cross-posted from: https://lemmy.tf/post/370646
It’s hard to find a game without IAP (in app purchases) these days and that’s a shame as Pay 2 Win really isn’t about skill, it’s just how much you can sink in. That said, developers often need to incentive to keep developing a game and to pay for the costs such as servers, etc. I remember there were a few games that were Pay to Play on the horizon, but after their announcement, they never seemed to materialise. Anyway, I’m waffling. Basically I’m okay with an upfront cost or a subscription, I just want a good game which appears to have longevity and as few events as possible. I want to play when I want to play as opposed to when the developers want me play.
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So… this is going to come across as a weird suggestion, given that the company providing it is actually evil, but… I’m actually getting good usage from Google Play Pass at the moment. A £5/month subscription gives access to a wide range of Android games with absolutely no in app purchases and no adverts. I’m not sure if any MMOs are included in the catalogue: there’s like a thousand games in the program and I’ve tried out 4 so far. Because that’s the thing I’ve really noticed. With no in app purchases, I play a game for longer as I don’t run up against demands for money, adverts, or difficulty walls that are intended to get you to pay. So I just keep playing until I’ve done everything I wanted to do.
If you can tolerate the evil that is Google, it might be worth getting the free trial month and see if there are any MMOs.
Stop tempting me! 😂 Seriously though, I keep looking at the Play Pass and considering it. The game I previously played I was playing for three years and the developers just got greedier as time went on. But because it was the only game I was playing, I didn’t need it. Now I’m looking for something new, I may end up there.
The offerings are usually a mix of premium or semi-premium games as well as your typical predatory games. They all have had every bit of monetization stripped out of them (no dlc, no ads, no paid currency). I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mmorpg on play pass but there are many high quality games. If you setup family sharing you can share the subscription at no extra cost. Good discount for annual renewal too.
So how does that work for the games that had monetization stripped out? Do you just get the reward for free since you’re paying for the subscription? Or do you just not have the option for that “purchase”?
most of the f2p offerings are games with energy systems limit play. And in those cases you simply have unlimited energy, or the entire energy system is removed. For other types you have ever jigsaw puzzle etc that was ever available for the game. Sometimes you need to go in and claim the dlc and it’ll then be active for you for as long as you are subbed (and as long as the game in question is part of the program) Usually the games that have heavy p2w and FoMo built into the core gameplay loop and mechanics don’t show up. I assume it’s because it would be way too much work to make the game fun to play and that they don’t want to give people a way to avoid the monetization.
2 examples I can remember easily: The Battle for Polytopia has every single faction unlocked from the start. Titan Quest is based on the earlier version that only had the first expansion, so the 2 more recent expansions are for sale in the ingame menu, but since you have play pass you just hit “download” on them and get them.
I wouldn’t expect to see a lot of clash of clans or raid shadow legends -types of game there, because “real money” is an important and significant resource in those games.
The amount of effort spent to convert the game to play pass varies, but in almost every game it’s not a detractor.
Good question
Not sure if you’re into this. But Warframe.
It’s free, optional IAP to get stuff faster but not in a P2W way. Everything is possible to get free if you sink in time and/or be social and trade/sell stuff for premium currency so you still can buy stuff you want.
Game is loaded with content. Steep learning curve but when the game ‘clicks’ you’re sucked in. There is a story that will make you go “wtf?” and that part is widely known as the “you completed the 30 hour tutorial. Now the game begins”.
It’s playable solo, recently added cross play which makes playing with others more easy and there are parts that are public where you can interact with everyone there. That makes it feel as an MMO.
The devs are active on Lemmy warframe@dormi.zone is the official Lemmy page since they moved from Reddit.
If you’re able to rush stuff, doesn’t it make it pretty p2w? Clash of Clans was p2w for that reason.
Not really… paid items aren’t stronger than free items.
For example to get a new Warframe (your armor/character with unique abilities)
Free:
- Find/grind Blueprints for head, chest and legs
- Find components to build the parts (building takes time like 12h real time, you don’t need to stay online/play the game)
- build Warframe (takes 24h real time)
Paid:
- Buy blueprints
- Find components to build parts
- Buy away the wait time
- Build Warframe
- Buy away the wait time
End result:
Exactly the same Warframe. You only need to grind less and wait less.
Every item/weapon/Warframe needs to be mastered. Either paid or free you’ll need to play missions to level up your gear so you can attach mods to make it stronger. Mods are found in game or can be bought. Mods also need to be levelled up by gameplay to be better.
So in the end you only get the base stuff faster but everyone is required to play to get better.
Als some paid items are simply for more inventory space like extra weapon/Warframe slots. That way you can keep some more stuff instead of dumping/selling it to make room for new stuff.
To level up in Warframe it’s necessary to keep using stuff you haven’t used before. When you stay on your own gear you’ll never really progress. But leveling up with new gear enables you to power up older gear as well.
And since it’s mostly PvE you don’t lose or miss out on paying players. If you solo stuff or are playing with friends then you’re pretty much never in contact with a paid player.
If you play with random players then it is possible to have a higher skilled (either free or paid) player in your team that might make specific missions easier to do. But still that’s totally up to you.
From all the F2P out there I personally believe Warframe to be the best game that handles their premium paid stuff without hurting free players.
The game seems complex, in the beginning it feel overwhelming. But don’t be afraid to ask for help and search the Warframe wiki. The community is very friendly and the Wiki will guide you as well.
I don’t consider myself a gamer but I have had a couple long stints in pay to win games and a lot of the things where you say they’re minor, become major as time goes on and since I’m competitive, I’ll likely get sucked all the way in trying to get an advantage.
That said, you’re an absolute legend for the time you’ve taken to write everything out. I cannot thank you enough.
Should mention, since it’s not mentioned here, I’m looking for a mobile (Android) game. 🫣
Old School RuneScape is a good pick. Great game and solid mobile client.
If you’re okay with optional cosmetic mtx then Albion might be worth looking at too.
AdventureQuest 3D has a single class exclusively behind paywall, but it’s a one-time fee. Beyond that it’s cosmetics and crafting speed-ups for real money currency (which is also earnable from normal gameplay)
Thank you so much. I really appreciate the suggestions.
Since the game is getting a rather big addition in a few days: RuneScape 3 is also not bad, but if you want to avoid mtx and p2w you have to pick the “Iron(wo)man” option when you start. This removes the ability to trade or use the auction house system, but in return all the p2w is stripped out (and imho the progression of your character becomes much better)
Oh for real?
Gonna add another vote for osrs. Very good mobile game for when you wanna mine the coal rocks and make number go up. :)
Have you checked out Guild Wars 2? the whole base game (all story and maps up to lvl 80) are free to try; it does have IAP but they’re exclusively cosmetics or Quality of Life items that don’t give any advantages in PvP or End game PvE instances.
I was trying to look into it, but couldn’t find it on the Play Store
