Consider a different business model for PWI

Cocoe - Sanctuary
Cocoe - Sanctuary Posts: 13 Arc User
edited March 2009 in Suggestion Box
As a new player, I have only been playing Perfect World for only two weeks. Before PWI, I played World of Warcraft for about two years. Although I am fairly new to Perfect World, as I learn more and more about the Boutique and the prices of things in the Boutique(or cash shop), I have one small suggestion.

Right now, you you have to pay $1 for 1 gold. Right away, in order for one to play properly, you need to get the mana and health charms. Both of them cost a total of $8. Then you need to consider buying the items to expand your bag space and bank space, plus pet bag space if you're a venomancer. If you're a seasoned MMO player, you're going to want to get the best stuff to play with. So together you'll need to spend about $35 to expand your inventory, plus $8 that's $43.

Now that's about the price that you'd have to pay to purchase other MMO games like Everquest 2 or WOW. Then consider other things as you level up. You need to spend money on a flying mount ($5), telecoustics so you can spam world chat, not to mention clothing to show off to your friends, etc.

Based on the information that I've read on the various forums here; if you're a venomancer, at some point you'll need to seriously consider getting a Pheonix or Hercules pet. This will cost about $200ish depending on your luck. b:sad The costs really go up fast, doesn't it?

So, instead of creating this mysterious shroud about the costs that you'll have to pay in order to play this game "properly," perhaps the game developers can consider dividing this game into two paying categories. For those who would like to pay a monthly fee to play this game, let them have that option and make all the items available in the Boutique free to those players. For those who want this game to remain free, allow that option also and keep the Boutique intact.

For example, maybe have 2 servers for the paying players, and maybe 4 servers for ones that want to play for free?

This game has tremendous potentials in growth. I started playing it because it was free; but I was mislead. Had I know the "true" costs of playing the game, I would probably consider a different game. Even if this is the case, I enjoyed the game greatly. I would love to keep playing this game and see it improve as I play. I realize that this suggestion is probably pointless, but perhaps other people can come up with better ideas to improve the way we "pay" to play this game.
Post edited by Cocoe - Sanctuary on

Comments

  • Kaenor - Heavens Tear
    Kaenor - Heavens Tear Posts: 173 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    Dont "need", its an option, if you want to pay rl cash, do it. Or buy gold from Auctioner for ingame coins. And the paying categories only depend on you.
  • mentallaxative
    mentallaxative Posts: 93 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    Cocoe - Sanctuary wrote: »
    So, instead of creating this mysterious shroud about the costs that you'll have to pay in order to play this game "properly," perhaps the game developers can consider dividing this game into two paying categories. For those who would like to pay a monthly fee to play this game, let them have that option and make all the items available in the Boutique free to those players. For those who want this game to remain free, allow that option also and keep the Boutique intact.

    That would seriously trash the economy. Unlimited cash shop use in exchange for a monthly fee? No thanks. If you were going to limit the amount of gold you can spend with a monthly fee, then it's no different from the current system.

    b:bye
  • Cocoe - Sanctuary
    Cocoe - Sanctuary Posts: 13 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    Many people say that the paying part is "optional." However, like I said, if you want to play a crappy game then you don't need to spend a single penny to play it. But if you want to play a decent and "playable" game then you need to at least spend money on getting the charms and inventory stones to keep your MP going and have room for things. So then you're paying money away; it only makes sense to pay a monthly fee and not have to worry about such things.

    Of course, paying the paying a monthly fee will create a few issues since the game is presently free(sort of), but those issues can be resolved as it gets implemented. I'm only suggesting a way to improve the game and I will let the developers make the call for themselves
  • Eorween - Heavens Tear
    Eorween - Heavens Tear Posts: 119 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    so what is the point?
    you want unlimited mana ?
    unlimited life ?

    you want to keep playing with no stop ?
    you dont like to sit there wait for your character to meditate ?

    what P2P game offer you that ?

    potion you can buy from npc merchants.
    bigger alchemy potion you can make yourself with skill and the herbs.

    No one say you HAVE to buy those charms.

    those that use the charms are the one's that dont want to spend their time gathering herbs

    healing pots from crafting can heal 2k 4k 6k hp within 30 sec
    mana pots 3k 6k 9k.
  • Sylvini - Heavens Tear
    Sylvini - Heavens Tear Posts: 259 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    Cocoe, you need to seriously re-think your play-style.

    I've NEVER bought a charm of any kind, nor do I think I'm likely to at any time soon, and I can actually afford them in-game now. This is particularly true of Venos, but pretty true of many characters. Higher levels may buy an HP charm for safety, or casters may buy an MP charm for endurance, but even that's optional.

    I've never bought a flying mount. I've still got my lvl 30 basic manta and I'm pretty happy with it. The newer ones don't honestly look like that much of an advantage to me.

    I've never bought a telecoustic. If I want to talk to people, I talk to the people in my faction for free.

    Ok, I've bought a few fashion items from other players, but that was purely optional. IMO, the armor in this game looks pretty cool itself, especially at higher levels. In retrospect, that money would probably have been better spent buying me some gold equips from the AH.

    I never have never bought any of the cash-shop pets, not even from other players. Looking at the stats of the Herc at lvl 90, and the stats my Crystaline Mag will have at 90, the Herc isn't that much better, and it's mostly in HP, which just means more healing for me. Looking at the Phoenix is tempting, but I'm happy with my Petite Sawfly for now, which is plenty impressive as-is.

    Of all the games I've seen, played, or heard of, PWI actually offers the LEAST in terms of game-changing boutique items and the MOST in-game accessible items (including everything in the boutique as far as I can tell).
  • erethizon1
    erethizon1 Posts: 554 Arc User
    edited March 2009
    I have yet to spend a single penny on this game and yet I find it very playable (level 75 at the moment). I do agree with you that the inventory expansion is practically a must, but I simply traded in game money for gold to buy the stones needed. Other than inventory expansion I have never even used a cash shop item (I still have the bronze charm you get as a reward for a level 5 quest in my safe). The game is very playable without any of the cash shop items (except for inventory expansion).

    Having come from other MMORPG's myself, the idea of having endless HP and MP that instantly regenerate is silly. None of my past MMORPG's have anything even close to what charms do here so playing without charms is actually very normal feeling. It sounds like your standards are set way too high. Surely the games you have come from have not given you all the things you want from the cash shop for free just because you paid a monthly fee. You probably had to do quests for most of the items (or get them as rare drops) and you probably had nothing like hp and mp charms at all. You can still get your cash shop items in this game without spending real life money on them. You simply earn in game money and buy the cash shop items with it (which is much more similar to the way monthly-fee games work).

    This game simply gives people the option to pay $200 a month to get everything they ever wanted without any of the normal MMORPG effort. Other games have similar features in the form of third-party cash for gold sites that let people pay real money for in game coin. The only difference here is that the entire Perfect World business model is based on it instead of a third-party crashing the party and selling the gold against the rules of the game.

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