this post was submitted on 15 Jan 2024
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Going into a cosmetic shop and purchasing the exact cosmetic that you saw and wanted is not gambling.
People complain even MORE about subscriptions. There is a very good reason that wow and ffxiv are some of the only games around that can make it work, or you can do it like fortnite crew but people will complain again if you don't have enough content to create value on it.
Nothing wrong with a simple cosmetic store. They also allow other people to play without paying whatsoever.
And if it wasn't clear, I'm not talking about loot boxes or gacha, at all. Those are gambling and predatory, and exactly why I said it's disingenuous to lump every f2p game together for discussions like this.
Cosmetics are still used to nickel and dime players. Better to sell a complete package, or make it a subscription service, regardless of what players think they want, because it's better to not be psychologically manipulated into making a purchase. Advertising is also bullshit, for the record.
Subscription services rely on the customer forgetting and paying for something they don't necessarily actively want, especially in gaming, not sure how thats such a better alternative than a cosmetic you can simply not purchase.
There is no psychological manipulation for a straightforward cosmetic purchase lol
They don't rely on it, and you can make a model that requires you to purchase months in advance, and refill as necessary, without charging again once that's up.
There absolutely is psychological manipulation, that's what advertisement is. Are you saying they make cosmetic shops some hidden feature you have to unlock? Lmao. Even just seeing it in-game is subtle manipulation into buying more.
F2P games are experiments in psychological manipulation more than they are games.
By your logic, going to a store and looking at clothes is predatory and manipulative.
On a much smaller level, sure. Advertising in general is predatory and manipulative. F2P models are stores you cannot leave without leaving the game entirely, unlike paid games.
Advertising in general is a way for a person to show people they have a product worth buying, so the producer is able to make a living on it.
This argument isn't even about consumer protections anymore, it's just anti-business. I'd be completely with you if there were only giant FAANGS corps in gaming, but there are also small developers trying to make a living.
Also, the same example I've been using, I just now opened league, the homepage is defaulted to the latest patch overview. If you hit the play button you go straight to the lobby and from there into a match, all without seeing an advertisement. You're making broad generalizations that only accurately describe some of the worst store models, and you're generally acting like it's a horrible thing for a business to pursue profits
I'm aware of the purpose of advertising, that doesn't make it not manipulation. Additionally, advertising to purchase more of the product you're already using while you're using said product is scummier than advertising a one and done transaction, or a continuous transaction that isn't further advertised in-game.
I'm against the profit motive, but obviously I understand that there are degrees and shades. That's why I said I'm more okay with products that don't manipulate you while you're using them, like one and done transactions or subscriptions.
You still see advertisement in LoL because nearly every player uses skins that aren't the base, whether they paid for them or not. It gives out free loot crates that further incentivize gambling by giving you a taste of something addictive.
The profit motive leads to bad things, yes, but the way you go about them is different. See: Celeste, or Hollow Knight, or Signalis, or even AAA games like Prey, or multi-player games like CS:Source, all games that advertise and then cease to advertise once you're actually in-game or have purchased them.