BartFargo.9867

How do you feel about the people who buy a new iPhone every time they are released? Is that deliberate targetting of vulnerable people? Can we please just try to get to a point where we don't use "vulnerable people" as a bludgeoning instrument to get what we want. Every single day there is someone getting up on a soap box demanding something then wheeling on a "vulnerable person" and telling everyone who doesn't agree with them that they are hurting Timmy. I won't be buying the mounts using this delivery method, I don't like it. Anet will need to look at their data and see if this model is worth it and sustainable. Make arguments about customer trust, about reasonable price points, about the structure of the stable but please stop wheeling out a "vulnerable person" to guilt people into obeying you. You deliberately misunderstand--casinos, lootboxes, etc rely on people who are unable to control their impulses buying into them. One more pull, one more roll. It's what makes an already sleazy move even more so, and it's important to acknowledge it. It's also important to point out that while there is a subset of people who are particularly susceptible to these tactics, these methods are designed to tempt EVERYONE, to make MANY people spend more than they normally would. I found myself trying to find a way to justify the purchase (I can afford it, it supports the game, I spend more on coffee every month, etc) before I came to my senses.

This entire situation is such a disappointment, both as a player and as someone who has worked in mobile game dev for the last six years. I've seen exactly what these kind of predatory methods can do to people, and in our dev meetings, I have always held up Guild Wars 2 as a way to incorporate f2p/cash shop elements correctly, without being cheap or exploiting the player base. Yesterday, I watched a guildie spend money they cannot afford to purchase the entire skin bundle. It was crushing. Yes, everyone is responsible for their own choices, but this kind of deliberate targeting of whales (aka vulnerable people) is absolutely unethical and everyone in game dev knows it. I suppose I should be thankful that Anet decided to make the skins available in a bundle, without duplicates, to limit the damage. The introduction of account-bound RNG to the black lion chest items was a test, and apparently, 'terrible loot-box mechanics' passed with flying colors. There are currently NO mount skins that you are able to earn in game; it's all cash shop, and the vast majority are locked behind a slot machine that costs five dollars a pull. Yes, you can get them all if you pay a premium--but if I want a drink at Starbucks, I don't have to buy ten drinks to get the one I want. I have been happy to support GW2 over the last three years with gem purchases, because I love this game. But I can't support a game that does this. I would expect this from a scummy f2p app store title, but not from ArenaNet.