The developers of Old School RuneScape are embarking on an experiment and removing a feature from some servers of the popular MMORPG, which has many fans but also many critics.
What is this feature? It involves the ability to apply cosmetic skins over the actual equipment, allowing players to customize their character’s appearance without having to adjust their strength. In WoW, this feature is referred to as Transmogrification and was introduced with the Cataclysm expansion in patch 4.3.
This is exactly the feature that the developers of Old School RuneScape wish to forgo in an upcoming experiment. Specifically, there will be “Cosmetic-Free Worlds” from July 28 to September 30, where cosmetic adjustments for equipment, icons, teleportations, animations, and other areas will not be visible.
Pets will also not be available on these servers. A complete list of the restrictions can be found on runescape.com.
The Steam trailer for Old School RuneScape:
What is the goal of the experiment? The developers have repeatedly received feedback from the community that cosmetic items negatively impact the personal gaming experience. Through the test, the team wants to find out:
- What does the game feel like without the currently available cosmetics?
- Which cosmetics are missed or appreciated as visible?
- What are the players’ thoughts on the visual identity and style of the game when only the “more realistic” items are present from the gameplay?
- How many players use the cosmetic-free worlds, how many return to the cosmetic-free worlds, and how long do they play on these?
Clothes make the man, and brings money
Why can cosmetics be a problem in MMORPGs? Before the ability to apply cosmetic items over the actual equipment of a character, many avatars looked similar; however, it was possible to directly see which content they had played and which challenges they had mastered. Some players miss this visual feedback.
Additionally, many MMORPGs have started to closely tie cosmetics to their monetization with the introduction of these items. While Pay2Win or Pay2Progress offers that directly affect progress or character strength continue to be strongly criticized, the sale of cosmetic items has become widespread.
This also means that designers spend a lot of time designing cosmetic skins to attract as many players to the shop as possible. The appearance of earnable clothes often suffers as a result. In some MMORPGs, even high-level heroes wear better rags until they invest money in the shop. This devalues every item they can earn in the game.
Unfortunately, the sale of cosmetic goods generates so much money in many games that hardly any developer will be willing to give it up in the future. After all, there are more than enough players who are eager to visually customize their characters. Additionally, many genre fans prefer a Free2Play model. They can much more easily live with cosmetic sales than with Pay2Win or Pay2Progress.
Therefore, it is all the more surprising that the developer Jagex is implementing this experiment to scrutinize cosmetic items. That changes are expected at RuneScape under the new CEO have been clear since June: MMORPG primarily financed through microtransactions, but they are not well received – developers explain that they want to make changes
