The store is becoming obnoxious.

[Deleted]

2014 and people still believe all the trash and hype blizzard.con dish out, they are a greedy unscrupulous company.....who just happen to make good games.

[Thelxi]

The only obnoxious thing in the cash shop atm is the instant level 90. I can live with that but it's a slippery slope that sheep can't wait to slide down.

[Deleted]

Play SWTOR if you want an obnoxious store.

Theres subtle difference here: swtor is free. I'm not used to paying twice for the same product m8.

[Sidious78]

2014 and people still get surprised about companies trying to cash in where people will pay. Sheesh. I bet you that if you could, you'd wanna earn as much as possible from the services you provided. Who wouldn't? Of course people on the internet often pretend to be more of a saint than they actually are.

I don't mind Blizzard making money. But for people stuck on low-pop realms (and yes, they have halted the realm connecting) the server transfer charges are nothing but pure highway robbery. Other games offer this for free. In fact, new MMO's are moving away from multiple server or shards or whatever they have been calling it.

25$ for an automated file-copy operation, which is >99.9% pure profit, is greedy by the very definition of the word, as found in the Meriam-Webster dictionary: "having or showing a selfish desire to have more of something (such as money or food)".

Sure, I never paid for transfers (played on Stormscale). I would consider my self an idiot for paying such an amount, unless I wanted to give charity to Blizzard. But what you do with your money is none of my business. I do however feel sorry for people stuck on low-pop realms. That's a real game breaker.

[Aleksej89]

What shop?

I only saw the button on the log in screen, i don't see anything annoying or obnoxious about store buttons in the actual gaming UI.

I never went into the shop, primarily because i just don't care about mounts and pets and the current transmog gear in shop is ugly.

People who are hating on the shop sound really lost and confused...

[billielecter]

I think Blizzard is moving subtly to 'half-free" mode by keeping the sub fee while adding more products in the store, thus they can make profits from both sides. However, it's very reasonable to suppose that store mounts averagely look better than game mounts because they are made to attract customers, they definitely need to have pretty face. I admit that store mounts are impressive and very unique, they are in cool skin, sublime skeleton and great style, as they are made to sell. Hopefully Blizzard will invest the money they make from store properly into the further development of WoW--to make this game full of content but if they couldn't I would not buy any thing from the store to assist WoW committing suicide.

[billielecter]

2014 and people still get surprised about companies trying to cash in where people will pay. Sheesh. I bet you that if you could, you'd wanna earn as much as possible from the services you provided. Who wouldn't? Of course people on the internet often pretend to be more of a saint than they actually are.

Some services are charged too high in store. Being greedy doesn't mean being better, one may look at WoW nowadays and compare it with the old time, Blizzard is definitely more greedy than Vanilla time but the game isn't better( a lot of arguments here). The store mounts and boosting services don't necessarily make the gaming experience better, it depends how Blizzard uses the money they make from stores and invest into game development. Blizzard is supposed to make this game better because they make this game more accesses to make money.

[Ballack]

Oh noes..not really. Look at this forum. It is full of cool people who can see Blizzard for what they really are AND make topics about it for everyone to see. Sucks that they make good games, eh? Because now you just HAVE to buy and play them and can hate Blizzard even more.

"a greedy unscrupulous company" - oh aren't gamers a cute bunch. They voted EA the most hated company, while nobody seems to give two fucks about the truly greedy and unscrupulous companies like oil and gas companies, weapon manufacturers etc and all the scum that contributes to fucking up the world and the environment. But hey..let us hate on a company that makes GAMES...an entertainment that NOBODY needs and where you really have the power to show them by witholding your money with ZERO effect on your survival.

You do realize people can hold two thoughts in their head at the same time right? We're in a gaming forum, specifically a Blizzard-focused game forum. So we are gonna talk about Blizzard and their game, not oil companies and weapon manufacturers.. Besides, your statement that nobody seems to give two fucks about the truly greedy companies is downright false.

