Free vs Freemium vs Upfront games (Gaming)

by cheapLEY , Monday, March 05, 2018, 13:22 (2456 days ago) @ Korny

It's really tough to say, but I was having a conversation with Malagate (or Galvan_Eyes, depending on your platform) last night about the future of games in a "post Destiny 2 screwup" world, and we came to the conclusion that a "piece-meal feature" world where things such as maps are free, but optional features (such as a photo mode) are bought and supported straight from the devs themselves, was the ideal solution. An extreme example of this already exists: players wanted DE to sell a Premium cosmetics bundle in Warframe, so DE posed the question to the community: What do you guys want in the bundle, and how much should it cost?
Seriously. Even Jim Sterling was taken aback. So yeah, the developer put the power in the players' hands, and it's all in the name of supporting a free game.

Can you see that working with traditional story based games? Like Horizon: Zero Dawn or The Witcher 3 for example? I just don’t know how it would work and still feel like a pleasant and seamless experience. Or do those just stay as traditional pay $60 and then you get the whole game?

I’m playing a lot of Elite: Dangerous still, and the way that game does it still bugs me. It’s $60 to get the base game plus the expansion. That’s fair, there’s a ton of content there, and it’s supported well. They offer tons of cosmetics that you can only get with actual money. There’s no way to earn anything in game (with the exception of a small set of ship decals based on your current rank). Each ship has what are essentially body kits you can buy, there’s clothes and accessories for your pilot, and then ship paint jobs. Hell, you even have to pay to be able to put the name of your ship on the side. I don’t mind them charging for shiny things, but there is literally zero customization of you don’t give them more money after the initial $60 purchase. There’s not even a basic color selectionbfir your ship—even single colors are sold in packs. And you have to buy them individually per ship. It’s really sleazy.