[MUD-Dev] banning the sale of items

[Ryan Palacio]

Matthew Mihaly wrote:

> Unethical, unschmethical. A lot of people consider it unethical to charge
> for muds. So what. They are a fairly poor customer base, as they're cheap.
>
> If the RPG environment and game should be a level playing field devoid of
> RL influence, then why has Verant set up its game so that your success in
> it is dominated by an RL factor: time. Time is a resource, and it is
> one that must be spent to play Everquest. However, because of bandwidth
> concerns, player time has negative value to you. You don't WANT them to
> spend that resource on EQ if you can help it.
>
> Money is also an rl resource. It is, however, one which you want players
> to give you, and as much as possible per player. A player who gives you
> $1000 at once for something is worth more than 100 players paying you one
> month subscription fee, because that single player isn't going to use
> anywhere near the bandwidth.
>
> Again, I'm not saying that selling items IS the way to go, but I AM saying
> that all the arguments I've heard against it are pretty ill-thought-out.

    Bottom line (for me) comes to this:  I find it completely distasteful
and would myself _NOT_ play a game that allowed anything similar to "selling
items".  Despite the potential financial reward for the developer, it is my
belief that the "average" player would also find it distasteful.
Unpalatable to the extent of also not playing.  In this belief, the SHORT
term benefit lies in selling items.  As it would most likely generate a
large sum of cash in a relatively short time frame.  However, the loss of
the additional subscribers would hurt the LONG term aspect of the game and
since money in the commercial MMORPG arena is made off the back end in the
form of subscriptions (not the sale of the box), I see it being a long term
loss.  Personally I would rather bank on long term aspect and bring as many
subscribers into the fold as possible (specifically for long term COMPANY
and TITLE loyalty).  The items are purchased once.  Breakage or loss of a
purchased item would really piss someone off to the extent of potentially
not buying ever again.  So contrary to the "disposable" / "expendable"
theory of business that has made toilet tissue, razorblade manufacturers,
grocery stores, make-up manufacturers, MMORPGs and numerous other large,
stable companies, you have chosen to forgo long term revenue for short term
burst in profit.  The attempt to integrate the two diametrically opposed
business concepts looks like a vial of oil and water.  Shake them together
enough and you get a seemingly homogenous mixture.  However, wait long
enough, and the two will naturely seperate, leaving you with two layers that
want nothing to do with the other.

    As for the time issue vs money issue, everyone acrues time (as a
resource) at the same rate.  Time is also a "free" resource: it does not
have to be worked for or effort exerted to acquire it - one must merely
exist.  Not everyone acrues RL liquid assets (such as cash) at the same
rate.  With time being a level playing field and everyone potentially having
the same amount at any moment, it is not a matter of how much you have - but
rather how you spend it.  If the game is in-part based on time investment,
we have started on a level field for all to begin with.  Noone has been
alienated to RL financial misfortune.  Assuming you were poor, would you
like to be reminded constantly as you attempted to enjoy yourself that you
were poor and without many comforts or luxuries?  Assuming you a child,
would you like to be reminded that others are excelling beyond your in-game
capability because you have a child who expends your earnings?  Any decent
person would obviously choose their own offspring, but that doesnt deny that
in some way you might feel disadvantaged or slighted.  This scenario pits
the game vs family.  Obvious decision, and the subscription is lost.
Replace "child" and "family" with _ANY_ RL obligation or priority and the
net result is negative feelings and/or a lost subscription.  I personally do
not like a game where I have no potential to "win" or at least a chance to
be competitive.  If I don't have that chance, I don't play.  It's as simple
as I don't like losing, and if I will always lose, nothing but frustration,
anger, and disappointment will be gained.  So why play?

    I guess the solution for me, as a compromise between the two sides,
would be a server config that enables in-game purchase of items.  I would
not play on that type of server, but there would still be options for me in
a "no-sell" server.  But then the "black market" arises on "no-sell" servers
and we are back to square one...

    I apologize for the erradic nature of the post in advance.  It is hard
for me to express "feelings" in textual context, itself completely devoid of
emotion, inflection, body language, and facial expression.

~Ryan Palacio




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