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EA makes a move to surely stir a hornet’s nest.
EA has announced that they will be building micro-transactions into all their future PC and console games, in a move that comes in the wake of the decision to put them into Dead Space 3.
Speaking at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference (the talk transcribed by Seeking Alpha) EA’s Chief Financial Officer Blake Jorgensen said “We’re building into all of our games the ability to pay for things along the way, either to get to a higher level to buy a new character, to buy a truck, a gun, whatever it might be. Consumers are enjoying and embracing that way of the business.”
Dead Space 3 wasn’t the first game to include micro-transactions, with Mass Effect 3 and Need For Speed: Most Wanted having boosts that could be purchased. In the past, EA has outsourced the operation of these systems, but will be bringing them in house going forward.
But what do you think? Do you hate the idea of EA charging for micro-transactions when you’ve already paid for a retail game, or do you not care as long as they don’t give players an advantage?
Source: Eurogamer
I’m moderately okay with this. For now.
My problem really comes along when a company decides to charge full price for a new game AND include micro-transactions that are basically necessary to play through said game to completion. That’s an issue and is one of the reasons I don’t even really take a shine to the ‘free to play’ model of game.
Even if I’m not paying for the initial download, I want to pick up the game and be able to play through at least the main campaign without worrying about how much I’ve collectively spent on ammo or upgrades or some other such nonsense.
Add the cost of a new game to that and micro-transactions go from aggravating to unacceptable.