We live in a world with a strange and questionable gaming industry. Games will release and charge for extra goodies after we have bought the title for R1,000.
These goodies include new vanity items, maps, and even boxes which you can also earn from playing the game.
These games often follow the same route as games which we download and play for free, which makes us wonder if we should have paid for the game in the first place.
If anything, these games should have been free to play due to their massive DLC and in-game offerings.
Overwatch
Yes, we all know how big Overwatch has been since its launch, but something has not measured up since day one, these darn Loot Boxes. Sure, when you first start the game these boxes come and go as you level up quickly, but when you reach level 30 onwards, the level requirements are a bit higher.
Instead of you getting a box every 3 matches, you are now getting one every 7 matches. Keep in mind that you have already opened 32 or so boxes, and have yet to get one skin for your favourite support hero.
Then we have the optional in-game purchases that let you buy loot boxes, which become more tempting the higher your level.
Blizzard should have released the game for free and scaled the level system even more, so that boxes require more XP but a few hundred rand for a pack of them.
Destiny
I love Destiny as much as the next person, but it has reached a stage where you really have nothing new to do but grind for things you don’t need.
You spend your time doing the same activities for no rewards, and the value of the game drops significantly.
It has also been a while since Bungie released any sort of decent content for the game, which has led to a decrease in online players. Keep in mind that Bungie also implemented optional in-game purchases earlier this year, which could replace the standard one-time purchase of the game.
Destiny has the structure to be free to play, Bungie just needs to let us pay for what we want instead of grinding for it.
Halo 5: Multiplayer
Halo 5 has one of the best multiplayer experiences to date, but with it came the Req system, which basically restricts you to using weapons which you own from opening Req packs.
If you run out of weapons, then you will need to grind the game to earn credits to buy packs, or just spend real money on them.
This is where the game has the potential to be a possible free to play game. 343 Industries should release the multiplayer component as a free to play version with an increased credit requirement for Req packs.
The base model for the free version of the game is there already, but like all other games of its kind, we do not see it.
Tom Clancy’s: Rainbow Six Siege
Rainbow Six Siege is a great game, but it also has a great amount of optional in-game purchases to help you level up and unlock characters faster.
Saying that, at times you can be restricted to the characters you have available, due to the fact that you already used all your unlock points.
With a great wealth of available purchases in-game, it makes us wonder if it is really worth it to grind all the way to unlock something we really want.
Again this is just proof of another game which restricts players to what they have, and offers another way to unlock items by spending more money.
Call of Duty: Black Ops III
Black Ops III is not the first Call of Duty that could use the F2P treatment, as all the games in the series have followed the same route – multiplayer maps which are optional purchases and purchasable guns, emblems and skins.
Every year we fork out thousands for the game and the maps, but while we are at it we are constantly grinding for more loot in a form of crates or drops. With so many different available drops, the chances of you getting what you want are slim.
Activision should just swallow their pride and release a free to play Call of Duty multiplayer game that is available to all. If you want to the maps, buy them, if you want guns, buy them too – otherwise grind and get them.
If you ask me, anything that restricts you, while offering an optional purchase for it, should be free, because that is how free to play works. What do you think about games that you pay for and require massive in-game purchases? Let us know in the comments and forum.
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Are you seriously playing Overwatch for the loot boxes? (facepalm)
I’ve already unlocked all skins and poses I want for my favourite characters from just playing and using the cons the game gives you in some boxes.
What is it with this attitude of wanting every bloody game for free these days? Overwatch is not a good example of a game that should go f2p. You pay a reasonable price for a very fun game and them having to host and maintain servers. Heck, they even stated that future characters and maps will be free. Buying loot boxes are for the fools wanting to be parted with their money