Oh Blizzard, how you have fallen (Diablo Immortal).

[probert]

this is the type of game you do not even try to install, as they've put so many psychological hooks into the game to manipulate you into spending money.

its like a casino, but whereas a casino always has flat odds and stable gameplay, this game will manipulate odds and chances dynamically to milk you for more money.

2022 Blizzard -- Worse than a mob run casino.

[Zarathos]

I will like to pint that the "other" page that covers Blizzard things is banning ppl if u disagree with them promoting Diablo Inmortal or other topic...This is AWFUL and i encourage ppl to stop using "that" page. Yesterday they published an "article" highlighting a "cosmetic" in the inmortal shop and people complained in the comments because clearly they were promoting that without saying the price , something important, and some of them were banned or comments were erased by a moderator called "URCHUR"...Now the comments on that post are blocked as a way to silence opinions

[Greyvax]

this is the type of game you do not even try to install, as they've put so many psychological hooks into the game to manipulate you into spending money.

its like a casino, but whereas a casino always has flat odds and stable gameplay, this game will manipulate odds and chances dynamically to milk you for more money.

2022 Blizzard -- Worse than a mob run casino.

if people are susceptible to psychological hooks and manipulation, then they have a gambling problem and need to seek help.

will I spend a few bucks here and there to get some boosts and/or save time? yeah, sure, the game was free. especially the empowered battle pass ($5) which provides benefits over the course of a season. but you won't see me buying any $20 and up packs, because I know where to set my limits.

[Nymrohd]

You meant 1 million right. There's no way it's 1k for a mythic clear of Sepulcher XD.

1k in Euro.

[Guchie]

Its weird to me to see so many people defend blizzard and the F2P/P2W model of gaming. Like the issues arent really with the average gamer like you or I, I can play that game if I want and maybe buy a battle pass for a season to see if I like it and call it good, I would never feel compelled to throw money at it. The problem is its still an entirely unethical business model cause it relies on hooking in that .1 percent of gamers who are also addicts, who will throw countless dollars at something cause they have a problem, and the fact that the business model is built entirely on finding that one person and bleeding him dry to make profits.

It just goes to show what Blizzard is as a company now, they arent about making games, they are about bleeding their consumers dry and trying to find that addict they can bleed for all they have. While they aren't the only company to ever do this, people still see Blizzard as something better than they are, they hold on to the hope that the Blizzard of old, and for many people this is just another shocking sign of the times to them on a road to realization that the Blizzard they knew and loved is dead.

[Saluna]

1k in Euro.

Ahh! Thank you!

[everydaygamer]

Its weird to me to see so many people defend blizzard and the F2P/P2W model of gaming. Like the issues arent really with the average gamer like you or I, I can play that game if I want and maybe buy a battle pass for a season to see if I like it and call it good, I would never feel compelled to throw money at it. The problem is its still an entirely unethical business model cause it relies on hooking in that .1 percent of gamers who are also addicts, who will throw countless dollars at something cause they have a problem, and the fact that the business model is built entirely on finding that one person and bleeding him dry to make profits.

It just goes to show what Blizzard is as a company now, they arent about making games, they are about bleeding their consumers dry and trying to find that addict they can bleed for all they have. While they aren't the only company to ever do this, people still see Blizzard as something better than they are, they hold on to the hope that the Blizzard of old, and for many people this is just another shocking sign of the times to them on a road to realization that the Blizzard they knew and loved is dead.

Why should we care about that .1 percent? If it wasn't this they'd probably just be addicted to something more self destructive.

If the majority of people can deal with it no problem why should it be restricted just for the sake of that small number that can't handle it.

[Elim Garak]

The problem is its still an entirely unethical business model cause it relies on hooking in that .1 percent of gamers who are also addicts

Nonsense. Gambling addicts are broke. There's a very limited amount of money in that market, which in and of itself is tiny. It's a very BAD business plan you are imagining here.

The money are in the populations with disposable income they don't know what to spend on, and they choose entertainment. Video games are entertainment.

Gambling is not entertainment. Gambling is a way to make money by playing games of chance.
Gambling can only be entertainment for the RICH "ok I've got 100k lying around gotta hit casino and lose it all and have some fun".
If you think casinos are making their profit off gambling addicts - oh boy. Casinos are the entertainment venues for the RICH. They go there to trickle their riches down. Only idiots go there to get rich. And just like with the lottery sometimes idiots luck out. Which is awesome for the casino - because more idiots are coming to part with their money. The casino doesn't even need to use predatory techniques. Unless you want to posit that letting a poor shmuck win fair and square is a predatory technique.

[Veggie50]

Nonsense. Gambling addicts are broke. There's a very limited amount of money in that market, which in and of itself is tiny. It's a very BAD business plan you are imagining here.

The money are in the populations with disposable income they don't know what to spend on, and they choose entertainment. Video games are entertainment.

Gambling is not entertainment. Gambling is a way to make money by playing games of chance.
Gambling can only be entertainment for the RICH "ok I've got 100k lying around gotta hit casino and lose it all and have some fun".
If you think casinos are making their profit off gambling addicts - oh boy. Casinos are the entertainment venues for the RICH. They go there to trickle their riches down. Only idiots go there to get rich. And just like with the lottery sometimes idiots luck out. Which is awesome for the casino - because more idiots are coming to part with their money. The casino doesn't even need to use predatory techniques. Unless you want to posit that letting a poor shmuck win fair and square is a predatory technique.

