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Francis rages about Microtransactions

They get made the same way every single other title gets made. Only difference is when they started to work on said project is case by case depending on studio / publisher getting green lit for the project and when the dev kits arrive etc.

There isnt something magical or special that goes into a first party launch title making them different from the rest when it comes to the backend work.

Its not wanting to eat costs, but more wanting to eat more money seeing recent trends with social gaming pay schemes.

i mean, making a game that most likely cost the same or more than previous gen games for an audience of maybe just a million or 2. You aren't gonna make GTA5 numbers back.

and this being first party, i'm sure they like to recoup some of the R&D costs of the xbox.
 
Maybe he can tell his buddy Major Nelson to fix it. Oh that's right, he's just some guy with a dumb character.

cGMH4rl.gif
 
Going by ubertag's post..... Screw you Don, screw you for screwing us over. And screw your attempts at the online DRM you were trying to push through!

/end rant.
 
Yup.I think this action gives a more loud and clear message although it depends on the kind of microtransactions that are in the game and how they affect the game's design.

If a game includes micro transactions, 9 out of 10 times the game will be heavily impacted by it from a design standpoint, because buying these items should be encouraged to maximise profit. I think we all should just say no to this across the board. I know it's black and white thinking, but quite frankly, for every game that may do it right, there will be a thousand that don't.
 
Boogie and Francis on the same day? Awesome.

I completely agree with his opinion in that he's thinking about this in the mindset of a person who doesn't throw around $60 like it's nothing to them. I'm tired of hearing from guys like Sessler who don't take this into account and it makes them sound like a corporate apologist when they most likely didn't have to pay for it.
 
I'm amused by the fact that Boogie cited Blizzard expansions as the predecessors to DLC when in fact the very first game expansion disks were, oddly enough, extra cars for a driving game.

Back in 1989.
A driving game that is near and dear to my heart.
Test Drive II: The Duel.
Which, I owned for the Commodore 64 and then subsequently repurchased for the Amiga.
I still remember purchasing the Supercars and Muscle Cars floppy disks from my local computer shop (which was called Neutron Computers).

$T2eC16V,!wsE9suw)ph9BQvMvhzWJ!~~60_35.JPG


How many cars did you get on this disk? 5
You got a Lambourghini Countach, a Corvette ZR1, a Porsche 911 RUF, a Lotus Turbo Esprit... and, my favorite, a Ferrari Testarossa.
And it retailed for about $25 or thereabouts.

628815915_tp.jpg


The fun twist is this.
Test Drive II: The Duel was developed by Distinctive Software and published by Accolade.
This studio was purchased a couple years later in 1991 by Electronic Arts and remolded into EA Canada.

And who conceived the first ever expansion disk for a driving game back in 1989? Distinctive Software's co-founder... who happens to be this guy...

Don-Mattrick-president-Interactive-Entertainment-Business-at-Microsoft-1904037.jpg

wow. can't make this shit up.

I loved all three videos in the OP, boogie seems awesome, and I think I could watch one more Francis vid before starting to dislike him, especially seeing how great his actual persona is.
 
I'm amused by the fact that Boogie cited Blizzard expansions as the predecessors to DLC when in fact the very first game expansion disks were, oddly enough, extra cars for a driving game.

Back in 1989.
A driving game that is near and dear to my heart.
Test Drive II: The Duel.
Which, I owned for the Commodore 64 and then subsequently repurchased for the Amiga.
I still remember purchasing the Supercars and Muscle Cars floppy disks from my local computer shop (which was called Neutron Computers).

$T2eC16V,!wsE9suw)ph9BQvMvhzWJ!~~60_35.JPG


How many cars did you get on this disk? 5
You got a Lambourghini Countach, a Corvette ZR1, a Porsche 911 RUF, a Lotus Turbo Esprit... and, my favorite, a Ferrari Testarossa.
And it retailed for about $25 or thereabouts.

628815915_tp.jpg


The fun twist is this.
Test Drive II: The Duel was developed by Distinctive Software and published by Accolade.
This studio was purchased a couple years later in 1991 by Electronic Arts and remolded into EA Canada.

