One of the most pressing subjects in the world of gaming is microtransactions. In part responsible for the high revenues of current games, especially when it comes to free games, microtransactions are part of the monetization models of most games. Although their use has become popular, in some cases, they have been the focus of extensive controversy among players.
Overview
The book Microtransactions as a Business Model in the Video Game Industry seeks to explore just that. This study results from a detailed and thorough analysis of this new strategy to monetize all types of video games. Written by Gvidenis Seliukas as his bachelor thesis in 2015, this research not only conducts an investigation on several business models in the video game industry (the retail model, digital distribution, subscription model, player-to-player trading model, crowdfunding, and early access and advertising model) but also goes into detail on how microtransactions have been implanted in the gaming industry.
In fact, this is similar to how payments are made in the online casino game sector, which has multiplied its payment facilities in order to attract more customers. For instance, CasinoSmash has a page ranking Paypal casino sites where it explains that the service is increasingly being included as a payment option at US online casinos. The quick and easy service gives its users increased security and confidence. The difference being is that this has always been the payment structure for online casinos, and as such, did not have to contend with established norms in the way that the video game industry had to consider.
In the video game industry, microtransactions have been met with conflicting views. In order to better understand the benefits and weaknesses of this tool, this title focuses on four case studies. These are examples of four companies that have employed microtransactions on their titles and their respective success. For those more interested in the practical impact of microtransactions on specific titles, you will find a relevant analysis with the author taking into account three free games: Zynga’s Farmville (which had its third version released in November 2021); Hearthstone (a fast-paced strategy card game deriving from the Warcraft universe), and League of Legends (one of the most popular online battle arenas “free-to-play” PC games). In the analysis, the author details the games’ adoption of microtransactions.
EA Controversy and Players Motivations
Seliukas also explores the case of Electronic Arts (EA) and how the giant publisher suffered from their “pay-to-win” policies, which affected titles such as the FIFA franchise and Star Wars Battlefront II. This section is particularly interesting as the author explores the difficult relationship between players and EA while describing some of the developer’s biggest controversies and their disastrous introduction of microtransactions in single-player modes. This section further explores how these transactions were met across different devices (computers, consoles, and mobile).
The book also seeks to answer other questions related to the motivations for players to spend money on free video games, why the microtransactions model sometimes fails and how it should be implemented. In this last section, the author makes several relevant points, including how in today’s extremely competitive game landscape free games must treat players as a finite resource and their primary source of income.
Ultimately, what this book delivers is a relevant message on the importance of players not feeling alienated. In order to achieve this, game developers and publishers must strike a balance between the different players they are selling their game to and what specific advantages can in-game purchases offer.