As I am still stuck at home and playing a lot of videogames, I have been watching and thinking about the state of esports. Throughout the pandemic, the esports and competitive gaming scene has grown immensely as fewer other sports are going on. This has brought increased traction to websites like Twitch and competitive esports have even been shown on platforms like ESPN. With this new growth, I began to think about what will happen in the future. If anyone has seen the movie Ready Player One, I feel like we could be going in that direction. With E-sports, everything can become online and there is no need to have a maximum capacity for watching events in person. Not only is esports more accessible, but because there are new games always coming out and new strategies that form so often, the game becomes more dynamic, just like other sporting events. While there is so much good happening in the industry, I think it will hit a cap, just like in other sports. Only a certain amount of people are willing to watch, and while that is very high, many groups do not find it very interesting. This is where games like Rocket League come into play. Games like Rocket League are based on other sports and are therefore easier to follow and enjoy for the casual sports fan. Instead of learning what every champion in League of Legends does, all they need to know is the basic elements of soccer and the philosophies of the game. Games like this help bridge the gap between esports and other industries that is necessary for esports to become as big as the NBA or NFL. While this can and probably will happen, it may take longer than expected as the recent increase has been primarily caused by the pandemic and isolation. Overall, I think that esports will continue to grow and as long as there is an audience, they will be able to play due to how easy it is to play and watch.
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Recently, as more and more games become free, I have been thinking about what I would rather have, the cost being upfront, or having in-game purchases. I would rather have the game be free with additional add-ons. As someone who has played on both console and PC I have realized that a game either costs around 30-$60 or is free to play (in most cases) and that usually, the free games tend to do pretty well with consumers if they are made well. Some great examples of this are League of Legends, Fortnite, and Rocket League. All of these games are free to play from the beginning and most of the money spent comes from buying cosmetics. On the other hand, games like Call of Duty or Overwatch require the consumer to spend money to buy the game before any in-game cosmetics are factored in. Firstly, I think that both of these work well from the business perspective but as a consumer, the game being free is always an advantage. As someone how does not care that much about in-game skins and cosmetics, free games have always allowed me to participate fully without having to spend money. On the other hand, most paid games already have many customization options that I also enjoy when I have them unlocked. I think that as a game company, making your game free will help bring a lot of attention and allow more players to play even though you are not generating as much revenue. I think this is better in the long term. This strategy allows you to keep producing cosmetic items which some consumers will continue to buy. This is why it is better in the long term.
Moving away from that, I did hear one idea that brought both ideas together. My friend told me that he would spend around $40-$60 in cosmetics on a game that was free because he felt he would have to pay that much if the game was not free. I find this very interesting because, in theory, this idea makes sense but, in reality, this should not be a valid argument. This is because I do not feel spending money on pure cosmetics is worth it, especially when they can usually be earned. Overall, I think that both free and paid games can be good but I prefer to play free games as I do not usually spend money on cosmetics. Summary
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AuthorHi, my name is Nick Bayer and I will be posting blogs about every 1-2 weeks in the 2020-21 school year. I am doing this for my Advanced Game Design class at Durham School of the Arts(DSA). The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Durham School of the Arts or Durham Public Schools. Categories
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