Neuntausend
Sebiestor Tribe Minmatar Republic
1769
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Posted - 2017.07.28 17:26:24 -
[2] - Quote
Arcelian wrote:I don't get why that $15 USD is such a barrier for entry, maybe I'm just privileged. You probably are. I probably am. I'd say most if not all Eve players are - they have the luxury of having a gaming-capable computer, internet and electricity after all. I think paying a recurring fee is more of a psychological hurdle for most people who would even consider playing a spaceship game on the internet. That's why microtransactions work so well. People *feel* more in control when they can play the (supposedly) full game whenever they like, and only pay when they feel like it. Whether they actually do have more control that way is a different topic.
I do not believe that cheaper PLEX equals more players anyway, unless the price drops to a level easily sustainable even by casual, low SP players. And if they were that cheap, most people would just start plexing their accounts, and they would not stay that cheap for long. Way back in the day, when PLEX didn't exist, and players still traded game time codes for ISK on the forums, I was able to witness how this goes: I was playing other games back then, such as Archeage 2 and World of Warcraft, and I found a few people interested in Eve. So I brought them over from there. They did not want to pay for it, despite being perfectly capable of sustaining 15 bucks a month. So they tried to grind their way to a GTC, which was maybe 300M back then. They did this for a week, two weeks, maybe 3. One of them made it far enough to actually purchase his next month, but gave up on the one after that. It's just not fun, it's work. And not only that, for most people it's work they do so they can keep working for a few months, and they quickly realize it. And if they are unwilling to pay 15 bucks for the game, I reckon tha majority is not willing to work for a couple of months to become self-sufficient either.
Ultimately, I do not think that "I feel better not having to pay 15 bucks a month" beats "I want to make as much space-money as I can when selling 15 bucks worth of game time". Both are valid in their own right, and the rest is up to the free market.
Another problem I see there: Lower PLEX prices would potentially reduce the influx of PLEX into the game as well. Why would anyone in their right mind even sell a PLEX for let's say 500 or 300 million ISK? That's 15 bucks for what? A single not even expensively fit T2 Cruiser or a Battleship? |