Thoughts On "The Mannconomy"

Sigh... So, frequent readers of the blog PROBABLY KNOW I'm a big fan of Team Fortress 2. It's basically my favorite FPS on the market right now. I'm not a huge FPS fan, but Team Fortress 2 is a lot of fun.

People will also know I really really REALLY like Valve, the company who created Team Fortress 2. (And Portal.) Part of the reason I love Valve so much is because they don't cheat you. I mean, some companies would have released Team Fortress 2 for $60 when it released, and that would have been fine! But no, not Valve. They released "The Orange Box" which for $6o contained not only TF2, but Half-Life 2, Half-Life 2 Episode One, Half-Life 2 Episode 2, and a little game no one had any expectations for called Portal.

They're the people who make Steam! Steam is a great service that has made gaming a LOT cheaper!

So really I do love Valve. They're a great company. They make great games, and make sure you get your moneys worth.

So, imagine my surprise upon seeing yesterday that there was a new update to TF2 that added microtransactions!



*In Three Dog voice* Public service announcement time CHIIIIIIIILDREN! What are microtransactions? Microtransactions are a way that gaming companies make you pay them again for new content in a game you've already purchased. For a "small" fee, you get... Well that varies. Usually it's either a new weapon, a new cosmetic item, a new emote, something small like that. One example I've covered on my blog before was TRH or That Retarded Horse, a mount in World of Warcraft that could be purchased for the "small fee" of $25.

I hate microtransactions. I reeeeeally hate microtransactions. You see, there's only two real kinds, in my opinion. Cosmetic, and non cosmetic.

If you get a non cosmetic item (I.E. a new weapon, playable character, something like that) for real life money, then you now have an advantage over other players, just because you paid money. Therefore you are taking away from the enjoyment of other players unless they pay money also. And that's just not cool.

If you get a non cosmetic item (I.E. a mount, a hat, a pet in world of warcraft) then you just paid real life money for some shiny pixels that don't even change the game, which is pointless and annoying.. I. Do. Not. Like. Microtransactions.

That said, I.... Don't completely hate the microtransaction store in TF2. (The "Mannconomy" as the call it.) I mean, I certainly don't like it, but they've provided 3 years of free content to the game now, I can understand wanting to make a little more money off of it, to CONTINUE to provide awesome content in the game. Everything you can buy in the Mannconomy store (With the exception of a key that unlocks a chest that gives a random item) can also be gotten just by playing the game eventually, either by random chance, or by combining other weapons together through the crafting system.

Also, there is one REALLY REALLY COOL aspect to it. Some of the items were actually created by players of the game, and the players who created them not only got the items into the game, but get a portion of the sales! That's pretty darn cool.

So, if they had just left it at that, I really wouldn't have minded. I mean... I wouldn't have HATED the system. Is still don't HATE the system. My biggest problem with it is the prices. To get any of the new hats, you have to pay $17.49.

$18.

For a hat.

Let's list what else I could buy for $18.

A copy of the ENTIRE TF2 game which is on sale now for $10.

The new Mass Effect 2 DLC, "Lair of the Shadow Broker" also for $10.

A hardback copy of "The Killing Joke" Deluxe edition. (List price $17.99)

A full copy of Half-Life 2.

One of the 723 games in the steam category "Under $10".

A new CD.

A new DVD.

A month's subscription to an MMO. (Most cost $15 a month.)

18 candy bars. (Usually cost a dollar at the most.)

An N64 game on the Wii's virtual console.

Any number of other things.

C'mon. That's ridiculous.

But ok, the store is a bit pricey. I can accept that, it's not like the hats provide any TANGIBLE benefits. OH WAIT, HELLO THERE SET BONUSES.



The biggest problem I have with this update is the inclusion of "set bonuses". That in and of itself doesn't bother me, so much as the fact that hats are included in the "sets". Before this, hats did NOTHING. They were purely cosmetic. I do not like the fact that they now change gameplay AT ALL. Not one bit. Not to mention the fact that it take a LONG TIME or some really really insane luck to get the hats to drop, which therefore means that they essentially are selling an advantage.

But, overall, I don't completely hate this update. The idea of set bonuses are really cool, although I would like for them to not include hats in the bonus, and the items themselves are pretty cool, like the sniper rifle that applies Jarate to anyone it hits, but can't get headshots. Or the Milk Bottles that you can throw at enemies, which will heal anyone who hits the person who was hit by the milk bottles.

But what makes me uneasy is the fact that Valve has done this at all. While I still love the company, and I can understand the reasoning for them to want to make a little money off a game they've supplied over 120 free updates to, it does feel like a slippery slope to me, and here's hoping Valve is able to avoid the slippery slope, and continue providing great games, great customer service, and just all around being a great company.

8 Reasons Modern Warfare 2 is One of the Worst Things to Happen to Ever Happen to Gaming

I don't try to lie about it, I'm a video game snob. I'm not especially humble when it come to... Well, most things. But video games especially. So when a game comes along that single handedly sets back the medium several years, and is so successful it sells, in Yahtzee's words, 3.7 copies to every mammal in North America, it kind of upsets me.

That's the case with Modern Warfare 2. A game so mindbendingly terrible for the industry, that my only explanation for how it sold so well is that people saw it's awfulness, and forced their brains to tell them it was actually the greatest thing ever, to avoid believing something so terrible could possibly exist.

Allow me to tell you exactly why.