[LilSaihah]

Not exactly sure what you are paying twice for "m8" - last time I checked nothing in the store was mandatory (and I guess one could argue nothing in the SWToR store is mandatory making it truly f2p".

You buy the box, then you pay the subscription fee. Before you can start the game, you're paying twice. That's where that comes from.

[CataclismicSunrise]

Personally, I love it when new crap gets added to the store because I love spending money. I LOOOOOOVE spending money. It's fantastic. I trade numbers for things and then I have stuff! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Why just last week I spent over 3k on a PC I don't need and an iPad that I don't want. But I know I'm going to die one day so I might as well blow all my cash while I still have it.

What's greedy is wanting all your stuff for nothing. I don't care about your monthly sub. Blizzard is a multinational corporation, how many people do you think they have to pay every week or whatever? Fucking loads of people! And I don't even want to think about how much tax they have to pay.

[Deleted]

Not exactly sure what you are paying twice for "m8"

My mistake, we pay four times for the same product:

- we pay for box,
- we pay sub,
- then we are forced to buy 5 expansions ( because them being optional is just illusion )
- then on top of that we have to buy the rest of content in shop

What is next? An hourly access on top of subscription?

[cityguy193]

You buy the box, then you pay the subscription fee. Before you can start the game, you're paying twice. That's where that comes from.

Its like people forgot that you need to buy 100$ worth of expansions to actually get into wow, while paying 15$ a month.

To a new player, that sounds completely stupid, and I would understand why they would rather go play wildstar which is like 45$ a box with all the coupons and sales.

- - - Updated - - -

My mistake, we pay four times for the same product:

- we pay for box,
- we pay sub,
- then we are forced to buy 5 expansions ( because them being optional is just illusion )
- then on top of that we have to buy the rest of content in shop

What is next? An hourly access on top of subscription?

A degenerate here will claim that expansions "are not mandatory." I had friends who quit since BC, just to attempt to come back before realizing that in order to play with me, they need to pay what is essentially 60$ or a new AAA game, on top of the sub fee. This is just to attempt to test if the game is fun for them so they can actually pay for them, because leveling is not indicative at all for how the game is played 90% of the time.

If expansions "expired" a year and a half after their release, so that by now MOP would be free and a new player would just need to pay 15$ a month to get playing, then not only would that help the sub base and players who want to get back in, it would directly combat the end of expansion content lull, and help boost up numbers during that time as well.

[LilSaihah]

Its like people forgot that you need to buy 100$ worth of expansions to actually get into wow, while paying 15$ a month.

To a new player, that sounds completely stupid, and I would understand why they would rather go play wildstar which is like 45$ a box with all the coupons and sales.

I don't even know how WoW's expansion model even fucking works.

You have to buy, what... The base box, Cata and MoP? Do you have to buy the base box, or is that free?

[CandyCotton Marshmallows]

The other games HAD to make the switch because they cannot survive the subscription model *cough*SWTOR*cough*

Blizzard however, if you check sub number (minus Asian market players as they don't pay subs), times by the monthly sub cost, that is how much money they are getting, per month, on top of whatever selling in the store.

They are not doing that switch to F2P anytime soon, stop dreaming.

PS.

Lets say currently Blizzard get $X from sub every month.
Currently Blizzard make $Y from store average per month.

IF Blizzard go F2P, Blizzard now make $Z from the store a month on average.

$Y - $Z = the increase in store income, let's say it is $D (for difference)

unless $D > $X, it is not worth it.

Out of 7mil sub, let's say 3mil of them are Asian players, that leaves 4mil of monthly paying sub, 4mil x $15 = $60mil a month.

I seriously doubt the increase in store income will be anywhere near $60mil.

let's say it is 4 mil during a quarter; that doesn't mean they all stay subbed the entire 3 months; out of the ones that do, some of them have 3/6/12 mo recurring subs. Puts it more like $30 mil/mo. That is still $360 mil/yr from EU/US.

