Freemium Games.

[kawaiipikachu]

lets get this discussion started by talking about Microsoft solitaire collection being freemium.
Ever since Windows 10 was released the internet is in an uproar about the Microsoft Solitaire collection being freemium with the premium being the ability to remove banner ads & earn extra coin winnings in challenges.
The solitaire is a collection of 5 card games including gmaes that been a staple of windows for about 25 years.
Klondike since Windows 3.0 (As Solitaire)
Freecell since Windows 95.

What everyone don't really realized they actually complaining about old news, It's freaking been a premium for 3 years since the release of Windows 8.
The only difference is with Win 8 you had to download but with Win 10, it comes with the windows installation.
Why has virtually no one knew about this, that's including tech journalist of all things.

The two versions are pretty much the same.
The same 5 card games. the same challenge mode, & even the same xbox achievements.
And you can still still pretty much do everything as the premium game, just with an ad staring at you at the right hand edge of the screen.


Now on to the discussion of freemium games.
Not just on how the public precieves games like my above example, also the general pratice of Freemium.

[Spore]

I don't have Windows 8 so I can't confirm, but I read Windows 8 didn't come with Solitaire preinstalled. You had to go to the Microsoft Store and download it. On Windows 10 it was back to being included by default. So I think that big rush in visibility of the product had something to do with it.

As for freemium games, I typically don't have qualms with them. I've spent at least 20 dollars in Tribes Ascend and 30 dollars in TF2 and didn't feel like I got ripped off or anything. Tribes' use was maybe a bit iffy because the grind to unlock weapons freely was immense, so paying was almost the only way to use some weapons, but TF2 is pretty much flawless execution as far as I'm concerned. All weapons are easy to come by or can be found for like 20 cents if you really just want them, hats are superfluous and support content creators, and maps are all free so there is no splintering of the fanbase. I suppose I don't know how much I'd be okay with the concept in a singleplayer game though.

[Kong Wen]

I honestly don't have enough experience with mobile games (where the biggest offenders seem to be) to be able to comment with any depth, although it is easy to see how a model like this could become exploitative.

I think I have stronger qualms with ad-supported games.

I agree with Spore that a game like Team Fortress 2 does a respectful and respectable job with this model, but we have to bear in mind that it's a Valve game, and Valve is both rolling in money and open to experimentation in delivery and design.

[MerlinDrazziw]

There are lots of different types of freemium games on iOS. Some without advertisement but with an occasional 'sale' on an IAP. Some do the same but will advertise another game from the same publisher/developer at the start of the game. Some have an option to get a reward for watching an 30sec. advertisement. Most will show an advertisement between levels/games/etc. or a banner during the game. Location of the banner differs per game and can be ignored in most cases. But I've tried some games where the banner was too close to the control area, causing accidental tapping of the banner. Also had an occasional tap on a splash banner at the start of a game when the game menu would be visible but the banner was still loading and popped up right at the moment I tried to tap on 'Play'.
Anyway, I have no problems with freemium games showing ads, just as long as they're not annoying or interfering with gameplay. The Biotix game (see thread in mobile gaming) had ads between stages, but I still continued playing it and beat it. Would not have done the same with another game that had as much ads. Supercell games are the most ideal freemium games around (that I'm playing): no ads and no need to get any IAP. But there are more freemium games that have unneeded IAPs and don't show ads.

[The Shoemaker]

I don't have a problem with the concept either. A lot of people get their panties in a bunch from just hearing the term, but often those are the same people who groan about DLC.

I think it's all about presentation. If it has ads they need to be elegantly placed. Anything where it takes up too much space or where it pops up out of nowhere is no good. If you have to make a conscious effort not to click the ads then I think they're too much. I'm much more accepting of ads when I'm using apps. When I'm playing a game I want to be invested, and I think ads take you out of the experience.

When it comes to microtransactions within the game, they need to be at a reasonable price, and the game needs to seem beatable without purchasing extras.

Honestly I haven't really gotten into any freemium games because I stay away from IOS, but I'm open to bigger games using the model like TF2.

[kawaiipikachu]

I don't have a problem with the concept either. A lot of people get their panties in a bunch from just hearing the term, but often those are the same people who groan about DLC.

I think it's all about presentation. If it has ads they need to be elegantly placed. Anything where it takes up too much space or where it pops up out of nowhere is no good. If you have to make a conscious effort not to click the ads then I think they're too much. I'm much more accepting of ads when I'm using apps. When I'm playing a game I want to be invested, and I think ads take you out of the experience.

When it comes to microtransactions within the game, they need to be at a reasonable price, and the game needs to seem beatable without purchasing extras.

Honestly I haven't really gotten into any freemium games because I stay away from IOS, but I'm open to bigger games using the model like TF2.

Your ideas you mentioned differently made for fair premium games.

Sonic Dash is an example of a game that seems to fit in your ideas of freemium.
Most of the ads are static that appears ather a round & you can click out of them straight away.
There are one free revive per game by watching an optional video ad so you not being forced to watch videos.
Plus being an endless runner meaning it doesn't forced you to pay for premium ingame currency or anything.

[Drauks]

I've been sucked into quite a few freemium games, mostly through peer pressure. Well, anything mobile was. Mobage's Marvel: War of Heroes was one such. Had family that wanted me to play, and next thing you know, we're all tossing money down the virtual drain at a chance to get a premium item that will go obsolete in the next month's guild war event. It had the usual items that you could purchase for more resources/energy. Combine that with a ranking system for events and rewards that only the top 5 or whatever players could get, or the top 10 or so guilds, and you had a company that was raking in money hand over fist. Well, until the release of proof of an android exploit where the game could be booted up on the computer and wars won ridiculously quickly due to mouse clicks and instant page refreshes.

Typically, I don't mind the concepts of most freemium games. Neverwinter Online, for instance, being straight up a free game with the usual in game store and certain items that are required for top tier play in PVP, and to an extent PVE, that arguably make it pay to win. I've yet to actually sit down and play one that has ads or videos unrelated to the game itself without deleting it outright, though. That's pretty much where I draw the line.

The thing that gets me is terminology. There's lots of it floating around, with quite a bit seemingly interchangeable depending on who you're talking to or where you're having the discussion. Freemium, pay-to-win, etc.

[pdSlooper]

I'm playing Final Fantasy Record Keeper right now, it's honestly a really neat freemium game, but I'll quit as soon as I feel like I've hit a paywall (like I did with Pokemon Shuffle). I really don't mind freemium, but "bottomless" freemium -the freemium games that are endless and have no logical limit on spending- are games I'll never spend money on. Freemium games that have a one-off "no ads" or "level pack", I might spend money on.

Hypothetically, if a freemium game had a very specific endpoint (like 8-4 in SMB) that I could reach and be "done" with it, I might spend money on power-ups, life refills, etc., but I've never seen a freemium game like that, probably because it's bad freemium design.