$ 24 million in profits and more than ten million downloads in three weeks: the video game Diablo Immortal is a resounding success. At least in appearance. Because on the Metacritic site, where Internet users rate the quality of cultural products, it is blockbuster from Blizzard Entertainment studios and NetEase show the pitiful score of 0.3 / 10. The low score is explained by the impressive number of microtransactions that must be performed to advance in the game, due to an outcry from the players. Coats of arms to buy, upgrades to acquire or even powers to unlock … The game is free to download but can be very expensive afterwards. According to the YouTube channel Bellular News, it would cost $ 110,000 to play the best possible character. A sign of the crushing new weight of microtransactions on business Computer games.
“Without microtransactions, the video game industry is dead,” said Julien Pillot, an economist at Inseec. Why such a development? “We are in a universe where the industry has matured,” explains the teacher-researcher. It is concentrated, there have been a lot of mergers and acquisitions in recent years. ” Industrial groups are getting stronger, and the cost of blockbusters multiply -up to $ 200 million for a game, excluding costs marketing, according to the economist. “That business model of these big budget games tie up working time and capital for years. This is a huge business risk. Today, with two consecutive business failures, you go bankrupt. In order to continue to feed this model, we need games that take less time to develop and that are based on microtransactions. These games will provide you with a recurring income and will not be very expensive. ” Something to reassure investors.
also readVideo games: Microsoft’s explosive blitzkrieg operation on Activision Blizzard
In 2020, the giant EA accounted for 29% of its revenue via microtransactions in the game FIFA Ultimate Team. Julien Pillot explains this success: “Players are ready to pay small amounts several times, so it goes as painlessly as possible. And in the end, we get a ticket that is much higher than what they would have spent at one time. “
Different practices on phone and console
Guillaume Jamet, publishing director at Plug In Digital and Dear Villagegers, produces 10% free downloadable games, but funded by microtransactions, on a model freemium. There are those on the cell phone; those on PC and consoles keep paying for the purchase: “On mobile, people are used to not buying their games. On PC, it is the opposite. From one platform to another, players have different practices.
The publishing director does not plan to introduce microtransactions in his paid games on PC and consoles and is proud of it. “The big players make games sold for 60 euros or more, and the player then has to go back to the checkout for microtransactions, he gets annoyed. This crystallizes the players’ anger.” The French giant Ubisoft has thus integrated microtransactions into its game Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which attracts the anger of some players. The contact Ubisoft did not want to answer Challengesbut recalled the internal implementation of a “fair monetization” model, which aims not to change the experience of the player who does not want to pay additional money during the game.
That exchange boxes at the center of the controversy
The microtransactions criticized cover a wide range of practices. Economist Julien Pillot details them. ‘There are the microtransactions’pay to win. The best items in the game can be found in microtransaction stores. “Therefore, the more you pay, the better you perform in the game. Next comes the model”pay to skip“which reduces the construction time of a building, for example. Guillaume Jamet, who uses it in his mobile games, notes:” There is a point of frustration where the player will resort to the microtransaction. The challenge is to place it well. If you put it on too early, the player leaves. If you put it too late, it does not have to pay. “Other microtransactions consist of paying to customize the look of the character that one embodies.” These are the microtransactions that are best accepted by players, Julien Pillot explains. They do not like that other players can get the better of them with pay to win where is pay to skip, equivalent to doping. “
also readHow Fortnite Became the Most Profitable Video Game in History
Conversely, the most criticized are microtransactions exchange boxes. The player buys a virtual lucky bag at a certain price without knowing what he is finding there. Similar to gambling, these exercises have even been banned in the Netherlands and Belgium. The game Diablo Immortal therefore not marketed there. Contacted, Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase, the studios behind this game, were not responded to Challenges.
“Intervening would help demonize publishers”
In June 2022, the UFC-Que Choisir EA Sports formally announced and arrested ten other video game publishers on exchange boxes, with 19 other European consumer organizations. Raphaël Bartlomé, legal leader of the association, explains: “If it was a system where we paid a lot to have the best grade, everything would be fine. But we do not know what will come out of it. box“. He condemns a system based on the economy of attention:” Cognitive imbalances are exploited. You must not use the player’s desire for pleasure to get him to use. “UFC-Que Choisir calls for a ban on these boxes under thirteen years, the end of the exploitation of these cognitive imbalances, and asks publishers to show the price in euros when buying one loot box – and not the price in the game currency, bought himself in euros.
Socialist Senator Jérôme Durain challenged the government and the Online Gaming Regulatory Authority on this issue in 2017. He says, “I had an underage son playing, I looked at my bank account, it rolled!” However, the senator is cautious about possible regulation: “I believe that self-regulation is preferable to legislation imposed by law. players expresses its hostility to this practice via social networks or debates on forums. Intervening would help demonize publishers. “A view shared by economist Julien Pillot, who is annoyed:” If you ban exchange boxescollection cards, is it over? ”However, he launches a mindset: publishers who are aware of the transactions made by each player may suspend microtransactions for players who use overconsumption due to addiction.
With microtransactions, economic benefits are “out of proportion”
Despite the criticism, there are still plenty of microtransaction games. At the end of June 2022, 343 Industries study announced that it was examining the possibility of implementing microtransactions in Halo: Master Chief Collection. The game was released in 2014, but still has thousands of players online. A jackpot for the industry? “A game of microtransactions that turns into one hit the world will bring in more than a classic model game, recognizes Guillaume Jamet. If you sell a million games for 60 euros, you earn 60 million, and that’s it. The microtransaction game will continue to generate revenue in the coming years. “But the publishing director at Plug In Digital and Dear Villagers remains skeptical of its indispensability:” The games freemium requires a lot of investment. For example, advertising expenses are necessary. It is not such a virtuous model, because there are enormous risks. ” A calculated risk for some – it seems – who do not hesitate to abuse this practice, even if it means insulting players.