And who conceived the first ever expansion disk for a driving game back in 1989? Distinctive Software's co-founder... who happens to be this guy...

Don-Mattrick-president-Interactive-Entertainment-Business-at-Microsoft-1904037.jpg

...I can't...wtf...this guy, damn

I remember Test Drive had it on my C64 too...
 
Totally spot on. Thanks for that Boogie!
Agreeing with every word said.

I am personally voting with my wallet. That´s why I have been spending some money on Path of Exile and Skyrim. And also exactly why I am skipping every EA game out there, for example, and partially why I hesitate from going PS4/Xbone.
 
The solution to all our problems:

Start renting games. Forza's microtransactions bugging you and you don't want to grind to compensate? Send that crap back.

I'm playing battlefield 4 now and i might end up returning the game before i ever earn the defibrillator.
 
I don't really have a problem with microtransactions since I ignore them, and if enough people ignore microtransactions in retail games then maybe they won't be as prominent? That's what I hope for at least.
 
I still hold the value that anyone blaming MS solely is an idiot, sorry but that is the way I see it because the facts clearly and definitively show that it is everyone playing a part and that cannot be disputed by rational people once the facts are looked at. Sony is just as guilty as MS, and third parties even more so, specifically EA and Capcom. And even in this Francis uses zero logos, he rages on about Forza 5 but here is the similar rage for Sony and GT6 which is just as bad? I mean if your going to point fingers, you point them at all culprits, other wise you simply lack demonstrable ethos and your argument lacks substance.

And that is what kills me about this whole microtransaction, even when people try to state otherwise and that they are neutral, you still see the bias and fanboyism shining clearly through. Where is the rage against Capcom for just about hiding every game they now produce behind a curtain of Microtransactions? Where is the rage at Bioware for doing it with ME3, and its nickel and dime dance it did to consumers with costumes and weapons? Where is the rage against Sony for the microtransaction debacle that is Playstation Allstars in what is probably the worse offender when it comes to 1st party games?

When it comes to this debate, and I am starting to lose a lot of respect for people and their credibility is taking huge nosedives, simply because they cannot maintain real dialogue when it comes to this issue and instead try to do the "only one party is at blame" nonsense and totally over looking everyone else that is doing the same. Its shameful, and as long as only MS is incorrectly blamed, it is an issue that will only grow.
 
people should really vote with their wallets on this issue, it's the only way to stop it. it reminds of the online passes we used to get recently until people never really bought into them and greedy publishers stopped releasing them.
 
The serious video is a MUST WATCH. He perfectly outlined the unfortunate evolution from "Expansion" to "Micro-transaction".
 
I agree with him and I'm glad his focus was on the games you pay for upfront.

I'm also afraid he's going to have a heart attack doing one of these some day.
 
From the sounds of hit, he started the game, played 1 race, and then the game threw "buy this DLC!" into his face? I can see why that would be upsetting.

Though I still think SFxT's training mode going "try buying gems!" was way worse, the game's training mode was telling you to pay to increase your chance of winning.
 
I still hold the value that anyone blaming MS solely is an idiot, sorry but that is the way I see it because the facts clearly and definitively show that it is everyone playing a part and that cannot be disputed by rational people once the facts are looked at. Sony is just as guilty as MS, and third parties even more so, specifically EA and Capcom. And even in this Francis uses zero logos, he rages on about Forza 5 but here is the similar rage for Sony and GT6 which is just as bad? I mean if your going to point fingers, you point them at all culprits, other wise you simply lack demonstrable ethos and your argument lacks substance.

And that is what kills me about this whole microtransaction, even when people try to state otherwise and that they are neutral, you still see the bias and fanboyism shining clearly through. Where is the rage against Capcom for just about hiding every game they now produce behind a curtain of Microtransactions? Where is the rage at Bioware for doing it with ME3, and its nickel and dime dance it did to consumers with costumes and weapons? Where is the rage against Sony for the microtransaction debacle that is Playstation Allstars in what is probably the worse offender when it comes to 1st party games?

