I mean no, it wasn’t free. I paid for the imperial edition, which included aquillas. So I did pay for those aquillas, therefore I paid for this low quality cosmetic.
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Just because others do not do it, makes it no norm, also such an approach is still “anti-consumer”. Besides we are in 2022, the skins and Aquilas are just database entries, there is technically NO problem to make “skin unlocked at account = $false” and the “Aquila balance = +2400”.
That they did not foresaw such a process, like many things in Darktide, is another matter.
Furthermore, the shop is made in a malicious manner, prices do not add up (FS wants to change that) and there is no ability to see the whole inventory of the shop, only time-gated skins.
Add to this that premium currency is ONLY used to obscure ones spendings and to uncouple money-value from skin-value - reason alone that they should use real money prices like any honest business does.
Like Fatshark does in Vermintide 2.
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THANK YOU.
Many do not seem to get that. One has to PAY to get the Aquilas in the Imperial Edition. It is not about how much ones “saves” buying the edition or how much content there is for the price - to get the Aquilas (or the skins for that matter) it needs to be bought.
Even if they would state “XXX amount of Aquilas for free!”, one would still need to buy it! It is like the “+1 free bar” in chocolate bar packs. One can not open the pack and take the “+1” out because it is “free”.
Never mind, that the pricing was done to reflect the content and in most cases the store/ company which sells “+1” stuff does not make loss when someone is buying this. So it is just there (like many things, really) to make the customer feel good and entice him to buy it.
“Nice! Free stuff for my 20$ box of things!”
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When you spend money to get monopoly money, you’re usually never allowed to refund it. Even less if you spend said monopoly money on macrotransactions.
To add further support to your point. Vermintide 1 had a very fair pricing model for its extra content with reasonable prices. Example:
Notice how the cosmetics are priced; about 1.99 or so American dollars. That’s what I expect from that kind of content. Additionally, since it’s being sold through steam - as is standard for most games operating on this platform - you can refund the content if you don’t like it. So we have a good pricing model and the ability for consumers to refund. That’s good stuff. In all my time of playing the first Vermintide, I personally didn’t have any complaints with its monetization model. This type of thing works because the consumer isn’t left with a lingering feeling of being dissatisfied.
Monster Hunter, Dead or Alive, employ the same type model and I have absolutely no issues with it. I am not anti-capitalist, I am anti-gettingrippedoff with no monetary recourse if I don’t like what I bought. This is a very simple concept to follow if you value your money.
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Maybe it’s inflation?
Or, it could be them trying to milk those 40k fans for everything they’re worth. No offense meant here, but, 40k fans are known for wasting exorbitant amounts of cash on anything 40k related. Fatshark probably had it in them that Darktide will be able to pull those insatiable whales. After all, such people are starved for good video games based on the setting. There’s a content drought there, so Fatshark took that into consideration and devised their monetary model to exploit these people.
However, what they severely neglected, is that you want to make sure your game works, at the bare minimum; and that it’s fun for people to play. None of which Darktide has fulfilled, going off the complaints and steam reviews.
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I was being sarcastic, I should have probably made that clear, lol.
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Thanks for the support and the example(s)!
That is also a problem, true.
Regarding the prices I am quite unsure, I have to confess that I do not mind prices up to 5$ for a “complete/ working class” or up to 10$ for a “quality skin” (meaning looking good and having skins for all “clothing” slots (and mayhaps a trinket)), because I know service and maintenance of servers is/can be expensive.
Problem is that most of the time things lack the quality or are too expensive for what they deliver.
Still the classes sold where gold in Vermintide, but their skins where often rather cheap or just another colour. Other skins (beside the ones for the DLC classes) where quite great.
So I really do not mind skins or that they cost money, I just do not want support the use of dark patterns and manipulation of the players.
Give us real money prices and optional sales (meaning we see all skins all the time and that some are on sale/ as a bundle for a time (like in Vermintide 2)) and the shop-issue has redeemed itself.
Got around to taking some screenshots to show how poorly this cosmetic is implemented.
Clipping through arm
Texture not loading
Texture not loading (Blurry) AND clipping through arms and leg
Clipping through both left arm and right hand
Saw someone else with it, it was clipping through one hand, but interacted properly with the other hand
Plus look how goofy it looks when you’re running around (AND clipping while you do so)
Now like…is this the worst thing in the world? If it was an in-game cosmetic I honestly wouldn’t care at all. But this costs actual money, on top of the base game. This level of quality is unacceptable for that, IMO.
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It is the norm, it is what most games do.
It could almost be forgiven if buying these unlocked recolours in the cosmetic store that you could then buy with in game gold but no, I think they’ll end up selling recolours as entirely new pieces.
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It is not the norm.
Most games do it, true, but psychological manipulation and taking advantage of others is not a social norm! Particularly in the “real world” such behaviour is unaccepted and in parts even outlawed (at least in some countries, albeit not with the same wording or regarding them as dark patterns).
The games, especially mobile games, use these designs because they are effective (and dirt cheap, they are only malicious “tricks” after all), but just because they are used make them no norm or standard.
Also just because others use them, it does not make it better that Fatshark starts to employing dark patterns.
The same goal would be achieved with real money prices and sales. So why keep it? Get rid of the premium currency shop in its current form.
So if your dad beats you on the regular, it’s excusable or…?
Because someone’s father beating them is analogous to someone nitpicking a cosmetic item purchased in a video game. Give me a break with the overdramatization.
The items are simply cosmetic; you don’t have to buy them and there’s no incentive to buy them unless you like the look. You can find screen captures/video online if you’re picky enough to need to see it from the load screen, running animations, etc. OP chose not to and then chose to nitpick it and complain about refunds, when I suspect for most people it’s not a big deal and it’s certainly something that could be fixed going forward. Can’t say I have a ton of sympathy personally.
Yes, it is.
If someone is being abused and they choose to stay, that doesn’t make the abuse okay.
Stop enabling predatory practices and outrageous price hiking for substandard products.
Or, do your due diligence before you spend your money if you’re going to be incredibly picky about video game cosmetics. As if I have to point out how absurd your analogy is, in one scenario you’re an abuse victim and in the other scenario, YOU HAVE THE OPTION TO NOT BUY VIDEO GAME CURRENCY AND SPEND IT ON A COSMETIC ITEM TO MAKE YOUR VIDEO GAME CHARACTER LOOK DIFFERENT. The fact that you think they’re analogous is fairly mind blowing to me on several different levels, but it’s the Internet and 2022 so I guess I’m not too surprised.
I’m not going to step in to your previous argument, but for what it’s worth, here it’s impossible to do our due diligence because they don’t show us what the cosmetics look like on our character model, and I don’t think constant clipping & bad animations is being incredibly picky for something that’s considered premium.
Stop dude.
The devs WILL NOT felate you no matter how much you defend their shady business practices.