No money in gambling addicts? Somebody better tell vegas o.O

[Elim Garak]

No money in gambling addicts? Somebody better tell vegas o.O

Vegas knows better where the money are.
There are very few gambling addicts for them to be the source of revenue for the casinos.
You know that not everyone who goes to the casino is a gambling addict, right?
And the gambling addict must have the SOURCE of money to be profitable LONG TERM. A poor schmuck who loses their entire life savings in one go - is sad, but that doesn't make them a gambling addict and if they cannot recover the loss - the casino will never see them again. Also if they learn the lesson.

And they all gamble their money - not the casinos. Casino only takes what they lose (or pay for drinks and food and girls/boys), and mathematically out of all the gamblers - most lose without any predatory techniques. PURE MATH. That's casinos business model.

Casino only have to pay their own money if someone wins big, bigger than the current day losses. But that's mathematically RARE.

[Grimbold21]

This is only getting the traction that it is because it's Blizzard, even though WoW has long been plagued by predatory practices as well.

Now the explicit endorsement is out in the open via D:I and everyone is up in arms about it, just because a company which people once cherished has turned into what any sensible person would disdain.

[everydaygamer]

This is only getting the traction that it is because it's Blizzard, even though WoW has long been plagued by predatory practices as well.

Now the explicit endorsement is out in the open via D:I and everyone is up in arms about it, just because a company which people once cherished has turned into what any sensible person would disdain.

It also doesn't help that streamers made up a number that noone can really confirm but will happily rally around.

[Redroniksre]

This is only getting the traction that it is because it's Blizzard, even though WoW has long been plagued by predatory practices as well.

Now the explicit endorsement is out in the open via D:I and everyone is up in arms about it, just because a company which people once cherished has turned into what any sensible person would disdain.

This. The business practices are absolute garbage, but checking out the store, they are literally just gacha mechanics. The way everyone was blowing up about it, i was expecting something extraordinarily bad, but no, literally the same (if not tamer) than Genshin Impact. Didn't see nearly as much complaining about that as I have this.

[Osmeric]

Evaluating everything in your life like this is a quick way to fall into terrible depression or psychotic episode! No mentally sound person sits around evaluating every minute of every day in terms of "how much is this minute worth to me?" It's like peering behind the veil in an incredibly unhealthy way lmao

This has to be top form gaslighting, calling an entire profession insane. Truly stunning coping behavior there.

- - - Updated - - -

If one company gets away with it, then others will follow suite. We won't have games without MTX because every game will eventually have MTX. Snip that shit in the bud before it has a chance to grow into anything. That's why people are complaining.

To the extent P2W is a scheme for fleecing whales, you shouldn't care. There are two mostly separate markets, and providing games for one doesn't affect providing games for the other. The P2W games will eventually saturate the exploitable whales, reducing the ROI of making games targeting them.

[Grimbold21]

It also doesn't help that streamers made up a number that noone can really confirm but will happily rally around.

What? The 100k dollars?

The amount is irrelevant. One is either agaisnt this sort of thing by principle or they're not.

[Orby]

This is only getting the traction that it is because it's Blizzard, even though WoW has long been plagued by predatory practices as well.

Now the explicit endorsement is out in the open via D:I and everyone is up in arms about it, just because a company which people once cherished has turned into what any sensible person would disdain.

Pretty much this... this forum needs a like button

So instead take this +1 Like :P

[chiddie]

This is only getting the traction that it is because it's Blizzard, even though WoW has long been plagued by predatory practices as well.

Now the explicit endorsement is out in the open via D:I and everyone is up in arms about it, just because a company which people once cherished has turned into what any sensible person would disdain.

WoW token is a “passive” p2w mechanism too. It’s not explicitly advertised but it’s there since ages and I’ve seen far less complains, probably due to the fact that WoW by design it’s way less ssf than an ARPG.

But if you think about it, selling gold you can use to buy ingame “services” (boosts) or AH objects is not THAT different than directly selling objects (don’t remember if DI shop sells gear, got there to buy the 5 bucks pass and then never bothered to open it again).

In both cases you’ll get advantages if you spend enough real money. But in one case, the game at least is free.

[PsychoSe7eN]

WoW token is a “passive” p2w mechanism too. It’s not explicitly advertised but it’s there since ages and I’ve seen far less complains, probably due to the fact that WoW by design it’s way less ssf than an ARPG.

But if you think about it, selling gold you can use to buy ingame “services” (boosts) or AH objects is not THAT different than directly selling objects (don’t remember if DI shop sells gear, got there to buy the 5 bucks pass and then never bothered to open it again).

In both cases you’ll get advantages if you spend enough real money. But in one case, the game at least is free.

Wow tokens only served two purposes, for Blizz to dive into the gold selling market legally and to divert illegal gold purchases as much as possible. Thinking it's more than that needs a reality check. Blizz knew there is no way to stop illegal gold selling, so the next best thing is to tap into the market without killing the economy and make some money in the process.

[Ashana Darkmoon]

This has to be top form gaslighting, calling an entire profession insane. Truly stunning coping behavior there.

- - - Updated - - -.

Huh? Lol ask any psychologist whether you should think about your life that way and if it is healthy.

Has nothing to do with economics as a discipline (though it does have a lot of problems! all soc sciences do)

You've made 23000 posts on this forum. Imagine how much money you could have made!

or don't, because that is a crazy way to think about life!

[MoanaLisa]

I get the feeling we are not going to change any minds in this thread. We are just spinning wheels in the air.

It's pretty clear that the point of this and other threads is to fight with people, not listen or learn anything. I guess that's fine but doesn't help anyone that's trying to learn anything about the game. Luckily it's free so people can just pick it up and play it; decide for themselves.