1. It's an FPS on the console.
This one will probably be argued against, but seriously, there are two types of game that have no business being on any console, and those are RTSs, and FPSs. If I'm going to play either of those, I need the precision that a mouse and keyboard can give me, not the borderline archaic scheme that comes with a controller. Any FPS on a console should be ignored, and instead purchased on the PC. Which brings me to point 2,


2. The PC version has no dedicated servers.
Dedicated servers are also pretty much necessary for FPSs to work. What a dedicated server is, is basically a server that is always up, and is also much more stable. Without it, you can't bookmark a server, and lag will always be an issue, which screws up FPSs even more than a controller scheme.

3. You've played the exact game dozens of times before.
A podcast I listen to, Octale and Hordak Vs. The World, refers to MW2 as "Ghost Recon 19". While it may just be a joke, it's not inaccurate at all. The EXACT SAME GAME has been being released for years. There's nothing unique about MW2 at all. Nothing. It's the same game that's been being released for years.


4. Trying to get into FPSs? Pick something else.
I'll admit it, I suck at MW2. I didn't buy it of course, I have standards, but a friend did bring it over to my house a few weeks back, and I played for a couple hours. Speaking as someone only skilled in FPSs AT ALL when they are on the proper system, that is, the PC, I think I got about 2 kills in the span of around 2 hours. It was like trying to break down a brick wall with my forehead. All I got from my attempts was a headache.


5. Team Fortress 2 is a much better game.
TF2 is by far the best FPS on the market. The main reason? It's something different. In a world of brown FPSs, came the little gem from Valve, my favorite gaming company out there today. (Who also came out with another one of my favorite games of all time, Portal.) TF2 is class based, but not in the way that MW2 is, by that I of course mean it isn't, instead certain classes have strengths and weaknesses, unique ways to play, and different ways to be countered. And the best part? They're all a whole lot of fun. Except maybe Scout. Because seriously, screw Scout.

So far, I've explained why it's a terrible game. Now let me explain why it's bad for the industry.


6. 5 Maps, $15.
The recent MW2 Map Pack costs $15. For 5 maps. That is not a good deal. You know how much new maps for TF2 cost? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. TF2 is frequently updated with new maps, modes, and weapons, and you know what? It's all free. That's because the company that makes TF2 isn't scum. Which brings me to the next point,

7. Infinity Ward made it, and even they got screwed over by it.
Infinity Ward are the developers. They made Modern Warfare 2. Activision is the parent company. The own IW. They got the billion dollars that MW2 made. How did they repay IW for making them over $1,000,000,000 off of one game alone? Fear mongering, and shorting people the money they were promised. First, they fired the heads of the company. The two leaders of IW were fired shortly after the game launched, for "disorderly conduct". Then, none of the employees of IW left. Why didn't anyone in IW have any loyalty and leave when the owners were fired for no good reason? Everyone who helped make IW was promised royalties for the game. Those royalties have been delayed indefinitely, in other words, Activision pocketed the money. If anyone speaks up about being shorted on the royalties, they'll be fired for disorderly conduct as well, and good luck getting any royalties then. Isn't that illegal? Probably, but it's complicated, because they aren't outright being SHORTED the money... It's just being delayed indefinitely. Disgusting isn't it?


8. Bobby Kotick

This is the man responsible for screwing over IW, and is also the man responsible for most of what's wrong with gaming right now. Bobby Kotick is the C.E.O. of Activision. This is the man who said he wants to take all the fun out of game development. Because an employee who hates his work, and life, is a good employee! This is also the man who said he raised the price of MW2 by an extra $10, why? Not so they can support the game for free, obviously, but instead because he can. This man is not a good person.


There you have it, 8 reasons you should hate MW2 as much as I do. Too bad that if you're reading this, you already own 3.7 copies, statistically. I don't like the cliched phrase, vote with your dollar, but seriously people, we cannot allow this kind of thing to pass. If you bought MW2, I hope you know you contributed to killing gaming. I might sound alarmist, but seriously, that's what you are doing. You are killing gaming. I love this hobby, and if you do too, don't buy MW3 when Activision inevitably makes IW make it using thinly veiled threats.

This is not acceptable. Don't support this kind of thing. It's bad.

THIS IS VERY GOOD SANDVICH!

I found this in my TF2 screenshot's folder the other day. I really want to know why and how the Heavy was making this face.


BUT THAT IS NOT WHAT THIS POST IS ABOUT! THIS POST IS ABOUT... I don't know. I really don't. Um, hey how about... Wait no, I can't do that... Or how about... Nooo, that's a bad idea... Um...

You know what, this post is about this right here:



ENGIE BEAR! My bizarre picture on this blog, which is case you had not guessed, is not an ACTUAL picture of me.

Around six months ago, this skin was released for Team Fortress 2, my personal favorite FPS (I happen to be a proud not-owner of Modern Warfare 2, a game which statistically, all mammals in North America own 2.7 copies of, according to Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw.) which would, upon install, turn the Heavy Weapons Guy, into a bear. Why a bear? Why not a bear, really?

Now for some reason, probably because it's a really strange idea, this skin was found particularly humorous to a few people in the TF2 community on the Nsider2 forums which I used to be very active on. In fact, it gained so much popularity, that people took an image, and began poorly photoshopping it into all sorts of other things, at first just other classes, and then all sort of other things. Turret bear, demon bear, demon bear eating another demon bear, the images were endless really.

And thus, Engie Bear was born.

Why is that my picture on this blog? I made a blog, I needed a picture, that was something the right size I had already made. Simple enough, really.

And so, in conclusion, SANDVICH AND I ARE COMING FOR YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU!