Tobold's Blog
Thursday, February 28, 2013
 
Weird Free2Play

As Leo Tolstoy's says at the start of Anna Karenina, MMORPG subscription models are all alike; every Free2Play model is Free2Play in its own way. Is it pay-to-win? Can you only buy fluff? Or does Free2Play allow those with more money than time to make up for the difference? And it seems that every game has a new answer to these questions. But the weirdest one I have seen up to now landed in my mailbox today: "Reveal Your True Power: The Lineage II Underwear Event!"

Apparently you can not only buy sexy underwear for your Lineage II avatar, but that underwear actually has stats! Obviously you are far more powerful if you wear a sexy man-string than if you only wear boring boxer shorts! And finally I understand all those upskirt shots in Asian MMORPGs: You need them to check your gear!

Comments:
I guess it is a good thing the F2P market is vibrant and trying so many new things out. But it will be simpler if there are a few standards. $15/month may have been too much for some, but at least it was clear and up-front.

IIRC, wasn't it Terra where high-end armor was more revealing than wearing no armor?

But the real money maker was Second Life where entrepreneurs would not only sell you the underwear but ... uh ... what went inside it shall we say.
 
There is always a market for every kind of product. If they decided to sell that... stuff... It's just because there will be a LOT of horny players ready to showcase their panties.

It sounds sad, yes. But money is money.
 
Just out of curiosity, I checked the price on those sets. They cost 1900 Ncoins each. You can apparently buy 4000 Ncoins for 50$ (anything below that is not enough for a set).
This means that a virtual pair of sexy lacy panties costs about as much as a real one. Of course, the real ones don't have stats, but they might look *fabulous* on you ;)
 
I'm sure Tobold looks gorgeous inside a +10 STR pair of socks
 
Those socks are so strong, they stay up all by themselves!
 
Sex sells. Even imaginary pixel sex. :P
 
Victoria's Secret rakes in million of dollars in profit, why should online be different?

Next, we'll be buying virtual Porsche 911. Wait! We already have swift mounts that cost $50!
 
This basically boils down to being pay-to-win and purely aesthetic content combined. Ultimately, I'm no fan of the free to play model. I'd rather pay for a game and have everyone on even footing, than to have micro transactions of any kind.
 
biobreak has a good post with some expanded thoughts on this topic, I thought you might like to know.
 
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