PODCAST TRANSCRIPT
Hello everyone. This is Connor with global transmission. This episode officially kicks off season two of the podcast. Considering it’s a new semester today, I’m talking about something that’s still very on-brand for me, but it is a little bit more serious than what I usually talk about. I’m going to be looking at the increased use of microtransactions in video games and the impact this has had on the medium as a whole. But first, we have to understand what exactly a microtransaction is. It’s obviously made up of the words micro, meaning very small, and transaction, meaning an exchange or payment. But I’m sure you all know that essentially the developer of a video game offers in-game goods in exchange for a small amount of real money. And the impact of these items can range from simply looking different, or they can change how one plays the game completely before we’re before we see where they stand today, we have to take a look at where they started.
The first widely regarded instance of this practice was in the arcade game Double Dragon. Three in 1990, players were able to purchase in-game boosters and abilities by inserting more money into the machine. From there, it became common in social games in the early 2000s the purpose of this was mostly to purchase clothing or other accessories in the game, because people never saw this as a problem. They were simply an option for the people who wanted to buy them, and they had no effect on the actual gameplay. But the backlash only began when the first modern use of the micro transaction occurred. The first game to use this was the Elder Scrolls for oblivion. Now you may be asking, what was the item in question? Well, it’s armor for your in game horse. It costs $2.50 for some armor that goes on a horse. It was not very well received at the time, and the effects of this are still seen today, and it has a very lasting effect on video games as a whole.
So, most people are familiar with the term microtransaction when they hear that, there are a few games that come to mind for them because most of these games are free to play and download, but they try to entice players to purchase in-game items with real money. Prime examples include Fortnite, Roblox and many other popular online games. And while this can be annoying, I kind of understand the games are free, and it’s how the developers make a profit. The only problem I have with microtransactions is when they appear in a game I paid for, I can get behind expansion packs and downloadable content for these games costing money because that’s giving me more content. However, microtransactions in triple-A games that retail for $70 are absurd. People often look at EA Electronic Arts as the worst perpetrator of this. They publish and maintain games such as FC/football club, formerly known as FIFA, Madden college football, the NHL games Battlefield, The Sims, Dead Space and some of the Star Wars games and the all of these are riddled with meaningless items that are locked behind a paywall, even for the single player ones like Star Wars, Jedi, fallen order and dead space. There’s still other stuff you can purchase just to change how your character looks, and it’s all locked behind. You know, pay $10, and you’ll get the deluxe edition upgrade. But it’s just skins. It doesn’t give you anything. And because of that, they’re not a well-received company, and practices like that are universally hated. I don’t know if there’s anyone I’ve talked to that said, “Oh yeah, I love micro transactions, and I think they’re really good for video games”, but maybe there is someone that thinks that, no hate to them. But if this is my opinion, my personal opinion is that when I pay for a game, I should have all of the content included. Usually, I don’t mind the idea of, like, deluxe edition games if they have extra content for a few dollars more; if it’s just a skin pack, then I’m not going to pay for the deluxe edition.
Overall, I think microtransactions should be stopped. And I don’t think anyone is disagreeing with me on that one. That’s not to say downloadable content is bad. I’m simply saying that paying for outfits and games is stupid. I am a victim of it. However, I’ve spent more on Fortnite than I’d like to admit, and it’s honestly embarrassing thinking how much I could have saved if I didn’t pay for worthless in-game items. So, my call to action today is that I want you all to be more aware of the marketing and consumerism in your everyday life. We often block it out and just see it as background noise. But noticing out, noticing it can help push back against scams like micro transactions, not necessarily scams, but you know what I’m saying? It can help you be more careful with what you’re spending money on. I want to thank you all for listening. I’m Connor Riley with Global Transmission, and I’ll see you next time.
