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Gran Turismo 6 in-game microtransactions criticised

by Mark Tyson on 5 December 2013, 15:31

Tags: Namco (TYO:7832), Sony Computers Entertainment Europe (NYSE:SNE), PC

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Sony has been criticised over its execution of microtransactions in its new game Gran Turismo 6 releasing this Friday. An update to the PlayStation store has revealed how these microtransactions will work and how much in-game credit costs. The game is currently available for pre-order at many retailers priced starting at around the £40 mark.

The sixth game in this famous racing franchise would be the first in the series to feature trades of real-world cash for in-game cars, according to IGN. A leaked YouTube video, confirmed as genuine by Sony, revealed information on how these transactions would work.

The credits pricing is as follows, according to Eurogamer:

  • 500,000 in-game credits – £3.99/€4.99
  • 1m in-game credits – £7.99/€9.99
  • 2.5m in-game credits – £15.99/€19.99
  • 7m in-game credits – £39.99/€49.99

An in-game Jaguar XJ13 could cost you £120

So, say if players were to unlock the Jaguar XJ13 using store-bought in-game credits, it would cost them a wallet hurting £119.95 (20 million credits).

This might seem costly to you or me but Sony’s boss Shuhei Yoshida has responded to criticisms via Twitter by insisting that the microtransactions are completely optional and purely an “alternative path to busy people” to aid such players quickly through the game’s progression system.

Ridge Racer Slipstream

In related video game racing news an announcement has been made that, in celebration of its 20 years milestone, Namco is bringing Ride Racer Slipstream, a brand new game in the series, to iOS and Android on 19th Dec. The title will be offering up 12 vehicles, 20 playable race tracks and an impressive 300 customisation items. There are also plenty of ‘power-ups’ on offer.

The new Ridge Racer Slipstream is rumoured to be free-to-play. I wonder if any of the in-app purchases on offer will be as expensive as those in Sony’s Gran Turismo 6.

HEXUS Forums :: 35 Comments

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Posted by jim - Thu 05 Dec 2013 15:35
Don't agree with the criticism, to be honest. Gran Turismo is a game that built itself on the long-term career aspect - you have to win races to acquire credits to buy new cars.

My big gripe with GT5 was that it forced you to spend actual cash to buy DLC packs to get new cars - and they were shown and listed in the game even if you hadn't bought the DLC, which was incredibly frustrating when you went to buy it thinking it was available. With this new system, it's no different to MMORPGs and the like - if you want to, play properly and work hard to earn your way through the game, or if you can't be bothered, pay for in-game credit and just buy your way to the top.

The main thing is, for those of us who want to play it properly, it shouldn't get in the way - so that's an improvement in my book. The only problem would be if it was impossible to get that many credits, reasonably, in-game. But assuming they haven't changed the reward scale from the old games, that doesn't look like it's the case.
Posted by Traldera - Thu 05 Dec 2013 15:49
jim
The main thing is, for those of us who want to play it properly, it shouldn't get in the way - so that's an improvement in my book. The only problem would be if it was impossible to get that many credits, reasonably, in-game. But assuming they haven't changed the reward scale from the old games, that doesn't look like it's the case.

I wouldnt bank on it. Forza 5 has come under critisism for similar changes. They reduced credits per race, increased car cost, and removed car rewards from the levelling system. Its designed to make you get cars slower so you feel more inclined to buy them with money.

If GT5 does the same, it pretty much marks the end of gaming as we know it. Hopefully they will change the economy to be more reasonable, much like Forza is now after launch.
Posted by cheesyboy - Thu 05 Dec 2013 15:56
You don't HAVE to buy these, but the alternative is to grind and grind and grind to work for it in-game (you can bet they make this task more onerous than in earlier GT games). Fun.
Posted by kalniel - Thu 05 Dec 2013 15:58
cheesyboy
You don't HAVE to buy these, but the alternative is to grind and grind and grind to work for it in-game (you can bet they make this task more onerous than in earlier GT games). Fun.

If it's onerous to play the game as it is out of the box then I won't buy it, simple. There are plenty of other games out there waiting for my hard earned dollar so I'll pick based on what's the most fun for me :)
Posted by shaithis - Thu 05 Dec 2013 16:04
Pay2Win comes to non-Free2Play games - joy! :censored:

I have come to accept the (potential) necessity of at least some DLC in modern titles but paid-for “leg ups” in online competitive games is just taking the :censored: IMO.

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