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Every man and his dog has taken a swing at Bethsoft's Oblivion horse armour, which means this subject has been beaten to death. However, we discussed this very issue back in December, so I thought it was worth a quick revisit.
At the time, I mused that some custom in-game armour might sell for $4.99 - it's lucky I don't work for Bethsoft because it turns out that price point would have gotten me lynched as soon as I left the building. According to our poll at the time, 67% of respondents said they would never buy in-game items, 25% were only interested in "full" expansion pack and only 7% were in favour of the idea.
So, how did it turn out? Bethsoft says they exceeded their expectations - we'll have to take them at their word. The $1.99 - $2.50 for some horse armour generated plenty of column-inches of commentary and disgruntled Internet denizens hits boards all over the web…but that wave quickly passed and with some adjustments, it's back to business as usual. Bethsoft screwed up by releasing a paltry, overpriced mod first up instead of wowing shoppers with something meatier to get them hooked - but the next up cheat mod Wizard's Tower at a reduced price looks just the thing to impress.
Ultimately, many people are concerned about a slippery slope - will future developers intentionally leave content out to sell it separately? Will the box one day contain a bare-bones engine - NPCs sold separately? I agree with Penny Arcade's Tycho - that slope has already slipped.
Xbox 360 players are snapping up themes and screenshot packs and the biggest business in town is spending more to download a lo-fi version of a favourite song to a cell phone than you would for the MP3 at ITunes…people want to customise their experience and $2 is trivial.
Here's what I said last time:
Ultimately, whether this is a good thing or not for gamers depends on maintaining the integrity of the gameplay, with judicious use of add-ons to enhance the play - rather than selling out the design in the name of ongoing revenue. Can the games industry do that? I can see the potential but I have my doubts.
…and that's where this is at. This can be a good thing but there will be plenty of attempts to rip us off along the way. Caveat emptor. |
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Side Quest: Would you like fries with that, Pt. 2
