Are People Here Really Ok With This Sort of Thing?

Yeah I know the assets they use may be cheaper than creating them from scratch, but they defiantly aren't free since this is a commercial game. So selling them is very justified. The only problem I see is in the cost. While some might say it makes them rare.. rare doesn't pay for the game either if no one can afford to buy it. I understand the need for funding from the online store, but I do agree that it is a tad overpriced at this point.

 

Yeah I have absolutely no problem with Portalarium selling something like this (the price LOOKS bad, but it is what it is). Anything to help them develop the game. Hell, I'm for an optional monthly fee for some perks! (ala ESO Plus).

*ducks and hides*

 

The first post is a wee bit inflammatory - might want to copy @DarkStarr's response into your OP and your revised thoughts. I don't personally see any issue with it, whether they get it from Unity or a bounty from a player it all costs money/time to develop a game and put neat stuff into it - and ultimately they ALSO put in a ton of "free" aka craftable stuff this release too. This is one of the best releases for in-game craftable decorations actually and on the whole I'm quite happy.

 

The value of virtual goods needs more research. Primarily the value of virtual goods is based upon peer pressure, continued use of the game, and perceived exclusivity.

All of the items in game are or will be available in Offline mode. The value of virtual assets is not based upon the asset but rather the social interactions associated with the asset.

References:

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/b612/5d5169de05e6ff0a0ae8fb8a96d9980e6dac.pdf

https://www.researchgate.net/public...orlds_An_empirical_test_of_a_conceptual_model

http://www.gamesbrief.com/2011/07/i...-for-virtual-items-are-stupid-youre-an-idiot/

 

I don't feel I was being inflammatory at all in my original post and I am certainly not trying to anger anyone and am not angry with anyone, I don't see how that can even be suggested. There's no need to blow my post out of proportion as if I'm trying to be nefarious for asking a question and stating dissatisfaction with something. I was happy with many of the items that were craftable in game this patch but questioned this one thing in the add-on store, and Darkstarr replied with the reasoning for the pricing so I believe the matter is explained clearly by him and I'm satisfied with his answer and thank him for that and should have just been able to go on my merry way happy with the explanation, not here defending myself now. *sigh*

 

@Ice Queen People who are familiar with what's involved in implementing something like this in an MMO, and who are very defensive of the game (rightly so) are only concerned with the kind of message your post sends, to other people who may have unreasonable ideas about the price of things. They don't want anyone to get the wrong idea, is the thing. New people, maybe.

I think it would be a nice gesture on your part to add an EDIT: to your OP, but you did nothing wrong and people should also be congnizent of the fact that it's an easy thing to misunderstand. Heck, even I was like "wow..." but, it is what it is.

 

Apologies, I know there's no way to read tone in a paragraph, I'm just saying how it read for me - I'm just a fan of editing answers into the OPs as people will start reading the first post and reacting to it without realizing things have been resolved further down the thread.

As I said, there's no way to read tone - and I think you read my tone in a way I did not intend it. I could have phrased my response better and did not intend to put anyone on the defensive. Typing from iPhones and all that.

 

So download and place it on your lot... oh, wait....

 

yes ok with thiss and initialyy i thought what DarkStarr said.
May its free, but it need to be implemented, tested, and licensed to re-sell.
Portalarium need our money to develop the Game constantly, it ever won't be necessary anymore to earn money to keep the game online.
I asked myself sometime ago what would happen if the Game wont be successfull and thought about the money i put into it and if in that case i cannot use it anymore or
maybe i will even be able to run it offline solo?
another nice thought were to be able to play and be the host for coop friends, if this happens that the game need to shut down servers one time.
Hell, i don't want that, but i thought about it, because when i read such concerns, what i find are legitimite, i think there will be maybe less people in the future paying for Deco
or other things.

 

EA would be proud.

 

At least the Horse is usable in game, right now. I'm contemplating spending $170 for a spaceship in another game that is no more than a few paragraphs and a picture. This game won't be released for many more years.

