Ubisoft Says Microtransactions Make Games More Fun

Gonzito

Gonzito

Gold Member
Are they stupid? They still haven't learned anything apparently

Clown Certified
SbHoxEn9YIL0EFsq.jpg


Ubisoft believes that monetization is often optional, and many players enjoy spending money to customize their avatars or progress faster in the game.

Spending more money in full-priced games, they argue, is what brings happiness to gamers. In some ways, Ubisoft may have a point, considering how successful microtransactions have been and how much they have changed the global gaming landscape in recent years. However, it is important to note that players who spend money on microtransactions are usually a small portion of the total player base.

That doesn't mean microtransactions aren't profitable—clearly, they are. Still, Ubisoft's claim that this kind of spending is a source of joy is something many would debate
Click to expand...

www.eteknix.com

Ubisoft Says Microtransactions Make Games More Fun

When you think about your best gaming experiences, what comes to mind first? According to Ubisoft, it’s microtransactions. In its recent financial report, the company claimed that monetization in…
www.eteknix.com
 
Last edited:
I remember discussing this with a monetization designer (at a particularly relevant studio to this conversation) - the basics worked something like
'x hours = y dollars'. Ie. people are prepared to pay y to save x time - on average, and this bears out pretty consistently (you price things too high and people stop paying, too low - and it tends to make the game less sticky / perceived as more p2w).
But at no point in any of that math - was there 'fun' considered.
 
If we're provided with plenty of base content to unlock like we used to get I'm good. Then over and above that I'm fine with granular, low cost mtx to get additional non-functional stuff.

If artists are making more stuff than they otherwise would, then paying a little for that is fine. But a gun skin should be like $0.29 and a character skin $0.49, a bundle of stuff maybe $4.99 providing a bunch of stuff with a small discount.

The problem is they can't help themselves [speaking generally about the industry, not specifically Ubi], they'll bundle a handful of items together, lock the individual items behind it then charge you something silly like $20. Individual stuff is anywhere from a dollar to a few dollars if it is purchasable by itself, they try and obscure stuff behind points and the need to extract every penny is as predatorial a way as possible is too much for them to resist. Then sooner or later they start messing with the balance of progression, making it less enjoyable; and on top of that they start to limit what you can unlock for free to increase your appetite for paid stuff.

Also, time savers where you're effectively paying not to play the game -- usually because they made the grind insufferable -- are ridiculous.
 
Last edited:
Fafalada said:
I remember discussing this with a monetization designer (at a particularly relevant studio to this conversation) - the basics worked something like
'x hours = y dollars'. Ie. people are prepared to pay y to save x time - on average, and this bears out pretty consistently (you price things too high and people stop paying, too low - and it tends to make the game less sticky / perceived as more p2w).
But at no point in any of that math - was there 'fun' considered.
Click to expand...
In fairness he didn't mention the word fun:

Ubisoft believes that monetization is often optional, and many players enjoy spending money to customize their avatars or progress faster in the game.

Spending more money in full-priced games, they argue, is what brings happiness to gamers. In some ways, Ubisoft may have a point
Click to expand...

And he's not wrong. This is a consumer problem. They seem to enjoy spending money to be different or have some FOMO seasonal content that makes the game feel 'alive'.
 
Ubisoft might as well just die at this point

Best case scenario is a bunch of chained devs suddenly get freed, start an indie project and maybe you get a couple of expedition 33 down the line
 
Presumably he is not wrong given how popular mtx, season passes etc are. Ubisoft have just been struggling to have a base game that people enjoy enough to want to spend more on.
 
Gonzito said:
Are they stupid? They still haven't learned anything apparently

Clown Certified
SbHoxEn9YIL0EFsq.jpg




www.eteknix.com

Ubisoft Says Microtransactions Make Games More Fun

When you think about your best gaming experiences, what comes to mind first? According to Ubisoft, it’s microtransactions. In its recent financial report, the company claimed that monetization in…
www.eteknix.com
Click to expand...

I wouldn't take his world for it but these kids do seem to love being able to buy extra stuff

Robucks might become an official currency when these gremlins come into power 😂
 
Fafalada said:
I remember discussing this with a monetization designer (at a particularly relevant studio to this conversation) - the basics worked something like
'x hours = y dollars'. Ie. people are prepared to pay y to save x time - on average, and this bears out pretty consistently (you price things too high and people stop paying, too low - and it tends to make the game less sticky / perceived as more p2w).
But at no point in any of that math - was there 'fun' considered.
Click to expand...
Crazy to me that Ubisoft calls purchasing in-game resources "time saver". Is the implication that gathering them normally is wasting your time? Cause the way they designed this tedium sure as shit seems like it.
 
