2. I love the feeling of being able to play with new items equipped. Although they do not provide additional stats, I love the feeling of satisfaction while winning AND looking good.

I do not agree somewhat to games that are not free-to-play yet they sell in game items. Why not just include them all in the first place?

 

[kenoobie]

If the game is free-to-play, I do not have complaints regarding the game selling cosmetic items. I see it as how the game developers can earn. I spend so much money buying virtual goods in Defense of the Ancients 2. I love the feeling of being able to play with new items equipped. Although they do not provide additional stats, I love the feeling of satisfaction while winning AND looking good.

I do not agree somewhat to games that are not free-to-play yet they sell in game items. Why not just include them all in the first place?

This! I love cosmetic stuffs and if that helps the studio who developed the game, then I don't mind. What I do not support is the pay-2-win model where I can buy stuff to improve my stats or along the same line. It just comes down to who has the more money to throw into the game and that for me ruins the experience.

 

[TheArticulate]

As stated by other people, as long as the buying options in games are not pay-to-win elements, then I have absolutely no problem with people paying real money for virtual items. If you truly enjoy a game, then I would almost encourage people to spend some money on in-game items, especially if the game is free to play. That money will help the developers continue to provide a high quality experience for their fans and keep the game running.

 

[WarVet]

I am 100% against it. While I understand that some younger fellas have this strong will to spend their money on online items I value my money very much and certainly won't spend it on a shitty temporary item. Some of the items might be permanent but still, I don't see it happening anytime soon for me. Better to purchase whole games.

 

[Muaaz]

The whole concept of buying virtual items for real money with android gaming by my knowledge. There are some games where developers do try to ditch gamers by squeezing each buck from us. For example in games like Subway surfer where you get a life for paying more or else you have to wait for hours to get another try is stupidity. Instead, you should sell the whole game once. similarly, Games which are of $60 like Tekken 7 to say have DLC content released after 2 months of release and which is for 24 bucks is a real disappointment as well .But there are games like rocket league which sold 40 million copies with quite many free copies and the game was 20 bucks\. No one is given any unfair way to win and you can buy good stuff like Batmobile and FnF cars which is just for the sake of adding style is in itself acceptable. So, it depends on the type of game and the mind of developers whether to hate the virtual currencies or not.

 

[Soulwatcher]

I think as long as you have the money and its within reason then its ok. I don't see the harm spending $20 here or $30 there. But if it becomes a bad habit then thats a problem. And I would also like to remind people that frown on buying in game items. There are worse then than spending money on virtual items. $30 on a mount is sure better then the person going to buy $30 worth of crack.

 

[Neiltarquin]

My stand on this one is no, I don't support buying an item using real currency. This makes other people more hooked on playing games. Especially students. Games are supposed to be fun not expensive

 

[Eli Maximilien]

I prefer not using real money to buy things in a game. If it's not something tangible that I can touch or use in real life then it's not worth my dollars. Besides, you can always just play the game to get power-ups or merchandise.

And when you consider the fact that the money you're about to spend could be put towards something else, why waste it? Your real self is worth more than a virtual avatar that's merely the product of your imagination. Be efficient with your money.