Now, let's take the idea that they are already making 2/3 of that from the store. Some people will NOT buy mounts/pets/etc from the in-game store based solely on the fact that they pay for xpacs and a monthly sub and feel that is double dipping. There is a good chance a decent portion of that $30 mil/mo will still come in, but instead through the store (I would gladly, when I had the funds available, buy about a mount a month for both my wife and I, if there was no sub). Now, consider there are also a lot of players that would like to play WoW, but cannot justify a monthly sub if they only play a few hours a week ... but through the miracle of human psychology, they may possibly buy a mount they think is awesome or a pet they think is cute.

Ok, let us take it to the next level. Un-binding the mounts and pets. Make them all to be sellable in the AH or through trade chat; which they've experimented with already, so have an idea of the issues that could arise and prepare/plan/prevent them. This means, like in other F2P games, you now give the ability for 'whales' to spend their extra income on the game they love and in turn support the game plus earn some in game gold in the process. The 'free' players get a shot at owning the store items, if they just play the game and earn the gold.


If they went F2P; it would guarantee my wife and I would still play; and over the years, still spend money with them when we felt like playing.


It also does something else; at some level, it lowers entitlement (justified or not). Instead of people saying to themselves 'why am I paying for a game they keep making changes to it I hate'; they can't use the 'I pay for it, it should be the way I want it' card any longer. Btw, that sentiment is correct; demanding the game to cater to them isn't ... you can question why you patron a company that diverges from what you like; but you shouldn't tell them how to make their product just because you patron them. A cash shop (which does not mean P2W) helps to separate that attitude, because what you spend is always a choice, and for things you want ... not just access. You buy a mount. You still have the game for free. Those are separate entities in that situation. You could find the mount quality (animation/artwork) unworthy and complain about that and it be justified; but you could not say, 'I bought a mount; therefore these gameplay changes you made suck and you should revert them.


The store buttons are easily ignored once you get used to them; but it was I think a bit much to put it on the log in screen. It isn't quite obnoxious or in your face; but neither are any of the other cash shop access in other MMOs. If only they did it like Rift's brilliance and made the shop also a way to sell junk items and some consumables that you'd go to a vendor to get in the first place. Yeah, it would make those vendor mounts a bit obsolete, unless they gave them some special mount only items

[Acelius]

This makes me wonder, why is Blizzard stepping up their game with regards to the store?

They keep losing subscribers, so might as well gain as much cash as possible before WoWs end.

[slime]

As an alliance player I have to whole-heartedly disagree that the wolf mount is lack-luster.

[rda]

Tons of games have seen success after making the switch, and while WoW still dominates the sub market, it's in a decline. Once it slips a bit more, wouldn't it seem like a good idea to go free-to-play? It has the potential to reinvigorate the game.

I personally wouldn't want it. I agree that Blizzard charge in too many ways for the same game, and that this is bad. But the direction I would like them to go is to ditch the store and to make all paid-for services free, retaining the sub. Sub is predictable, it's all upfront, I consider this a huge plus.

[DeleteThisUser]

I like the in-game store for WoW. It's not right in your face like other games.

[cityguy193]

I like the in-game store for WoW. It's not right in your face like other games.

WoW launcher starts up.

BUY BUY BUY, NEW WOD MOUNT. 6 MONTHS EARLIER THAN WHEN ARE ACTUALLY RELEASING THE EXPANSION
NEW LEVEL 90 BOOST GUIDE

[cityguy193]

lol I just opened my wow launcher. Nothing what so ever about buying anything, minus the pre order for WoD. Hypberbole more pls?

It was there for the past couple of months. Its been replaced by and Ad for that Azeroth Chopper Bs.
The preorder boost thing is still up there.

The fact is that you are paying 15$ a month, and are being advertised to still.