When it comes to this debate, and I am starting to lose a lot of respect for people and their credibility is taking huge nosedives, simply because they cannot maintain real dialogue when it comes to this issue and instead try to do the "only one party is at blame" nonsense and totally over looking everyone else that is doing the same. Its shameful, and as long as only MS is incorrectly blamed, it is an issue that will only grow.
What we can see NOW is that a lot of Xbox One not free-to-play have aggressive microtransactions in them, while PS4 ones, at the least those available right now, have none. We'll eventually judge GT6 when it'll come out.

Considering what we know now, there's no reason to not point the fingers to Microsoft for its decisions about the first Xbox One exclusives, and if we wanted to play the boycott game we shouldn't buy these exclusives at all, pulling down the value of an Xbox One purchase at the moment.
 
Also, Sony's going to do it too.

What do you mean? Why do you say that exactly?

For the moment, Sony is showing reverse thinking... All Killzone future DLC will be Free. They have Free-To-Play games on PS4. Only 3rd party games (ie: 2k14) have micro-transactions of this nature on PS4.
 
I still hold the value that anyone blaming MS solely is an idiot, sorry but that is the way I see it because the facts clearly and definitively show that it is everyone playing a part and that cannot be disputed by rational people once the facts are looked at. Sony is just as guilty as MS, and third parties even more so, specifically EA and Capcom. And even in this Francis uses zero logos, he rages on about Forza 5 but here is the similar rage for Sony and GT6 which is just as bad? I mean if your going to point fingers, you point them at all culprits, other wise you simply lack demonstrable ethos and your argument lacks substance.

And that is what kills me about this whole microtransaction, even when people try to state otherwise and that they are neutral, you still see the bias and fanboyism shining clearly through. Where is the rage against Capcom for just about hiding every game they now produce behind a curtain of Microtransactions? Where is the rage at Bioware for doing it with ME3, and its nickel and dime dance it did to consumers with costumes and weapons? Where is the rage against Sony for the microtransaction debacle that is Playstation Allstars in what is probably the worse offender when it comes to 1st party games?

When it comes to this debate, and I am starting to lose a lot of respect for people and their credibility is taking huge nosedives, simply because they cannot maintain real dialogue when it comes to this issue and instead try to do the "only one party is at blame" nonsense and totally over looking everyone else that is doing the same. Its shameful, and as long as only MS is incorrectly blamed, it is an issue that will only grow.
No, you don't. This is exactly what you don't do. You single out the main offender, again and again. If the message gets too broad, it gets fuzzy and the discourse bottoms out. I find it hard to believe you were particularly interested in these issues when Microsoft wasn't at the forefront, which they currently are. People took the mentioned companies apart for their doings, and if GT6 is just as bad, they won't pull their punches either. I'm sorry, but it seems to me you're trying to muddle things up, distributing blame till it loses clarity and effectiveness.
 
What we can see NOW is that a lot of Xbox One not free-to-play have aggressive microtransactions in them, while PS4 ones, at the least those available right now, have none. We'll eventually judge GT6 when it'll come out.

Considering what we know now, there's no reason to not point the fingers to Microsoft for its decisions about the first Xbox One exclusives, and if we wanted to play the boycott game we shouldn't buy these exclusives at all, pulling down the value of an Xbox One purchase at the moment.
This. Dune's "Sony too" defense is premature. Should GT6 ship with less cars and tracks than 5, along with reduced race rewards and constant badgering of the player to buy credits with real money combined with much longer grind times than previous iterations of the series... then THAT is comparable.
 
I've only watched this one video, but I don't think I "get" Francis as a character. If you just took a transcript of what he's saying, it sounds like a reasonable statement against a shitty practice. Having it delivered by a histrionic, speech-impedemented, internet rage nerd character only serves to decrease the credibility of an otherwise sound message.

When you create a contemptible character, whatever they say is tainted by association. Characters like this usually deliver satirical twists on common nerdrage complaints to cast dumb opinions in an obviously negative light.

So what is he making fun of, really? The acts of yelling and lisping?
 
Ugh I seriously wanted to get Forza 5 today. :/ Goddamnit Microsoft.
Rent it at a RedBox or through GameFly. That way the greedy pricks see none of your money.

