Don't pay to win, play to win

Hi folks!

This is kind of the theme of this whole blog, but I came across this post from Richard Garfield, the creator of "Magic the Gathering", talking about exactly this topic. And I'd assume he knows a thing or two about games and addiction. I grew up with MtG, and spent a fair bit of my pocket money on it when I was a kid in the 90s.

So, first, please read what he's got to say.

I wholeheartedly agree with him on this, but I also don't think this is going to go away anytime soon. There is lots of money to be made. So here are some tips for how to deal with this, staying safe while having fun. These are rules I follow myself (mostly on mobile games).

#1 Never pay within the first week

You download a new game, it seems quite complex and overwhelming in its mechanics. You get through the tutorials, level up quickly within the first hour. You feel like you've got the hang of it. You start playing against others online, and then the first "special packs" crop up, "once-only opportunities", "84% off only today". You've spent all the starting special currency (gold / diamonds) on some items, and everything starts slowing down. Competition gets harder. Why not spend some real-world money on that special offer?

What happens here is that the game is designed to get you into the habit of constant micropayments. Mostly, the things you pay for early on become useless relatively quickly. In order to fully understand a games' mechanics and being able to judge the actual value of purchases, you need to spend some time with it.

So just don't pay anything within the first week of playing. Enjoy the free stuff. Get to know the game, before you pay for it.

#2 Pay what it's worth, once

Now that you know a bit more about the game, and can accurately judge which purchases make sense and match your playstyle, you can decide who much the game is worth to you. You've seen some "once only" offers come and go (surprise), and you know if this is something you'd be spending some serious time with, or if it's burned out already for you.

If you like the game, pay the developers. That's only fair. The beautiful thing about free-to-play is that you can pick your price - can be from the lowest item for the price of a coffee, up to a bit more for a game that you really enjoy.

But only pay that price once, and that's it. You get what you get. Use your ingame purchase wisely. Often it's virtual currency, so you can leave it in the game until you've decided what to do with it.

# 3 Don't pay to win

Every time a game asks for real money, try to identify the pattern. What psychological trick are they trying on you? Resist, and you'll feel good, because your mind was able to defend against their tricks. You won the meta-game.

Don't pay to win, play to win. You'll find it's much more satisfying to become successful at a game by practice and becoming a good player, than just paying your way to the top. Subconsciously, you'll always know if you deserve the victory.