Originally Posted by
Saint_Dee
I agree that microtransactions (to a degree) in general have not boded well for gaming in general, especially considering how persistent they are. I do disagree with Dota as an example of these games though, because you'll see 2 main types (as far as I can tell) of microtransactions in games. The first being microtransactions that affect gameplay in the form of better loadouts, better heroes, and the like; the second being microtransactions for items and benefits that are purely cosmetic.
The first microtransactions are exactly the kind of the microtransactions I usually have a problem with because it feels, more often than, that there's a pay wall for progression in terms of gameplay, and sometimes multiplayer games end up being pay to win. Granted, they can be done right where the pay vs grind payoff doesn't feel too skewed to favor those who'd rather pay, but in general I feel these are microtransactions that are becoming a problem in gaming (EA's Dungeon Keeper is a good example of how not to do it).
The second, I feel, aren't actually pervasive because they have no actual bearing on gameplay, because they are purely for cosmetic purposes. They offer no advantage to those willing to pay for cosmetics, and there is no disadvantage for those not willing to shell out their money for these items (and you'll find that some games will give free drops anyway to reward players for the playing the game). I guess it could become a problem if the generation and creates of these items takes priority over polishing the game, but that's a different argument.
And that leads me to Dota 2. This games has one of the best free-to-play models in gaming (I bring up free-to-play since this model is riddled with microtransactions, even though AAA have also adopted these in the past few years). Why do I say it has one of the best free-to-play models? Well, for one there is no pay-gate to anything gameplay related (heroes or game modes, and yes LoL and Infinite Crisis, I'm looking at you buggers). In terms of development priority, Valve doesn't even create most of the items available as drops or through their store and community market (they just approve, and only really get involved during big events), which means any fine-tuning in terms of gameplay takes priority with Valve .So Dota 2 is honestly, IMO, the best example of free-to-play and microtransaction done right.
Yes, microtransactions can be a problem, but they can be done right as long as they don't impede on actual gameplay and progression.
