The Blizzard Store and the Monthly Fee. What you need to realize.

[Lomak]

He's ultra-hardcore.. He's so hardcore we aren't allowed to see it for fear of our eyeballs melting from our face.

Aw, poor nerd. Did the other nerd not share his Nerd rep sheet with you. So you could see how much nerd cred he has to back up his nerd complaints?

I mean, how can we take anything anybody says about a video game seriously if they don't show us their doll?

Go back to your play pen with the pillow walls and watch your pony show before you hurt yourself.

Infracted.

[Flower Milk]

Sorry, but I don't want to pay a fee to be able to have a chance at paying another fee to get things.

Not to mention they charge way more for things like mounts and pets than even F2P games do, it's just weird. If they want to have a subscription + micro transaction model, they need to do like other games and go F2P with subscription optional plus perks to go along with it.

[DrSteveBrule]

Fuck you and your corporate apologies.

Take that infraction with pride, sir.

You pay a monthly fee to be able to log in to your account and play; nothing more, nothing less.

Where were you when we had this discussion about LFR and players demanding content be accessible to them because they payed $15 a month?

[atrixx]

I'm one of those that have been playing since around 2006 as well and unsubbed again - I did it during Cata. At some point the game just gets boring and you move on until the next expac. I don't see why people can't just do that without whining about it. With that said...

The Blizzard store items are NEEDED badly for Blizzard right now. A news article out last week highlighted that importance of these microtransactions and Hearthstone to ActiBlizz. They are losing Chinese players in droves right now because the market is so competitive over there. However, those accounts are relatively low revenue accounts. So even though they've lost 4 million players since the peak, it hasn't massively impacted the bottom line. Why? The Blizzard Store. They are able to offset any losses with micro transactions for in game items and services.

We see activity like this happen in many industries. The airlines are the big ones with the ancillary revenue. Your ticket gets your butt on the plane, but in most cases you pay for everything else in an a la carte fashion (Southwest is about the only one that doesn't do that). It is no different here. Your $15 gets your butt through the door but if you want the pretty sparkles and the next over saturated mount, you pay extra.

Heartstone is the next big step for Blizzard moving into the F2P arena. I think they are going to watch it very closely on how the micro transactions work out for it and I wouldn't be shocked if WOW goes F2P with microtrans at some point. I'm think more like a SWTOR model where you have both systems running side by side, but the better revenue stream comes out of breaking things apart.

We can't fault Blizzard for loading down the online store with more options. It is almost clock work - put in a new mount or pet = $5 million (or thereabouts) pay day. This is something the Western customer base has supported so far and it is helping to offset any potential losses from the Eastern customer base. Love it, hate it...its business. Will we ever get to the point where we got F2P and you have to pay $20 for a token to unlock the raids, BGs, or arenas for a month? I doubt it. However I can definitely see it expanded greatly to more transmog gear, tri-spec, player housing/farm 2.0, better bank/repair bots, etc. Nothing that gives anyone a clear advantage in defeating encounters, but pure quality of life enhancements.

[Mawnix]

What you need to realize:

Blizzard does not hire a new team to create premium items, they have old workers create them. What happens when people are spending more time on one thing and less on another? One of those things goes down in quality. Or, are we going to fool ourselves and assume that everyone is spending more time working to be able to create the same amount of "free" content along with premium items?

You get frustrated because people don't get it? It's not quite so simple.

Or you're over reacting and reading way too much into it.

Inb4 "no you're wrong and here's why".

[lupii]

Aw, poor nerd. Did the other nerd not share his Nerd rep sheet with you. So you could see how much nerd cred he has to back up his nerd complaints?

I mean, how can we take anything anybody says about a video game seriously if they don't show us their doll?

Go back to your play pen with the pillow walls and watch your pony show before you hurt yourself.

Waaaaah! The big bad Lomak made me cry!

It's all about cred dude, its ALL about credibility. =P in a world where everyoen and their dog are anonymous, theres gotta be times to verify stuff.

Also, whya re you goin after me when ur the one talking about an imaginary caste system that blizz somehow treats us as?