What do you mean? Why do you say that exactly?

For the moment, Sony is showing reverse thinking... All Killzone future DLC will be Free. They have Free-To-Play games on PS4. Only 3rd party games (ie: 2k14) have micro-transactions of this nature on PS4.
He was being sarcastic and referencing the Xbox-fanboy-patented "Sony too" rhetoric.
 
A heavily hyped title, (console) exclusive to the XB1, and with MS and EA involved, it would be a miracle (or a career-ending oversight) if Titanfall escaped DLC/microtransaction hell.

Oh god, I haven't made that connection until now... EA and Microsoft (with how many launch games from Microsoft have Michael transactions) is quite a combo for game to have and being a multiplayer only game makes it a lot easier to push microtransactions and F2P-like items...
 
What we can see NOW is that a lot of Xbox One not free-to-play have aggressive microtransactions in them, while PS4 ones, at the least those available right now, have none. We'll eventually judge GT6 when it'll come out.

Considering what we know now, there's no reason to not point the fingers to Microsoft for its decisions about the first Xbox One exclusives, and if we wanted to play the boycott game we shouldn't buy these exclusives at all, pulling down the value of an Xbox One purchase at the moment.

But that is exactly the issue. MS is getting this ire because of its Forza 5 policies and being lambasted over decisions it made with X1 release exclusives which are deplorable, but they are a sign of the disease and not its causation. This is an issue that predates the X1 by a whole generation now, and for the life of me, I do not understand how that fact is slipping some commentators minds. MS is simply responding to consumer behavior that has lead them to think its acceptable, because god knows we didn't fight it with our wallets when Capcom pulled the same stunt a hundred times last gen, or when EA or Ubi Soft pulled it, and so on.

So why is MS now getting the blunt of the rage, when from an historical standpoint their scheme with Forza 5 is mild at best compared to what some have pulled the last few years. Our discontent with this issue should be pointed and focused on all guilty parties and not just the one, since its cool to hate on MS these days which is what this is seeming like. Its really looking more like bandwagon jumping on, than actual constructive commentary on this issue, since the major players aren't being mentioned at all.
 
Microtransactions should not be in full priced games.

Simple as that.

.


The reason why they work on mobile devices is because you are either getting the core app for free, or for $.99 and then you can build on that by spending a $1 here or a $1 there and build that app into an almost fully functional game, but for some reason MS feels they can do this with a $60 game too...

If I am going into a store and purchasing a $60 game, I am expecting to get the full game and not have to expect to spend upwards of an additional $10-$20 in microtransactions to get the full experience...

I guess this is the world we live in now, and these devs need a way to make their money back...

Shame really...
 
I'll sound like a broken record, but the best people can do is vote with the wallets and advise others of what they're getting into when they buy these games. Most of the gaming populace doesn't read or follow game news/development like people on GAF do. They just buy the games.
 
The problem with Forza specifically, is that people play these games to drive the cars they can't in real life.

If it takes hundreds of hours to unlock them, that's not fun at all.
 
I've only watched this one video, but I don't think I "get" Francis as a character. If you just took a transcript of what he's saying, it sounds like a reasonable statement against a shitty practice. Having it delivered by a histrionic, speech-impedemented, internet rage nerd character only serves to decrease the credibility of an otherwise sound message.

When you create a contemptible character, whatever they say is tainted by association. Characters like this usually deliver satirical twists on common nerdrage complaints to cast dumb opinions in an obviously negative light.

So what is he making fun of, really? The acts of yelling and lisping?

In short he made the character to irritate the standard denizens of the internet. Which it seems to do a good job of.

If you dont like his francis stuff, just watch his boogie stuff which he seems to be putting up a lot more these days.

At least he does both, where as other youtube celebs just have a single act they stick to all the time.
 
Also, Sony's going to do it too.

Yep just like they followed MS with their DRM choices......oh wait.

The only games that I know of on PS4 with even moderate Microtransaction are Free to play games, and apprently 2k14. In fact GG has gone on record that DLC for Killzone will be free once released.

Sony has already proven that they dont need to follow MS on a damn thing.
 
