How To give Your Game Away For $1600

Question: What free game costs $1600 to play?

Answer: Battlefield Heroes – if you’re veteran player b00sted, that is.

Like many others, b00sted liked the idea of a fun, free shooter game. But before long it had turned into a $50 a month habit for him. And he’s not alone. Amongst others who declined to be interviewed,  both Louigi21 and Xavier have paid several hundred dollars into the game. Why? What could possibly cause someone to spend the cost of 32 brand new console games on one free title?

For the unaware, Battlefield Heroes is a team based arena shooter. It’s free to play, but players willing to spend a few dollars can buy a slight advantage in the game as well as outfits to customize their character. The in-game advantages can theoretically be bought with in-game currency as well, but this requires hours of daily dedicated play.Around $25 per character will kit them out with everything, and additional spending past that is fairly useless since characters can only wear one outfit, carry two guns, etc.

All three of the players we spoke to had a similar story when asked why they spend  so much. They all play the game for an hour or more every day, enjoy being able to customize their characters, and justify the high spending because BFH is their main game. Only b00sted said his spending was out of control, saying he tends to collect sets and felt he had to buy the limited edition items before they were gone.

If you read our article “How To Buy Stuff you Don’t Want“, you might be starting to recognize EA’s tactics here. It’s clear that no gamer in the world would pay $1600 upfront for a game, but when gradually pushed to keep buying more of the same game, its easier to persuade someone to part with  lot of money.

BFH is a masterclass in sales trickery, and most devs would love to have players spending that sort of money on their games, but what do you think – are high sales figures a sign of addiction, and if so, who’s responsibility is that?

We’ll have more on gaming addiction next week.

Thanks to b00sted, Louigi21, and Xavier for the interviews.

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