[Flower Milk]

The Blizzard store items are NEEDED badly for Blizzard right now. A news article out last week highlighted that importance of these microtransactions and Hearthstone to ActiBlizz. They are losing Chinese players in droves right now because the market is so competitive over there.

I hope you realize the Chinese pay model has always been something like "pay to play once at an internet cafe, now Blizzard counts you as a subscriber". They have been padding their subscription numbers in this way since they released the game there (remember that peak in Wrath? Hey WoW was released in China around that time!). It would not surprise me if Chinese players are just not playing WoW in internet cafes anymore and have moved onto the other popular games there, which are LoL and Dota. I'm sorry, but it is hard to really gauge the Chinese player base and how long they have been playing and how much they play because of how their subscription model works, plus I really doubt they contribute THAT much to profits considering how their subscription model works as well. To say this store is needed because of them is something no one but Blizzard will ever know.

[The Madgod]

This definitely needed it's own thread yeah..

Considering the amount of talk circling around this topic and ignoring this fact, I would say a thread reinforcing this is absolutely warranted.

[Arogor]

You pay a monthly fee to be able to log in to your account and play; nothing more, nothing less.


The Blizzard store is not a slippery slope, it is a smart business move to bring in more money for the company. The more resources Blizzard has, the more content they can develop and the better off we are as players.

So it's ok for them to start charging us for raid/pvp gear since we're able to play without it. And the extra income and development might just go into new items for the store.

[Lomak]

Waaaaah! The big bad Lomak made me cry!

It's all about cred dude, its ALL about credibility. =P in a world where everyoen and their dog are anonymous, theres gotta be times to verify stuff.

Also, whya re you goin after me when ur the one talking about an imaginary caste system that blizz somehow treats us as?

You pay an initial fee.
You pay a subscription fee.
You are still locked out of content within the game.

All facts.

It's an insult to peoples intelligence to try and spin that any other way, and it's disingenuous to give the excuse "oh they are only cosmetic".......

99% of the things in the game are cosmetic. From the way my character looks, the way he attacks, casting animation, the way gear looks. "It's only cosmetic" is a piss poor excuse for a disgusting business practice that is only succeeding because of the gullibility of the majority of blizzards "fanbase".

[Mawnix]

So it's ok for them to start charging us for raid/pvp gear since we're able to play without it. And the extra income and development might just go into new items for the store.

Another instance of people overreacting.

Ill say it one more time:

By selling RAIDING GEAR and PVP GEAR they would lose money. It would drive away PVPers and PVEers, causing sub losses and thus a gigantic loss of money.

Can you name a game where the developers sell actual raiding/PVP gear?

[Nemah]

Most MMO developers add itemshops so they can reduce the cost of their subscriptions or other premium services.

Blizzard adds an itemshop so they'll have more resources to make more item shop items.

I have to admit, I laughed because it's at the very least partly true.

I'm one of those that have been playing since around 2006 as well and unsubbed again - I did it during Cata. At some point the game just gets boring and you move on until the next expac. I don't see why people can't just do that without whining about it. With that said...

The Blizzard store items are NEEDED badly for Blizzard right now. A news article out last week highlighted that importance of these microtransactions and Hearthstone to ActiBlizz. They are losing Chinese players in droves right now because the market is so competitive over there. However, those accounts are relatively low revenue accounts. So even though they've lost 4 million players since the peak, it hasn't massively impacted the bottom line. Why? The Blizzard Store. They are able to offset any losses with micro transactions for in game items and services.

We see activity like this happen in many industries. The airlines are the big ones with the ancillary revenue. Your ticket gets your butt on the plane, but in most cases you pay for everything else in an a la carte fashion (Southwest is about the only one that doesn't do that). It is no different here. Your $15 gets your butt through the door but if you want the pretty sparkles and the next over saturated mount, you pay extra.

Heartstone is the next big step for Blizzard moving into the F2P arena. I think they are going to watch it very closely on how the micro transactions work out for it and I wouldn't be shocked if WOW goes F2P with microtrans at some point. I'm think more like a SWTOR model where you have both systems running side by side, but the better revenue stream comes out of breaking things apart.

