MPQ: A microtransaction game

D4Ni13
D4Ni13 Posts: 745 Critical Contributor
edited September 2017 in MPQ General Discussion
I started playing MPQ 3 years ago, back when 2* Wolverine was one of the best covers you could have. Even though microctransaction games we're not that popular back then, I knew even from the start that MPQ is such a game, and there will be moments when some content would be harder for me to reach, meaning that I would have to either pay or wait a bit longer for that certain content. This is a normal thing to expect from any microtransaction game online, because that is how they work. 

Back then it was a question of what is better ? Charge users to pay at the beginning (FIFA example), charge players monthly (WoW), or let them play free and motivate them to pay during play (every microtransaction game, including MPQ). Recently more games are functioning on this logic. There are a lot of examples here, including games from Blizzard or other major companies (even Magic the Gathering, who joined this club just 1 year ago). 

So lets understand what is going on in a microtransaction game
Well it's pretty simple: you are a Free-2-Play user most of the time, but you have the option to buy things in the game with real money. Beside this, you also gather resources from the game, which also have a value in real money, since the system doesn't care where you got your gold (for example) when you pay with it. Maybe you earned it, or maybe you bought it with money, that gold still has a real value, even if you didn't pay for it. The economy behind a microtransaction game can be quite complex. Bottom line is that, this kind of games give you the option to play free (but it comes with the cost of a slower progression), or pay to speed up the progression and/or have access to exclusive content. 

What makes the difference between a good microtransaction game and a bad one ?
The diffrence is made by advantages/disadvantages when buying stuff. If buyers get too much advantages by spending money, it will make free users quit, and it will ruin the game's playerbase (you have to understand that in a such a game, every user is important, not just the big spenders. The economy cannot be maintained without free users). 

MPQ is actually a very good microtransaction game, because buying stuff doesn't affect how free players play the game. As a free player you still have access to all the game's content, but just at a slower pace. There are no exclusives in MPQ, and that means that in fact, the only thing you are buying is speed (speed of progression). There are a lot of aggresive transactions games that have a lot of exclusive content that is not available to players unless they pay with real money (World of Tanks is one example, and the list of other games is very very big). 

Exclusives 
Most users hate exclusives because it's a strong paygate in a game. MPQ doesn't have exclusives, which is great. But in order to maintain the profit such a mechanic would bring, they are forced to limit the access somehow (if everyone has access to everything all the time, there wouldn't be profit, and people would lose motivation and get bored, so they would lose players), and that somehow is by requirements (required character, rank, level, and so on). This requirement mechanic is also very popular in other games as well, and some games have it alongside exclusives (Warframe is an example of that).

Business view
All this being said, it's time we think a little from the business point of view. Lets say you are the developer working on MPQ. How motivated are you to work on a game you probably won't have so much time or motivation to play (because you are working on it 24/7), without being paid for it ? This is your job, you have a family, you need money to live. If your game doesn't make profit, the project will end, and you move on. And once a bigger & bigger part of the playerbase start having more than 60% of the content, you have to come with new ways to earn money, or you'll end up with fewer & fewer profit, until you reach 0 and go under (this is not liniar, it's exponential !!) 

How is it possible to get in that situation? 
It's easier than you think. First off, the players that are at the top, and have everything they need, would get bored after a while without new content to fight for. So new releases on a regular basis are more of an obligation than a desire. Now lets talk about the general user (the one that has decent access to content). If they would have access to everything easy, it would make them cover the existing content at a high speed, and eventually become a top player, that would get bored, and would need new content to play. Having 10% of player base at top is fine, but having 50% of the playerbase there, increases the change of those players losing motivation. So that means more chances of losing players. 

As a general user, you can complain once in a while, but you still get the motivation to play. And if you somehow had it, there is still a better chance you would come back later to see if things are better, than coming back after you got bored of a game. I have this experience with Warframe, where I ended up too quick in the top echelon and got bored, so I quit the game and I'm not motivated to go back, even after they released new content. 


So knowing all of this should give you a better overall vision on how things work in a microtransaction game, like MPQ, and maybe will allow you to see the fact that complaining about not having immediate access to a cover is not such a big deal, compared with not having access at all, or compared with the point of the view from the business side.

Comments

  • Magic
    Magic Posts: 1,199 Chairperson of the Boards
    I agree - MPQ is around the top of the microtransaction world. I have spent around 50 bucks on this game (last transaction probably 2 years ago; grand total represents investment in a AAA game but no AAA game has burned so many hours of my time) but I've been mainly free-to-play. And I enjoy it for 3 years already and I keep playing it. I don't feel I miss something. Sure - I would love to have new covers quicker but I know I will have them at some point. This is great. I hope they maintain this approach because introducing exclusive content will not be accepted by me (not that they care). 
  • D4Ni13
    D4Ni13 Posts: 745 Critical Contributor
    I must admit that I invested a bit too much on this game than I would have wanted (not a big spender by any means, but compared to buying a new game like FIFA from the shelf, I paid more to MPQ in 3 years), but it is worth it. No other game managed to keep me hooked that long. 

