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Computer Games Reaction Essay

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A man pushes a button, and sits awaiting his prize. For a few seconds his mind flashes with possibilities. The upbeat music and chimes create anticipation while bright colors swarm in front of him. Instead of a jackpot, this man is faced with yet another disappointing draw. But he was so close that time...maybe if he spends a few more dollars he’ll get what he’s looking for. Deep down, he knows that the odds are against him, but he just can’t resist the temptation. And no, this isn’t a casino. Welcome to the world of microtransactions. A microtransaction is a financial transaction made through a game or app in order to obtain some virtual reward; and they are all the rage in the massive market that makes up the video game industry. …show more content…

If you bought the game for it’s full price, you could access all the features of the game with your code. If you got your game used, then chances are that the code would have already been redeemed by somebody else, preventing you from going online with the game. This was done to mitigate possible losses due to game rentals and game resellers such as GameStop. While this didn’t really push in-game purchases, it did set the tone for locking certain aspects of a game behind a paywall (Williams). The next step was to intentionally lock not only features, but content behind a paywall. In 2011, Rockstar introduced the first “season pass” for their game L.A. Noir. This “season pass” allowed a customer to buy all DLC, or downloadable content (any content that isn’t included on the base game, but must be purchased and “added” to the game), as a big bundle. Usually, this bundle was at a discounted rate compared to buying all the DLC separately, and it incentivized fans to spend more money on the game, even if it meant paying for things they would never use. Unlike the online passes, the season pass was implemented into almost every major game released in 2011 and beyond including Borderlands 2, Destiny, and Evolve (Williams). All of this history culminated in the mother of microtransactions; loot boxes. Loot boxes are objects that can be purchased in-game. Opening

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