Which game-impacting paid service will be introduced next?

[Deficineiron]

Recently blizzard introduced their first 'Pay-to-Level' service, a novel way to allow players to upgrade an existing character (even a brand-new level 1) to a max-level character for the price of 4 months regular subscription.

While there is a strong consensus that this is not a 'pay-to-win' feature, most players would agree that gaining up to 90 levels instantly, as well as in some cases instantly maxing what are often expensive professions to level, does have some miniscule impact on a player's experience in the game world, particularly if it is their character which receives these benefits.

What do you feel will be blizzard's next non-cosmetic paid service to be introduced? What would you LIKE to see introduced in this category?

My personal thought is that blizzard would like to find a way to sell gold without saying they are doing it in plain english. The boe pet was endorsed as a way to indirectly buy gold explicitly. The third-party gold market is very large in dollar terms, and blizzard could charge a large premium over prevalent rates simply due to the safety of being able to buy it that way.

what are your ideas?

[Amerissis]

It's technically not a max level, as it's a WoD feature and that max level is 100. It's just live a bit earlier. Also buying and selling that pet wasn't buying gold, it was relocating it. Someone else earned that ingame, no extra gold is made.

I wish they'd have Plex/Credd like EVE and Wildstar. Being able to buy gametime with gold is something i'd love.

[Deficineiron]

It's technically not a max level, as it's a WoD feature and that max level is 100. It's just live a bit earlier. Also buying and selling that pet wasn't buying gold, it was relocating it. Someone else earned that ingame, no extra gold is made.

I wish they'd have Plex/Credd like EVE and Wildstar. Being able to buy gametime with gold is something i'd love.

Re pay-to-level - as far as i can tell, if I give blizzard 60 bucks today, i get a max level toon today (and I get charged today, and they book the revenue today). Not sure what wod (which doesn't even have a release date) has to do with this feature. If they wanted it to be a wod-only feature it wouldn't be available yet, or it would only be level 85 now, etc.

maybe I am wrong and you cannot actually buy a max-level character today, live?

I do agree on the pet, and have wondered if they might try to find a more easily resold boe item to put in cash shop.

Here is another idea - how about ability to buy valor or whatever the gear-buying points are? price it so it hurts a little (like the level 90 thing), and even better, introduce it halfway into wod, include it in a description of features about the following expansion and call it a catch-up feature, but let it go live a year earlier, like level 90 purchasable did, so you can actually buy points today for max level gear today. When folks object, you can remind them it is a next-expansion feature and it just went live a little early, so it doesn't really count.

[ro9ue]

Honor Point / Justice Point boosts.

[Rixis]

Considering the number of people bitching and whining about "stupid pandaland", this was probably a smart response from them.

[The One Percent]

Likely something to do with garrison convenience.

[Beej]

Leveling professions. Uhg, I hate leveling them. With each new expansion it makes it that much more unpleasant to level a new profession. And generally speaking, its the awful, awful awful 1-300 bracket. That bracket needs an overhaul. Or maybe the entire profession leveling system as a whole. Each expansion just compounds everything to a new level with professions as it currently stands. I'd probably pay $10 to use this service next time I find myself wanting to level a profession from scratch.

[Jingoism]

Paid for pvp gear. Why else would they ruin quick rating dropping/gearing up in 2s?

[Deleted]

Profession boosts would be my bet for their next paid service.
They already do that with the lvl 90 character, under specific circumstances, so why not introducing it separately, for a fraction of the 90 character price?

[Vaelanor]

It seems as though they ruin something many many months prior to introducing the fix. Which happens to involve money.

[Deleted]

I can see this thread go downhill in minutes. There is a vocal minority of people on these forums that will grab any opportunity to blame Blizzard for everything that is wrong with this world. But, what the hell, let's see how this goes

I doubt Blizzard will start selling gold themselves any time soon. Though I am sure that they will eventually, now is not the time for it. However, I think some other things will be going live soonish (tm) that have MINOR impact on the game-world:

- Upgrade your professions to max-level for €9.95. Either per-character or per-realm across the board for all.
- Crafting material bundles from previous expansions for only €4,95 per stack of 200 of each (all cloth, herbs or ores)
- Additional character customization. For €4.95 you will unlock an extra glyph slot
- Upgrade any piece of gear or weapon for €9,99 instead of 1000 Valor points

Will any of these impact the game world? Not really. Like with store mounts or pets, it's something you don't need to be successful at anything and it also is available to the players without the use of the shop. And like the instant level 90 characters, you can do without the purchase and get there the normal way. These would just make the in-game life easier to people, just like the current in-game store items do.

