An expert in video game monetization explains the problem behind real money trading and Pay2Win. He blames poor monetization models for the failure of numerous MMOs and draws a connection between gold sellers and Pay2Win.
The site Gamasutra primarily targets the developers and decision-makers behind video games. An article by Ramin Shokrizade was published there. He is a monetization expert. In 1999, he was a successful “real money trader” in Everquest himself. For almost 20 years, he has been dealing with this topic.
His resume on Linkedin reads more exciting than many a novel. For 10 years, he was a “Cyberathlete,” which means “power gamer” in games like EVE Online, WoW, or Diablo 2. He has also repeatedly worked in the gaming industry.
From these experiences, he has built a career. Shokrizade scientifically examines how games make money and advises game companies. He was with Wargaming for over a year and worked on monetization models for World of Warships there. Other stops, according to his resume, include Microsoft, Firaxis, or 2k Games.
Frankenstein Payment Models
Shokrizade says: Players still want MMOs; the demand is high, but developers fail at monetization models. They cobbled together something, some Frankenstein model, without really understanding it and wondered why their games failed. The decision-makers lack understanding.
In a longer article, he looks back at the problem of real money trading in MMOs. He seems to have identified it as the root of the problem.
The article is an excerpt from an already older scientific paper on monetization that Shokrizade keeps under wraps because he believes that this work could harm customers if the insights from the study are implemented.
The Problem with Monetization Comes from Real Money Trading
In countries like China, an industry has emerged that effectively farms virtual currency and then sells it for real money. By now, this has become automated. One individual oversees countless computers on which bots farm gold and thus make money.
The system is professionalized and efficient: Players can buy the equivalent of a hundred hours of “virtual work” for one hour of work in the right world, which is why the model is so successful.
This model leads to numerous problems because “virtual achievement” is worth nothing when the reward can also be achieved through monetary investment. This results in hyper-deflation. What gold farmers earn devalues the work of “real players”: A prestige item is worth nothing when you can buy it for a few bucks yourself and when everyone has it.
Developers have capitulated to these gold sellers over the years and have applied the model themselves with the motto “If you can’t beat them, join them.”
Expert Bridges the Gap Between Real Money Trading and Poor F2P Models
Developers did not want to wait for others to kill the economy of their players; therefore, they took it into their own hands with microtransactions. This monetization with “free to play models” and their “pay-to-win” has come at the expense of players. The product quality has decreased. Shokrizade calls these models “First Gen F2P.”
In contrast, he refers to the models of later successful free-to-play games like LoL and World of Tanks as “Second Gen F2P,” even though they are not entirely “clean,” as in the case of the premium ammunition from World of Tanks.
Golden Future for World of Warships – Mobile Version Will Prove Expert Right
He himself has worked on “2nd Gen F2P” in recent years, which probably no longer have Pay2Win elements.
When he worked on the monetization of the WoT mobile offshoot “World of Tanks Blitz”, he was not allowed to remove the premium ammunition from the game. Therefore, the model here is also not “100% 2nd Generation F2P.”
With World of Warships, he implemented his business model. As numbers prove, it is now the most successful game regarding the money players spend per capita in the game.
He believes that when World of Warships comes to mobile devices, it will continue to be successful and will prove the correctness of his theories. Shokrizade believes that a “clean” free-to-play model will ultimately generate more revenue as well. The mobile version of World of Warships will then surpass the current market leader World of Tanks: Blitz and thereby prove that he is right.
We have shortened and simplified the article here. Anyone interested in the details should read the article here on Gamasutra himself. It is in English.
Mein MMO says: Shokrizade provides the foundation for what most MMO players believe: “Free-to-play and especially pay-to-win have destroyed the MMO genre or at least severely harmed it.”
From Shokrizade’s perspective, the models are not only bad for the players but also for the developers. He seems to have made it his life’s mission to steer monetization in better directions. One can only wish him luck.
We have dealt with cash shops, pay-to-win, and their difficulties in this article:
Pay2Win – the black mark: Why cash shops are rarely discussed
