Easy. (Destiny)

by CyberKN , Oh no, Destiny 2 is bad, Friday, May 20, 2016, 17:22 (2906 days ago) @ Claude Errera

If everybody listened to you, there would be no micro transaction revenue to fuel new content. :p

What was wrong with the old system, where you simply paid for new content directly in the form of a sequel or expansion pack?

Divided playerbase.

Microtransactions = everyone having access to new content, whatever that may be. What if the price of admission to SRL was buying the $10 Record book when TTK launched? SRL would likely have failed as a result. Might have only been a single, unpolished map with a small playerbase.

Look at Halo 5. No Season pass, all content after launch is free. The result is a decent stream of almost-monthly updates, and nobody is left behind. All thanks to Microtransactions.

Uncharted 4. Cosmetic-only Microtransactions, all multiplayer content (including an upcoming co-op mode) is free.

A unified playerbase is way better than the old system, where access to the paid content was limited (often to a single playlist).

The DLC-Divided-playerbase is a logical fallacy. It assumes there are people who continue playing your game, but for some reason have decided not to pick up the DLC.

As a developer, your priority should be deducing that reason and figuring out how to avoid it in the future.

Wait, what?

It doesn't make that assumption at all - THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS. It's what has happened to every single game that has ever offered paid DLC, EVER.

And the reason is really, really simple: games are fun, but they cost money, and if you can play without paying, some people will, even if their experience is not 100% of what other people get. So some kid gets the vanilla game for Christmas, but doesn't have the money for map packs 6 months later. Or some guy buys the vanilla game, enjoys it, but on principle says "I'm not paying $15 for 3 more maps - I'll just play the existing 10." Or whatever.

Are you really suggesting that the divided playerbase doesn't happen, or that the reason for its existence is a mystery?

Sorry, I probably should have worded that better.

DLC Divided playerbases do happen, but they're not really a big issue unless you as a developer are doing something wrong:

- Quality: People who buy your DLC aren't satisfied, as a result of reviews and word-of mouth, you sell less.

- Marketing: People who buy your DLC are satisfied, but people have a hard time learning about it or why it's a good value.

-Price: People who buy your DLC are satisfied, but it's too expensive for a significant portion of your market.

There are ways to fix all these issues, and Microtransactions is one of them. I just happen to think that the end doesn't justify the means, in that case.