We can't fault Blizzard for loading down the online store with more options. It is almost clock work - put in a new mount or pet = $5 million (or thereabouts) pay day. This is something the Western customer base has supported so far and it is helping to offset any potential losses from the Eastern customer base. Love it, hate it...its business. Will we ever get to the point where we got F2P and you have to pay $20 for a token to unlock the raids, BGs, or arenas for a month? I doubt it. However I can definitely see it expanded greatly to more transmog gear, tri-spec, player housing/farm 2.0, better bank/repair bots, etc. Nothing that gives anyone a clear advantage in defeating encounters, but pure quality of life enhancements.

This is exactly right. I will never understand why it's so hard for people to grasp that (any MMO) WoW is the product of a business and therefore subject to the changes that the leadership of said business desires.

No business forces you to spend money with it, you do so voluntarily. There really aren't many gray areas there. You either find your happy with it / justify the expenditure, or you decide that it's a dealbreaker for you and you don't.

The rest of it is just so much gnashing of teeth and wailing.

[Mawnix]

You pay an initial fee.
You pay a subscription fee.
You are still locked out of content within the game.

All facts.

I never knew stuff I could wear on my head which couldn't benefit me whatsoever was "locked out content".

Wait a minute.. You're right!

I just bought the sparkle pony, and when I ride it, I feel the powers of the Titans flood through me, giving me a 50000000% dps boost!

You're absolutely right!

[The Madgod]

You pay an initial fee.
You pay a subscription fee.
You are still locked out of content within the game.

All facts.

The same could be said of many games nowadays.

The difference is that the content you're locked out of is purely aesthetic novelties, rather than any truly meaningful content (read: content which is part of the core of the game). If they were selling unique DPS potions or high-end armor, you might have a meaningful point.

Otherwise, you're just making a mountain out of a molehill.

[Schmeebs]

I don't even like the way any of the helms look...

[Chaosturn]

They're gonna sell charms iirc? which means they're basically selling gear - Doesn't matter if it's just a small chance for gear, it's still gear in the end. I could be mistaken though

[lupii]

I never knew stuff I could wear on my head which couldn't benefit me whatsoever was "locked out content".

Wait a minute.. You're right!

I just bought the sparkle pony, and when I ride it, I feel the powers of the Titans flood through me, giving me a 50000000% dps boost!

You're absolutely right!

OMG I gotta go buy that right now or Ill never beat the game! D= -runs to blizz with my pocketbook open-

[Fagatronics]

LOL! I love the thread title: "What you need to realize." Thanks for the education, Dad.

You know what makes more money than the Blizz store? Subscriptions. Focusing on getting and retaining those would make them lots more money.

Most MMO developers add itemshops so they can reduce the cost of their subscriptions or other premium services.

Blizzard adds an itemshop so they'll have more resources to make more item shop items.

^ Basically this

[Vigilant]

Most MMO developers add itemshops so they can reduce the cost of their subscriptions or other premium services.

Blizzard adds an itemshop so they'll have more resources to make more item shop items.

You can't know that for a fact.

What if *what if* Blizzard adds itemshop items so that it can keep the monthly subscription fee at $15. $15 isn't what it was in 2004, but can you imagine how pissed everyone would be if they raised the monthly subscription fee from $15 to $20? Perhaps generating revenue from the itemshop allows Blizzard to keep the monthly subscription fee at $15 instead of raising it, which in turn leads to a happier playerbase and better company image?

Seems equally possible, if not more plausible.

[Zalkercin]

You're ignorant if you think it'll stop at purely cosmetic stuff. You'll be seeing different sort of buffs to ingame currencies soon enough. Be that honor, conquest, valor, justice, charms - you name it.

I unsubbed today, been playing since early 2006 - and this is where I get off. It's the principle and the lack of integrity on Blizzard's side - not the current content.

HOO FREAKIN RAY!!! Now, if all the other crybabies would follow suit, everyone's mmo-c experience would be so much better.