Korean MMO Black Desert Online — yes, the pretty one — recently made a change to the game’s economy. To say players are pissed would be to sell it a little short.
Image: PC Gamer
The change, which lets players buy items using real money then turn around and sell them for in-game currency, has caused literal in-game protests. Like, characters marching the streets, carrying angry placards, the works.
As PC Gamer reports, while there’s a stated reason for this — certain Black Desert Online items are only available for real money, so this opens things up and makes them available to everyone — it only plays further into the worries of Western players who feel the game is a little too “pay to win” for its own good (BDO is a $US50 purchase, not a F2P game). Introducing something like this to the game, they fear, will only create a lopsided economy, with a small number of players paying real cash for items then selling them off for huge profits.
Whoever is in the right here, I am very impressed by the fact a game has the tools to allow its players to properly and accurately protest how terrible they think it is.
Comments
13 responses to ““Pay To Win” Protests Hit The Streets Of Black Desert Online”
Yet another reason why I’m glad I’ve never played that game. Too much of a grind too much of a time sink so you have to play it to the exclusion of all other games and now pay to win.
GG
Okay I am more interested in the Protest Placard Signs… they are real items in game. (Not photoshopped)
Thats awesome. Player created or ingame customisable? More hames need them imo
Thay said… would be funny if the devs turned around and said “Due to players protest and not using items as intended, we will be removing Protest Placards”
I thought the placards were added for dramatic tone…..damn, that’s kinda cool.
If other games had placards, where would you be and what would your sign say???
“Dont Stand In Fire” outside Molten Core in ckassic WoW
I maybe missing something but what’s the difference between paying cash for items to sell to players for in game currency. And WoWs in game token scheme, where u can pay cash for game time tokens that can be sold on the AH?
The biggest thing I think is the items themselves are not luxury or game token (wow, eve)… but items ingame that have an impact on character power or levelling but also unavailable by other means.
And by not being bound to account, the reselling of them ingame throw off the currency market. Especially consumable items.
It was disgusting when Blizzard added in game purchases to their full price subscription based game as well, its what prompted me to finally quit after 10 years. Blizzard just gets a free pass from most people because they are Blizzard even though they become more like Activision each day.
none of blizzards in game purchase affect game play, if you quit because of ingame purchases thats your choice but it had absolutely no affect on your gameplay experience. They are all cosmetic and wont increase your power. BDO on the other hand has introduced stuff that will increase your stats as far as im aware.
If you like pet battling it can affect your gameplay, when I was playing some of the best pets were the shop pets.
Also selling gold in a game I am paying 15 dollars every month for just rubs me the wrong way.
Pets are luxury items, i havent met one person that takes pet battling seriously
I was wanting to play this game as I love how it’s a got a big competitive PVP scene. Anyone able to tell me if Black Desert Online has OCE/Aus servers yet?
The reigning guild in a territory has their guild emblem on all banners, posters, flags and materials. The city of Calpheon (as seen in the above pictures) is in a constant state of revolt and the NPCs will brandish signs with the reigning power’s emblem in protest.
As a BDO player myself I still fail to see the pay to win though that said most people now have no idea what pay to win means
so in BDO, guilds can take over cities which then feature their banners around town. In the capital city, there are protesters who hold placards which feature those banners. Most big guilds have changed their banners to something similar — it’s pretty cool