Here's something I don't think Blizzard gets... maybe I don't get it....

[spleen1015]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

[anon5123]

Number of people who hate microtransactions is tiny compared to the number of casual "gamers" who will gladly shell out tons of money in microtransactions.

Hence why almost every major game has them these days.

[ONCHEhap]

10% of people using microtransactions gives them more than the 90% that doesn't

[Faroth]

There's far far faaaaar more money in the micro-transaction model. It's being adopted as an industry standard because the data supports it.

Even if it does prove to be disastrous for long term health of the industry, it's making money hand over fist right now and that's all investors care about.

[Ryzeth]

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

You do. There is.

[Segus1992]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

It should be painfully obvious that there's more money in that model. That should not be a question for anyone, ever. What it can do is damage the reputation of the company if it's done poorly, and therefore harm the future player trust and in effect also MTX sales.

Number of people who hate microtransactions is tiny compared to the number of casual "gamers" who will gladly shell out tons of money in microtransactions.

Hence why almost every major game has them these days.

This is also not true - the thing is just that while many people will buy one or two MTXs, many won't at all either. The "whales" that remain can often give several times a full game's worth of money for a game, which makes up for those who play for free.

[unbound]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

Yes, there is more money in those micro-transaction games.

There is a whole graveyard of game genres that don't really exist anymore because developers rush to where the money is. Keep this firmly in mind when any large game company tries to feed you a line that they care about you...they don't. They care about your wallet, and if they see a different gamer with a fatter wallet, they will abandon you with no regrets.

[McCrazy]

I don't play on my phone, because the screen is much to small. I can't really see what happens clearly on these things. I don't think, I would be good at a game, where things need to move fast.
Besides: I have a totally good computer with two big screens and superfast internetconnection. Why should I play something so inconvenient for me to pay extra?

It's been known for a long time, that Lord of the Rings Online makes a lot more money with the game since they made it free-to-play with ingame-shop. You can play for free to get these Shop-Points, but it will take you a lot longer to progress through the game.

[Ozyorkbourne]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

If a game is free and I'm enjoying it, I don't oppose spending a little bit of money on it, so long as it's proportional to how much time I play the game (So long as spending isn't NEEDED to progress further). Given that I don't own consoles or buy any £40-60 games on release, I don't mind it that much. But at the same time I don't play many phone games either (Bluestacks, don't use my actual phone).

[Daevied]

Plays Hearthstone, hates micro-transactions.... lol

[rogueMatthias]

It could be worse. SFV, if it wasn't already enough of an overmonetised shitshow, is now doing in game product placement.

[chrisnumbers]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

Maybe I have it wrong. Maybe there is more money in those $1 micro-transaction games and we're not the type of customers they are looking for any more.

They aren't turning to mobile titles, they're adding them.

[Eosia]

People like me who play WoW, HotS, Hearthstone, SC, Diablo, we aren't your casual gamers that are okay with micro-transactions. We like long, complex games. They are losing their base by turning to mobile titles.

When did Congress pass a law that says they can't do both? They'd be stupid to not alienate their core customers, yes. But it would also be stupid to not explore new streams of revenue. Not to mention that Activision-Blizzard has the #3 and #7 top-grossing games on iTunes right now under its umbrella too.

So it's not like they don't have skilled mobile developers that can do it other than the team members. Some members of those teams are moving around, yes. But a lot of that is they want to so they can try something new.

[Teri]

Plays Hearthstone, hates micro-transactions.... lol

Can be played 100% free.

[Deleted]

https://modelviewculture.com/pieces/...nt-in-the-room

“These people are very valuable users who are single-handedly making games profitable so that game companies can make a lot more games for those people who don’t pay anything.”

– VentureBeat, “Only 0.15 percent of mobile gamers account for 50 percent of all in-game revenue”

should be similiar in WoW. So even if 50% of people quit over microtransaction, its still a win for blizz. Plus they dont need to create nearly as much content. Just enough to keep the whales happy, so you give them mounts with extremely low dropchances etc. and then let the shop do its work.
I mean just look at 8.1, just enough to make a few people happy, give them a little bit of content. Just enough so they play but not much. Because content costs money. And then pump out those shop mounts.

We cant even blame blizzard. Its a successful model.

"Unless the developers of a game, app or online service have the well-being of their audience in mind when deciding on their monetization model, they are bound to abuse their consumers. There’s a choice between exploiting people’s weaknesses, and building a stable system where good design is worth paying for; many will choose the first option, simply because it’s easier. It takes less thought, less empathy, and while it may not be the best long-term plan, it’ll make enough profit in a short time to be worth it."

Another fitting quote from the article:
"Even now we can identify the characteristics of a manipulative microtransaction model, as many of them share similar mechanics: content that is time locked for several days [...]"sounds familiar doesnt it?

[Mazinger-Z]

Mobile gaming is to gaming what reality TV is to television.

It's low effort shit with an amazing ROI.

The only thing that gets damaged is the culture consuming it.

[Jazzhands]

It could be worse. SFV, if it wasn't already enough of an overmonetised shitshow, is now doing in game product placement.

Just out of curiosity, did you take that screen cap today? Because uhhh, today is the start of Capcom Cup, you know, SFVs biggest event next to Evo, the culmination of the pro tour that's being promoted. Granted it's been a few weeks since I've played SFV, but those weren't around last time I played.

More on topic: Blizzard wants to do both. They can make PC games and Mobile games. Not every product Blizzard makes will be aimed at you, and all this crying because Blizzard is "betraying" us and making Mobile games is just that. Crying.

The hatred towards the word mobile is insane to me. If you don't like them, cool, tons of people do, and any gaming company with a brain will try to get into that market because it's a smart business decision to do so.