EA is a highly successful company with a long history of successful games. No company, person, or creation of man (or woman) is perfect.

I won't be buying the horse, not my style, unless they release an EPIC sized one for a couple bills. What's the chance of an EPIC HORSE the size of a Keep?

 

No worries, you're right, tone is hard to convey sometimes on both sides, the poster and ones replying, so neither of us mean any offense. I was fine though seeing Starr's explanation and he explained how things may seem free that aren't and warrant their pricing so I'm am fine to leave it be, but still don't think the prices add up right. Very few things in life upset me and I'm not inclined to let a video game or forum do so, it would just be silly.

Though I still think their pricing on items is just way too much, you can buy the game for $40 but the add-on items are excruciatingly overpriced. In being it's all overpriced, there will be possibly fewer sales, meaning less money coming into the game constantly to support it. Your average gamer will not buy items in the add-on store because of the prices. There are no cheap impulse buys in the add-on store that give a person the sense they are getting a good deal or even needed.

Have a wonderful day all and enjoy the weekend!

 

I'd be quicker to do this then buy things from the store. I guess it's an old perspective, but buying anything from the store feels so cheatery to me. But as most people don't seem to have a problem with it, they should sell anything they have a license for at whatever price the market will tolerate.

This is a pretty disturbing idea, that it should be exceptional to have content put into the game that doesn't have to be paid for piece by piece. Ostensibly, the purpose of having the store is so that all that 'free' (by free, we mean at the cost of the base price of the game) craftable content gets developed.

 

I don't care anymore either way.......however what I would say is that $50 is the price of a brand new complete game.......and $20 the price of a complete game in a sale.

 

Welcome to Shroud of the Avatar!

 

Here's a wild and crazy thought... make a great game and you'll get some sales. Selling free assets for the sort of money that buys a real AAA game is not a good look.

This is precisely the kind of thing that people rail against in gaming, in general, and is also something that gives tons of ammunition to the anti-SotA crowd. Terrible

And to the, "it's not free" argument. What are these artist's hourly rates? At $50 a pop, you recoup any sort of cost pretty damn quickly and are then into pure profit.

 

Even if it was 100% free and took zero time or resources to add it into the game, you have to take the prices of similar items into consideration.

It's a functioning economy, and for those of us who would prefer to keep it that way, the only way I would *not* be OK with this 'sort of thing' is if they were adding it for free, and thus driving down the prices of both similar add-on store items and similar craftable items. Could you imagine if they decided, ''hey, it was free anyways, lets just give every player one to morally satisfy our haters!'' They could add one item like this every day... the economy would be flooded with free items..

I mean yes, that's the opposite end of the scope, and still manages to give the ''anti-SotA'' crowd ammunition (which they will find no matter what happens guaranteed), but really all I'm saying is that new items need to have similar pricing to items they are related to, otherwise who's going to buy the expensive stuff when they can settle for the cheap stuff?

 

Essentially, one would be paying $20 to get that horse statue placed on his/her own house or $50 for the huge version. Whether the price is worth it or not, that would be entirely up to the person. Personally, I would only pay up to 1/2 of that.

Does it really matter how much does it cost the team to make? I mean... would you feel happier if it costs the team $2k worth of man hours to make a $20/$50 add-on store items?

This applies to consumer products in real world as well. For example, those Beats Dr. Dre does not cost $100 each to make one.

 

Well, I would much prefer if the game didn't rely so much on cash shop items. I prefer games where everything is craftable or discoverable through gameplay.

But, as much as they're doing this, it doesn't make a difference to me what cost it took them to create the item. You aren't paying to own the 3D model, you're paying to own the game world object. And its priced comparably to other statues they're selling, right? Then, they put in some custom items the Portalarium artists created themselves for no charge. So, it's even.

 

maybe now that everyone knows where all the game assets come from - we can pick the next telethon rewards