[MUD-Dev] [News] Virtual goods--Oh, the controversy!

[John Buehler]

Matt Mihaly writes:
> On Wed, 7 Apr 2004, David Kennerly wrote:
>> Kramer qtd. Terdiman in Wired News, April 7, 2004:

>>> "From a design perspective, our developers don't like it,
>>> because essentially what it comes down to is it rewards the
>>> rich. It sort of cheapens the experience for people who have
>>> invested the time in the game to get to a certain level.

>> But it does bring up the question: What is so holy about "time"?
>> It would be one of the most equally distributed resources, if
>> lifespans were relatively equal.  But poor people that work for a
>> living don't have as much disposable time as rich people that
>> play for a living do.

> Yep, quite right. We find our players with money appreciate being
> able to obtain things with money that would otherwise take more
> time than they're willing to spend. Why spending money is
> controversial and spending time is not is beyond me. My time is
> far more valuable to me than my money. Money is replaceable.

For many players, money is far more valuable than time. Further,
there is the ethic of a level playing field. In games like
Everquest, where advancement over time is the primary metric of
success, it seems a bit foolish to say that the very structure of
the game can be sidestepped by appropriate application of
money. It's like buying a political position. Or the right to be
considered an NBA all-star. It's not the way that people want it to
work.

JB
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