Look kid, we sell you 70% of our game at full price, but dont worry, we got you the other 30% right here so you can have fun giving us more money.
 
Gaiff said:
Crazy to me that Ubisoft calls purchasing in-game resources "time saver". Is the implication that gathering them normally is wasting your time? Cause the way they designed this tedium sure as shit seems like it.
Click to expand...
Look at the differences in something like Assassin's Creed Origins vs the Ezio trilogy. Suddenly, games in the series required you to do braindead "ride your horse from A to B then back to A" missions to grind enough XP to get past the level gate they deliberately placed on the next story mission.

They waste the players time on purpose, hoping you'll get bored or irritated enough to just buy exp to skip their awful side missions.
 
5ovt8CGvYFu1NNLI.jpg


This is undoubtedly the face of a man whose top priority is that players have a great time - to relax, unwind, and experience exciting, immersive, and well-written stories, to have a great time with games that understand and value the player, their money, and their time.


Making money by milking the last little drop out of the players' pockets is surely just a side issue here - a pleasant bonus for the Guillemots; aside from all the fun people have.
 
Last edited:
Gaiff said:
Crazy to me that Ubisoft calls purchasing in-game resources "time saver". Is the implication that gathering them normally is wasting your time? Cause the way they designed this tedium sure as shit seems like it.
Click to expand...
Thats exactly what it is. The whole level up system in Ass Creed games was designed to waste your time just to sell you "time savers". Thats why when you try fighting an enemy that is like 10 levels above you and have a skull in they name, the enemy insta kills you dont even giving you a chance to use skill to fight back. Pure ubitrash system designed around a monetization module.
 
Last edited:
They could do their greedy shit (they are a corporation after all) and save everybody else these useless pieces of wisdom.

I went from forgetting Ubi exists to having the below image in my head.

atomic bomb explosion GIF
 
LordOcidax said:
What's happening with all these companies representatives talking no sense shit lately? Is a trend or something?
Click to expand...
They have money to last them until they die, they won. At this point they're just going around doing side quests.

It's like when you go on a rampage in some town in Skyrim with an untouchable endgame character just to have some fun.

Too bad we're the NPC's having to deal with their shit.
 
It is true that some people absolutely do love things like paying high prices to open card packs, paying to unlock cosmetics, buying meth and smoking it, gambling on slot machines. That sort of thing.
 
Helps with that "sense of achievement".

Earth to Yves: you arent Epic, you arent Microsoft, you aren't Sony, you aren't Valve. You're this oddball French outfit that hit a gold vein with AC and rode that wave for years. But it's nearly over now.

Anybody want to pitch in $20 with me so we can buy the Rayman IP in a few months? The Ubi firesale is becoming more inevitable by the day.
 
Last edited:
Article:
"Our monetization offer within premium games makes the player experience more fun by allowing them to personalize their avatars or progress more quickly"

Yeah, fuck earning cool customizations through playing the game and overcoming obstacles or god forbid balancing the progression systems in a game for a fun experience. That's old school and cringe, got to swipe that card to get the modern day intended experience. 💳🎮💳
LcgnxFrjvHXWbtfd.gif
 
You know what would make more fun too? Government and regulation offices coming after companies like yours issuing you fines and blocking toxic business practices. Pretty sure the entire world would find fun your company bankrupcing for good.
 
I am having more fun than ever not playing Ubisoft games.

Well I take it back, i replayed AC Origins and am currently replaying (and starting to not enjoy) Odyssey.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

PlayStation Will Make More Games Like Astro Bot
Platform  2
62
4K
nial replied
I make money playing games. 💰
2 3
101
304
Hudo replied
Are Games Actually Fun Anymore?
2 3 4
167
9K
Roufianos replied
Ubisoft CEO says the plan is to focus on open-world and live service games ‘year after year’
Game Dev  2 3
113
7K
[Sigma] replied
Games that lock fun behind bloated intros need to stop
Opinion Cringe  2
77
587
Deerock71 replied
Top Bottom