I noticed a game on Steam that says "Free to play" Is that a truly free game or do they expect you to pay for things to play the game the way BFG does on some of their games?
Thanks.
Steam - Free to play
(8 posts) (6 voices)-
ChrisS
AdministratorA lot of the free games, whether on Steam or your Android device, are difficult to play without buying "power-ups". Conceptually, it's not much different than the shareware from the days of yore when DOS ruled the world and you'd get to play the first 3 missions of a game (like "Doom") for free but had to buy the game to unlock the rest of it. The current formulation of "free" lets you buy the game on an installment plan which can either be good or bad. If it's a horrible game you pay nothing, if it's a great game then you might spend a fair bit of coin.
But, there are games that are completely free. If you see one that interests you find a review and see if it mentions in game purchases. However, you still don't need to buy anything - just play it as you would have played the old shareware and don't worry about finishing it.
Posted 8 years ago # -
Philipgreenwood
Member....Hi, I had the same question. I'm playing House of fun a slot game, where yu can buy coins..I wonder just how much money they make from people- slowely of course$5.oo or 10.oo at a time. .Are they getting rich or No??? Another similar one that is good as well is Sniper ops 3d- pay to get rifles, I have not spent any loot myself but these guys make a bit of money I'm guessing.
Posted 8 years ago # -
ChrisS
AdministratorI wonder just how much money they make from people- slowly of course $5.00 or $10.00 at a time
The March of Dimes created the modern charity fund raising model. Before MOD, charities relied on a handful of benefactors with large bank accounts; now everybody asks for "just 19-cents a day" to do whatever they do. You can raise far more with small amounts from the multitudes than with large amounts from a few (which is also why the big game companies would make more money by lowering their prices).But, how much they make isn't the relevant question. The relevant question is "did you get value for your money". If it's a great game then you want them to make bucket-loads so that they'll make another game. If it's a horrible game then you want them to go away. With the "installment plan" you can get an extended preview before you spend anything, which is a big plus. However, you also need to be aware of the potential ultimate cost.
Of course, the big game companies also have their variation on the installment plan. Many games are merely platforms for expansion packs where, again, you need to consider the ultimate cost.
Posted 8 years ago # -
mikiem2
ModeratorAre they getting rich or No???
Cell phone/tablet apps, or those that started out that way, often use in-app purchases. Consider Candy Crush Saga -- wikipedia[.]org/wiki/Candy_Crush_Saga
While the game includes freemium content, 97.7% of those playing the game do so for free, while only 2.3% pay.[3]...
In July 2013, it was estimated that Candy Crush Saga at the time had about 6.7 million active users and earned revenue of $633,000 per day in the US section of the iOS App Store alone.[8] In November 2013, the game had been installed 500 million times across Facebook and iOS and Android devices.[9] According to Business Insider, Candy Crush Saga is the most downloaded iOS app for 2013.[10] In 2014, Candy Crush Saga players spent over $1.33 billion on in-app purchases which was a decline from the previous year, since in the second half of 2013 players spent over $1.04 billion.[3]
Activision Blizzard recently bought King, the company that created Candy Crush Saga, for $5.9bn.
Posted 8 years ago # -
jgf
Member"The relevant question is "did you get value for your money"."
A question with no absolute answer since we gamers are such a varied bunch. This was driven home to me recently when I encountered one of the rare negative comments about Skyrim; (paraphrasing) "I went through a couple of caves and a small town, then went to a city. I was overwhelmed. Five hours and this was as far as I'd gotten. I don't want to have to search every building looking for loot. I don't want to talk to every NPC looking for quests. I like a game I can play through in 10-15 hours and move on." I was aghast, because this is exactly the opposite of my preferences. This person wants a new game every week, I like a game I can play for years. Game developers love him and hate me; he is a steady market for whatever they release, but to get my dollar they must create something which lures me from their old game. Of course neither attitude is "right" or "wrong", they just represent the poles of the market, and it's up to the developer where to aim his game. Each of us has his own concept of what is the best "bang for your buck" when looking for a new game. (The ultimate deal for me, to date, was $25 for the Morrowind GOTY Edition in 2003, it has been on all my systems since ...untold hours between the game, the construction set, and numerous forums. Though the payware longevity record for me is Electronoid, on every system for over twenty years and still being played (via DOSBox).)
"If it's a great game then you want them to make bucket-loads so that they'll make another game."
Lol, "be careful what you wish for...". We can all think of those long awaited sequels or V2.0s that were sorely disappointing.
Posted 8 years ago # -
I like a game I can play for years.
I had to laugh at that statement. I'm in the middle -- I like both kinds. I like some games that are slow and you take you time. Others, are fast moving. I like those that have lots of levels but each level is quick and others that may not have so many levels but you take your time on each one. There are variations and I cannot say at at first glance what any game will be or whether I will like it.
I keep my old games because, even if I've finished it, the mood may strike me to start again!
The one game that I thought of when I read your message was "Ricochet Infinity". I have been playing that game pretty regularly for almost 4 years and I'm still only about 2/3 of the way through the game. Even though the game is just about 9 years old now, there are still being level sets added. At least I am going through the level sets a bit faster than they are being offered (currently 4,465 levels sets created by users available). In over 44,600 levels, I have only found 2 that I have not been able to get the rings (5/level) and I'll go back some day and get those SOMEHOW!
Note -- completed level sets (including 14 base sets): 2981; Completed levels: 44,672; Gold Rings collected: 223,350; Total points: 1,629,159,038; Time spent (way short of actual): 1019:38:55 > 42d, 11hr, 38m, 55s!
I don't normally like games that require fast responses but this is my favorite breakout game for ONE reason -- you have SOME control over the ball (often the opposite of what you want, but still some control). Keep 'em coming!
Posted 8 years ago # -
jgf
MemberWell, the type of games I typically play for years are sims - MS Flight Sim, racing sims, sub sims, Sim City, etc. Good FPS games also hold up for repeat playing - System Shock 2, No One Lives Forever 1 & 2, Deus Ex, Half Life, the Thief series; also RPGs such as Morrowind and Oblivion. And for years I've been addicted to Transport Tycoon Deluxe, now in its open source variant OpenTTD. Not to mention Chessmaster.
Posted 8 years ago #
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