Thirty minutes into playing  href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/110"
target="_blank">Dungeon
Runners
, a F2P gamer loots a health potion that
he can use only if he becomes a subscriber. Thirty minutes later, he
loots a “Giant Can of Whoop Ass,” a blunt weapon that is better than
what he has equipped. His warrior won’t be equipping the can because
it’s for subscribers only. Later our F2P gamer plays  href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/769"
target="_blank">Requiem:
Bloodymare
. He gets a decent pickup group and is
mowing through enemies. Oddly, one of his group mates has gained three
levels in the time he has gained one. A little discussion reveals the
gamer who’s gained three levels is using an EXP +30% consumable item he
bought in the item mall. In both play sessions, our F2P gamer was
reminded that F2P games need the support of microtransactions to
operate, but is one method better than the other? Do “open games” (F2P
titles that make their money via item malls) have more success than
“closed games” (free-to-play games that restrict some elements of
gameplay), or vice versa? My response is that neither method of pushing
sales is better because companies either can execute both well
or in a way that hurts the game.

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Failure to buy a box and obtain this
awesome Bling Gnome does not ruin the experience in
Dungeon
Runners.

What to Do

In solid open game formats, gamers can enjoy the entire
experience of the game but are able to purchase items that enhance
their play experience from the item mall. Common items you can buy at
the item mall in a good open game are extra inventory space, special
cosmetic changes (clothes and hairstyles that do not affect the
strength of the character), and permanent versions of items players can
acquire for free for a limited time in game. As an example of a
permanent item a gamer might want to buy but that is also available
temporarily in the game for free, look no farther than  href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1234"
target="_blank">Runes
of Magic
. Players can rent mounts in the game
using the gold they loot from monsters, or they can buy a permanent
mount using real cash at the item mall. style="font-style: italic;">

In
good closed game formats, players are able to complete all content just
like subscribers, but the subscribers have an easier time doing it. style="font-style: italic;">Dungeon Runners
serves as the shining example of this type of revenue model. In my
fictional story of the F2P gamer who plays style="font-style: italic;">Dungeon Runners,
that guy wouldn’t be able to use the greater health potion, but he
could still use the lesser version. It means he is more likely to die,
that his challenge is greater, but it does not prevent him from
completing content. Likewise, the Giant Can of Whoop Ass would allow
him to kill monsters faster, but not using it won’t prevent him from
killing any monster.

The common theme in games that peddle their wares correctly is that
freeloaders are not precluded from participating in anything. When my
fictitious F2P gamer logged into Requiem,
he was able to play right alongside the person who used the item mall.
With more play time, he’d even be able to keep pace with the gamer who
used the EXP +30% consumable.

What NOT to Do

In
poorly-designed open game formats, gamers who spend money can complete
content that freeloaders have access to but no realistic chance to
finish or failure to spend money creates a rift between freeloaders and
those who buy things from the item mall. Common mistakes in games that
do it wrong are level curves that are nearly insurmountable without XP
boosters from the item mall, methods of instant transportation that
disrupt groups in game, or difficulty tweaking that provides an even
challenge for paying customers and a nearly impossible play experience
for freeloaders. These mistakes manifest as players feeling they have
to purchase XP boosters to have any chance to see the high end content,
part of a group having instant travel to a dungeon or town while the
freeloaders have to run, and epic weapons in item malls being a
“required” part of a boss strategy. For a specific example of something
that bugs me (and reader miggy),
look at the aging system in href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/856"
target="_blank">Mabinogi.
Gamers can continue to play forever without buying a rebirth from the
item mall, but the growth of their characters suffers. Older characters
earn less AP each week, meaning that a player who pays for rebirth will
always have a stronger character than a freeloader. (NOTE: The
developers have actually mentioned to Ten Ton Hammer that they will be
adjusting their aging system in the upcoming free expansion  style="font-style: italic;">Pioneers of Iria,
so developers actually understand this notion well.)

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Dofus
is a very cool
game, but the free part is really just a trial.

In poorly-designed closed game formats, players who do not
spend money are unable gain experience beyond a certain level or enter
particular areas if they do not subscribe. With all due respect to the
folks at Ankama Games and Kingsisle Entertainment, neither  href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/45"
target="_blank">Dofus
nor  target="_blank">Wizard101
is a F2P game. When I had a chance  href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/34827" target="_blank">to
interview Ankama about Wakfu,
I asked about the restricted experience of the free version of style="font-style: italic;">Dofus. Despite the
answer I got, I still view the free experience of style="font-style: italic;">Dofus as a trial;
it is NOT a full game. Similarly, players will never experience certain
content in Wizard101
without subscribing or participating in microtransactions.

Parting Thoughts

I am willing to play games that use an open format or those that employ
a closed system to promote revenue…provided they’re built correctly.
Both design models are subject to flaws, and I have encountered good
and bad examples of each in my play experience. In the end, the trick
is to make a F2P game so good that I want to spend money to support
further development. Using hurdles to my progression or separating me
from my friends with more disposable income is just lame.

Do you have examples of games that do it right?  href="mailto:mailto:%[email protected]">Email Ralsu
to let him know.

The Top Ten

href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/62442">Continue
to page two to see Ralsu's
latest Top Ten list.



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Last Updated: Mar 29, 2016

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