Mike Jaeger
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Posted - 2011.06.23 15:12:00 -
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Here's my two cents (a real microtransaction). Many are upset that items like the monocle are priced at insanely high prices like $60 dollars; REAL eyewear could be purchased with that amount (albeit it'd be cheapo garbage). This was a bit of a shock.
Now you compound this surprise with revelations (real or not) from CCP Soundwave and the EVE rumor mill that you might be able to pay for a reskinned faction battleship? Last I heard, that plan was retracted, but the threat to the game's balance has been made clear. If items that contributed directly to gameplay were made available solely on the NX, such as ammo, ships, skills, whatever, this would disenfranchise all of the playerbase who are unwilling to part with their real money and are incapable of fronting the ISK for plex.
I don't have bilions of isk disposable for PLEX. So, RMT is my only option at the moment regarding the NX. If there EVER comes a time where new NX items demand that I fork over my own money to keep up with the competition, my enjoyment of the game will be seriously hampered, and I would probably quit.
However, the Noble Exchange, as it currently stands, is quite benign in my eyes. It's aptly named. There are players who have more isk than they can use. Being provided, and i stress this next phrase, purely aesthetic vanity items is a pretty cool feature. CCP makes some more money, and the wealthy EVE trillionaire gets to show off his new monocle. Is a 1.3 billion isk monocle useful? No. Will players revere those who can and do buy them? I know I won't. But if it gives the player purchasing the item any sense of gratification, then that's perfectly fine.
So what happens if the NX starts selling items? Be it through ISK or through real money, CCP's bottomline will grow because of NX's success. More items will become available on NX. More time will be spent working on NX. But, does this mean that a proportion of CCP's precious man-hours are going to be shifted away from fixing technical issues and working on gameplay? I hope not, and I see no proof that this will be the case. Chances are that the NX program involves the graphical designers, and maybe 1 or 2 programmers. So, chances are that team BFF and all the others who fix and improve gameplay will continue unaffected.
Make no mistake, I was really looking forward to Incarna - and I still am. I for one far prefer CQ over station
spin, but i wish they would leave station spin as another option. Having options is a good thing, even if it's an option to throw away money on frivolities.
TLDR; kick and scream so that NX only deals with aesthetics, and not gamechanging items. Claw and snarl if CCP neglects other aspects of the game in favor of the NX. Trying to kill NX off by grieifing those who use it won't be successful, nor should it. Focus on the other two issues, they're the real threat to the game. Not monocles.
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