[Pebrocks The Warlock]

Lets not speculate on what is next and instead work on trying to get rid of the idea of paid services.

[Deficineiron]

It seems as though they ruin something many many months prior to introducing the fix. Which happens to involve money.

They have some very very smart marketing people. I am completely serious when I say I admire that part of the company greatly.

[Bosen]

Racially Themed Garrisons.

Transmog Weapons.

[Deficineiron]

New? What was RAF / SOR?

Hmmm..who knows? Something related to Garrisons or eventually (I see this coming) our permanent homes anywhere in Azeroth in 7.0?

hello, mr det.

RAF did allow accelerated leveling, and granting of levels under controlled circumstances. It was also free for the participating accounts under the correct invitation arrangement. there was no charge beyond normal charge to start new wow license.

sor/80 was free. once again, free is different from pay. In fact, you didn't actualy have to pay a dime for this one the first few days, adn only normal sub fee later.

Pay-to-level is not free. it requires payment, up front, in cold hard cash.

In this post we learned that 'Free-to-level' services are free for players with a valid wow license and monthly subscription (instant80 exclusion known) and who met additional tighter criteria, and 'Pay-to-Level' services have a specific fixed cost associated beyond the above (and can be purchased by basically anyone also)

thanks for your garrison thought, btw. Lots of good ideas on the thread. Other ideas, such as profession 'boosts' hadn't even crossed my mind as a specific service despite me naming them as part of the pay-to-level service.

$15 dollars to max whatever professions a given toon has at time of use?

[AlereanJr]

I don't really understand why they don't sell gold. It's like weed; take it out of the black market, regulate it and tax it!!!. Personally gold services seems more acceptable to me than insta-90's. They did it for the D3 auction house, so why not do it for WoW. I can only imagine the revenue if such a service was provided...

[Amerissis]

Re pay-to-level - as far as i can tell, if I give blizzard 60 bucks today, i get a max level toon today (and I get charged today, and they book the revenue today). Not sure what wod (which doesn't even have a release date) has to do with this feature. If they wanted it to be a wod-only feature it wouldn't be available yet, or it would only be level 85 now, etc.

maybe I am wrong and you cannot actually buy a max-level character today, live?

I do agree on the pet, and have wondered if they might try to find a more easily resold boe item to put in cash shop.

Here is another idea - how about ability to buy valor or whatever the gear-buying points are? price it so it hurts a little (like the level 90 thing), and even better, introduce it halfway into wod, include it in a description of features about the following expansion and call it a catch-up feature, but let it go live a year earlier, like level 90 purchasable did, so you can actually buy points today for max level gear today. When folks object, you can remind them it is a next-expansion feature and it just went live a little early, so it doesn't really count.

Oh, did I hit a nerve? Come back when you can buy a max level char in WoD. And please explain why it is called a level 90 boost and not a max level boost :-)

[Deficineiron]

I don't really understand why they don't sell gold. It's like weed; take it out of the black market, regulate it and tax it!!!. Personally gold services seems more acceptable to me than insta-90's. They did it for the D3 auction house, so why not do it for WoW. I can only imagine the revenue if such a service was provided...

I believe the third-market is a meaningful fraction of the size of the subscription revenue from wow in the west. In other words, it is huge. The problem for activision-blizzard is perception, and I don't see that they have found a way around that yet.

[Jingoism]

I don't really understand why they don't sell gold. It's like weed; take it out of the black market, regulate it and tax it!!!. Personally gold services seems more acceptable to me than insta-90's. They did it for the D3 auction house, so why not do it for WoW. I can only imagine the revenue if such a service was provided...

Probably the same reason they removed the RMAH(aside from it ruining D3), tax/legality issues.

[Stormspellz]

They haven't yet.