The best one yet. Great rant

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGGfwPIykAo

"Maybe by the end of the generation I can spend another 60$ to not even install the game to beat it"

Delete if old.

Boogies serious video on the topic: http://youtube.com/watch?v=O-ILszuIEIM

And if you still don't know him: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ1cUup0ATg

The reason why he rages http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=721448

Jeez, Boogie's regular voice is good enough to get on radio. I instantly hate Francis now.
 
In short he made the character to irritate the standard denizens of the internet. Which it seems to do a good job of.

If you dont like his francis stuff, just watch his boogie stuff which he seems to be putting up a lot more these days.

At least he does both, where as other youtube celebs just have a single act they stick to all the time.

Is it really an act of cleverness to create something irritating that succeeds in irritating people? What's the message or the point of view being conveyed? The denizens of the internet aren't foolish for finding the character irritating, so what's the joke? I'm not trying to argue he shouldn't do it at all, but I'm trying to understand what the point is and why people like it. Is it merely "he pisses off people who aren't in on the joke, but I am in on the joke so that makes me feel good and slightly superior"?

I haven't seen any boogie stuff either, until just this moment, and he seems smart, articulate, and has a pleasant voice to boot. I have no issue with his real persona.
 
Is it really an act of cleverness to create something irritating that succeeds in irritating people? What's the message or the point of view being conveyed? The denizens of the internet aren't foolish for finding the character irritating, so what's the joke? I'm not trying to argue he shouldn't do it at all, but I'm trying to understand what the point is and why people like it. Is it merely "he pisses off people who aren't in on the joke, but I am in on the joke so that makes me feel good and slightly superior"?

I haven't seen any boogie stuff either, until just this moment, and he seems smart, articulate, and has a pleasant voice to boot. I have no issue with his real persona.

Its called humor. Go watch his other stuff since he explains it in one of his videos. Its the same reasons why folks like that pewdiepie or whatever fellow that is even more irritating than the francis character.

At least I know that francis is a character and he puts up vids from his actual self Boogie which are all worthwhile viewing material.
 
The worst game with micro transactions has to be NBA 2k14, and its weird nobody is talking about it. This damn shit game requires you to register in order for you to have access to game features so your account can get linked to their online verification to verify all your coins for everything you do, and now any kind of customization for your myplayer character requires a ton of coins.. 7,500 coins for a pair of nikes,... Thats why theirs problems where people can't even play the game when the server is down. NBA 2k14 is a piece of shit, I would of never bought it if I knew.
 
Need to update that brah:

d81W5BC.jpg

Its starting to look that way with some things thats for sure.

I dont mind schemes like that if its a F2P game, but when it comes to an actual 50-60 USD retail title, thats when the gun goes on the table.
 
Man, YouTube vids just keep getting stuck for me lately. They'll just stop playing moments in. I've tried different browsers and they all have the same issue. In-fact, even my other laptop was having the issue. Anyone had the same experience?
 
Is it really an act of cleverness to create something irritating that succeeds in irritating people? What's the message or the point of view being conveyed? The denizens of the internet aren't foolish for finding the character irritating, so what's the joke? I'm not trying to argue he shouldn't do it at all, but I'm trying to understand what the point is and why people like it. Is it merely "he pisses off people who aren't in on the joke, but I am in on the joke so that makes me feel good and slightly superior"?

I haven't seen any boogie stuff either, until just this moment, and he seems smart, articulate, and has a pleasant voice to boot. I have no issue with his real persona.

Most of his life, boogie has been timid, pushed around, voiceless. He uses Francis to make his voice heard, and I think the hyperbole is effective at being entertaining (if it aligns with your sense of humor) while getting the viewer to start thinking about various issues which he often expands upon greatly in his "serious" videos.

What I think is clever is that boogie utilizes his appearance as a stereotypical, whining "fat gamer" to present issues to people who may or may not be similar to the Fracis character (whether in appearance or attitude). I think it is part topical discussion (e.g. microtransactions) and part loving satire of gamers as he himself is willing to admit that he has issues he is trying to overcome. It is his humility that makes me want to watch all of his videos.
 
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