The MMORPG Tibia Online offers an in-game marketplace where every player can legally sell their characters to other users. MeinMMO editor Alexander Leitsch finds this incredibly interesting. Because catching up on levels and gear to play with friends can be very annoying. In addition, this combats the “black market.”
The trading of characters or entire accounts is banned in most MMORPGs. However, in my opinion, this is a mistake that takes many advantages from both players and developers.
While I used to play and grind intensively as a student, things are different with a 40-hour workweek and a child. I want to play with my friends and dedicate the few hours I have to the best content of a game.
This includes big raid bosses, exciting PvP battles, or world events in huge player groups. These events typically only take place in the endgame with the appropriate gear. And that’s exactly where selling characters could fill a gap. The German developers of Tibia Online recognized this in 2020 and designed their own marketplace, which I really like.
MMORPGs rely on XP boosts or grind bonuses instead of trading
I don’t want to spend hours leveling and grinding gear in every MMORPG just to experience a real adventure with my friends. I specifically noticed this in WOTLK Classic. I want to finish the raids around Kel’Thuzad or later the Lich King and plan multiple attempts each week for that. I even have friends who actively play WOTLK Classic and have a spot for me in their group.
But the process to get there is what’s preventing me. Although Blizzard has considered providing a booster for the jump to level 70, it is still far from sufficient. Currently, I’m stuck at level 78 and my friends have already completed the first raids.
On the other hand, I have a character at max level in New World with almost perfect gear. My friends have just started Fresh Start and we are leveling from scratch together.
But until they finally catch up to my main character and I can explore the latest area Brimstone Sands with them, it will surely take several days.
For new players, catching up is a problem. Josh Strife Hayes also mentions this in a video on YouTube. MMORPG players have the best experiences when overcoming tough challenges or experiencing something together with friends. And often, long and boring grinding stands in between.
By the way, Hayes demands that the best content should be available in the early game, so no grinding to the end game is necessary. I feel the same way, but I see character trading as a good alternative.
Some of you may say that one should earn achievements and great experiences in some way, and they shouldn’t just fall into one’s lap. But is that really so? Is it really an achievement if I struggle through quest areas? Shouldn’t cool experiences only be accessible after days or weeks of full boredom?
Many developers probably also see things differently and have already reacted. Boosters and bonuses are the common means to let players catch up faster:
- Lost Ark, for example, constantly brings new power passes, which allow players to get characters immediately to level 50 with acceptable gear. Events where materials for upgrading gear drop more frequently are also common.
- Guild Wars 2 offers a boost to max level for real money.
- Also, SWTOR, LOTRO, and many other MMORPGs have items in the shop to skip levels.
But even though these methods certainly help with catching up, they don’t go far enough for me. Also, because developers let the content of the leveling phase die.
Fans of grinding and former players benefit and the developer profits
A character trade in the game could solve several problems at once.
Players who enjoy leveling new characters could continue to do so and earn a bit of money in the end. This would also lead to leveling content not completely dying out when new players enter the MMORPG.
Players who want to catch up with their friends do not have to grind for days but could start with the coolest content right away.
Players who quit an MMORPG would – depending on the funding model – even have the opportunity to get money for their thousands of hours because they have rare items or titles that then transition to someone else.
The developer, in turn, can also profit from the system. In Tibia, for example, a currency is used that players purchase with real money. Moreover, a few percent in fees are deducted from the transaction, which doesn’t go to the selling player. Instead of losing accounts on the black market, this system is controlled and allows for profit.
Doesn’t this system devalue the achievements? Not exactly. On the one hand, a player still has to have rendered that performance. At first glance, for me, it even seems better than a level boost, where no one has rendered a performance.
On the other hand, accounts have been traded on the “black market” for a long time. Here, there is just a higher chance for fraud and developers do not profit from it. Moreover, it doesn’t help to have the best character on a server if you can’t play it properly, meaning you don’t automatically have advantages in PvP content.
Of course, a trading system like this must ensure that bots do not take over and that fraud cannot occur. In a purely PvP game, where equipment holds a particularly high value, such a feature can also be discussed.
Otherwise, however, I see mainly advantages for all sides. MMORPGs should primarily be fun at the end of the day. And if the fun only begins in the endgame, why not buy a character directly in the endgame?
What do you think about character trading? Should that be legal and promoted? Feel free to participate in this survey:
By the way, trading characters in Tibia is not that cheap. They are often sold for several hundred to thousands of euros. However, one player was very lucky. He bought a character for 110 euros and found an item that was worth much more:
MMORPG player buys character – finds an item worth 1,600 euros