    I think their model is smart from business perspective, and it's decent for players as well: grinding is decent compared to other similar games, no exclusives, RNG is annoying sometimes, but still decent, and so on. 

    Also having a collection of playable Marvel heroes is neat :smile:
  • Alsmir
    Alsmir Posts: 508 Critical Contributor
    I wouldn't be extremely annoyed by the training event if other issues were resolved already.

    -new player experience
    - bugs
    - 5* rng progress
    - placement system
    - CL reward structure
    - lack of CL10 and shield levels past 125
    - lack of ISO
    - balancing of characters

    But instead the developers CHOOSE to focus their work on a new event that is aimed at vets and whales. There are so many bigger priorities, but what we have here is a bunch of goodies for spenders and close to nothing for everyone else.

    Optional events are cool and fine, as long as they are well-designed and well-thought. Shield Training is neither.
  • Wumpushunter
    Wumpushunter Posts: 627 Critical Contributor
    This post brought to you by Hail Corporate. 
  • Starfury
    Starfury Posts: 719 Critical Contributor

    Not arguing with the OP, but I still love how the name microtransaction stuck for games charging from $1 to $100.

    Those amounts might be micro compared to a mortgage payment, but not in the video game industry.

  • Alfje17
    Alfje17 Posts: 3,822 Chairperson of the Boards

    It's a whole lot better than every F2P game I've played and I don't regret spending about 100$ over 2 years (exclusively to buy roster slots in the first few months).

    To give an example of a bad microtransaction game: in a city-building game I play from time to time, to build something you need different 'covers'. The 'covers' appear randomly when you finish a building, but some of them are so rare that you basically have to buy them using 'HP'. However you can't earn 'HP' in game, you can only buy it with real money. So, spend money or you can't advance!

    MPQ has its flaws and I've ranted about them in the past (haven't we all?), but I'm still playing because it's actually a good game, not great, not perfect, but definitely good enough.

  • DAZ0273
    DAZ0273 Posts: 10,291 Chairperson of the Boards
    Well MPQ allows you to obtain every single in game resource for free, rewards you for playing and even gives out free covers of it's top tier characters at certain points, so it is definitely better than most mobile games. Some of the Hero Point packages are a bit pricey but I think VIP is a nice resource to help players speed up progress, even if not for all. The only one that is completely out of touch with reality is Iso prices.
  • maguirenumber6
    maguirenumber6 Posts: 457 Mover and Shaker
    UK based player, I've spent £15-20 at the most on this game, and that was to open up roster slots about three months into my time playing the game. I'm now on day 846 and I've not spent any more money since, nor do I plan to, since you can earn enough HP from champion levels and PvE/PvP rewards to fund roster slot purchases. The iso prices in the store are insane.
  • Daredevil217
    Daredevil217 Posts: 3,967 Chairperson of the Boards
    I've been playing over 1100 days and JUST paid my first $2 (just missed the sale sadly).  My roster is way behind those who have spent and played less days, but it never bothered me because this game is a marathon and it never really ends.
  • acescracked
    acescracked Posts: 1,197 Chairperson of the Boards
    Very effective bold usage!
  • Jarvind
    Jarvind Posts: 1,684 Chairperson of the Boards
    I've tried a bunch of FTP games and this is the only one that doesn't make me want to puke via blatant cash-grabbing. 
  • byc
    byc Posts: 297 Mover and Shaker
    I have not spend any $$$ on this game yet.  I started in May 2015 and worked for everything I have in my game.
  • limonade
    limonade Posts: 41 Just Dropped In
    I have spent some cash here and there. But anything above $20 for less than a measly 20,000 ISOs (which I can normally attain now within a day) is a no go.

    It doesn't matter how many "sales" they throw at me, they're still leaving A LOT of money on the table that a fan like me have and are willing to spend for their characters. The ISOs amount alone needs to be revised to 2017 game standards.

    I just figure D3GO and Demiurge aren't dying for money, hence we haven't seen a huge increase in ISOs as of late. 
  • limonade
    limonade Posts: 41 Just Dropped In
    Dormammu said:
    Jaedenkaal said:
    The other thing MPQ definitely gets right, for me, compared to other similar games, is the "energy" resource, IE, the resource you spend to actually take actions in the game. Build buildings, enter battles, etc. Once you're out, you can't play the game anymore unless you spend money, or time. In MPQ this resource is health, and it is MUCH more generous than the energy resources in basically any other game I've played. 
    This is the biggest factor for me. I've never understood why so many mobile games severely limit the amount you're able to play through various 'energy' resources. There are so many games that are fun and interesting, but will only allow you to play for 10 minutes or so before you literally can't do anything. I understand the reasoning behind it - to motivate you to pay $$$, but everyone checks out. MPQ does it right; the more you play and develop, the more you're able to play until its not even an issue. In other games, the more you develop the more of a strain it becomes on your energy resource and you are able to play less. That's asinine.

    I'm guessing that's why we're about to celebrate the 4th anniversary while most other games are gone in six months to a year.
    RiP Marvel: Avenger's Alliance & Avenger's Alliance 2

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