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Blizzard in their latest beta, has added some items that are labeled as in game store. These items are part of a new revenue stream that Blizzard is trying to set up. The system is known microtransactions now blizzard already has items that you can buy from their website, however these items are meant to be bought in the game, and are meant to give you a boost to aid with the game. These types of items are found in the shape of experience increases and drop rate increases but why is Blizzard exploring this option and how will it go?
Why Blizzard Is Exploring This?
Blizzard is one of the largest mmo game companies in the world. However in recent times their subscriptions have been dropping, and today World Of Warcraft, has about 8 million subscribers. They are losing a ton of money with this large drop,and Blizzard needs to find a way to gain that lost revenue back. Most companies would drop for a free to play option, well Blizzard being the company that won't go free to play unless they have to. This revenue stream has proven to be very successful because the transactions may only take seconds, and they are generally very cheap. The idea is if we can bring a store that is closer to the players then we can sell more product. The low prices will apply to a large group, and it allows them to sell a large quantity of items to bring in more revenue. Simple concept, which is better 1,000 people spending $25 or 10,000 people spending $5. You make more money, and more people are buying the product.
Will It Work?
This depends on how Blizzard implements the system. If they start charging high prices for items that are clearly not worth that value then this will be a complete bust. Now if Blizzard takes steps to make the prices really low and keeps the in store items limited to only items able to boost the experience gain or certain mounts, then this system will do amazing. The reason is if they start selling armor and weapons players will be labeling the game as "pay to win". It means that if you can buy in game armor and weapons with money instead of farming for them, then the players with more money have an unfair advantage. This will lead to players leaving the game, and the game having a bad reputation.