Pets: The "Pay to Win" Problem

"Paying to win" has generally been frowned upon, as this game was not built around microtransactions. We're already paying a subscription fee, we shouldn't have to pay even more to advance or be ahead of the curve, right?

This mentality is especially true when it comes to Pet Battles PVP. For an activity that's so open and welcoming to everyone, many feel that it's extra unfair should anyone be able to gain an advantage by simply having more expendable RL money. But on the other hand, doesn't it make sense that you get more if you pay more? Can't there be a happy medium between "paying to win" and keeping gameplay fair?

It's rare that we see a very strong pet that's purchasable outside of the game, but when one does pop up, it's hard to ignore the fact that it becomes the "go-to" pet for a while. And by "a while", that usually means until the next major content patch when a large number of pets are released. Generally the newer ones are created to better counter and balance the previously "OP" pets. Even if things are smoothed out over time, an overpowered pet that can be purchased outside of the game still causes a ripple within the community. Maybe not just a ripple. A tidal-wave?

When Murkalot stepped onto the scene, it caused quite a bit of fuss. Was he "overpowered"? Yes. Did he cost RL money (and there was no other way to obtain him)? Yes. Blizzard has since "nerfed" this pet, but he is proving to still be a powerhouse contender in the arena, which may mean he still falls into the category of a "pay to win pet". You pay a certain amount to collect a pet in order to have an advantage over others or just to stay on par.

There were quite a few comments that pointed out how ridiculous the endgame had become because of this pet. Not only due to its insane damage, but also because of how the pet is obtained. Would the response have been just as strong or as loud had Murkalot been a pet that anyone and everyone could obtain within the game? Maybe. But for different reasons of course. Gameplay would be the largest concern, not the fact that money was involved when it shouldn't be.

And it's completely understandable. For a game that doesn't rely on microtransactions, gaining any type of major advantage or advancement by spending more money is just plain unfair. People start the game with the impression that they don't need to be rich IRL in order to be competitive in-game. To suddenly switch things up on them is very jarring and a huge turn-off.

To play devil's advocate, though, for a pet that costs more than one month's worth of playtime, shouldn't the player get a little more? Otherwise, what exactly are they paying for? It would alter the status quo, yes, but as long as it's an option for everyone, isn't it "fair"?

The problem is that it's not exactly an option for everyone. While I agree that you should receive your money's worth, it's just unreasonable to think that everyone is able and willing to spend the same amount of money to keep up with the rest. I'm sure the player base is quite large now, but even if it wasn't, each player leads their own unique life. Circumstances are rarely ever the same. So how can anyone expect that by simply keeping the option open to everyone, that the option is actually a viable choice that everyone can make? For some, there is no choice; the answer is just "no, can't do it, won't do it".

Still, in this type of situation where players are purchasing "optional" items/pets, the demand for quality is there. For some, quality includes the pet's ability and strength in Pet Battles.

It's unlikely that Blizzard will stop selling pets outside of the game, so what can be done to avoid the drama while providing a product that players can be proud to say they paid X amount of money for? Can this even be achieved without inserting Massively Awesome Ability into So And So Pet?

How about this: what if pets that require RL money to obtain only had sub-par or mediocre abilities, but in exchange had amazing graphics, animations, etc. Would that be satisfactory? Rather than paying to win, collectors would be paying for the vanity/to collect. The gameplay would still be focused on what can be done in-game, but the high quality of the pet's cosmetic side would justify paying X amount.

Or would players still want more? Pets are not just for looking adorable as they follow us on our adventures anymore; many players enjoy them because they like to participate in Pet Battles. While the fun for collectors comes from buying something that looks cool and increase their army of pets, the fun for battlers is the ability to feel strong and to win. And regardless if you're a collector or battler or both, who doesn't love a pet that can really hold its own during a match?

Not to mention that implementing an awesome looking pet that costs extra wouldn't be very popular with the collecting community. Sure, it MIGHT address the "pay to win" concerns of the pet PVP community. But those that enjoy the act of simply collecting could see it as an unnecessary and unfair obstacle in their own style of preferred gameplay.

Blizzard can't make everyone happy, but they can attempt to maintain balance. "Paying to win" pets definitely upsets that balance, though. To be fair, Murkalot's situation was pretty unique. As I mentioned before, it's rare that we see a pet that's not readily available in-game that has such a crazy set of abilities. Perhaps Blizzard's enthusiasm for this Blizzcon pet simply got a little out of control. It may just be a one-off that isn't likely to happen again.

We may yet see another pet from the Blizzard Store that's strong enough in battle to cause a stir (the Alterac Brew-Pup might be pretty strong, but maybe not in the same realm as Murkalot was), however, I'd like to hope that there's something that can be done to help ensure that "paying to win" isn't an issue while still providing a purchasable pet that people can feel comfortable spending money on.

"New" RAF System Unveiled

Blizzard released their revamped Recruit-A-Friend system today, aaaand.. well not much has changed in terms of eligibility for rewards and the process in general. Some notable changes include being able to recruit without having to log out, and more mount/pet options to pick from.

To redeem any of the new pets or mounts, you'll need to recruit four friends (or yourself four times). After they buy the starter game, if they buy 2 months of game time, you'll get one month of free game time for your main account and the choice of one pet or one mount.

Honestly, I can't say I'm all that impressed with the changes. I was hoping for some changes in pricing to accommodate a little bit for collectors who will probably only be doing this for the pets and mounts, but I guess it wasn't meant to be.

Here's an estimate of what you'll be spending to collect all four pets:

Purchasing battlechests not on sale -

$20 x 4 (starter game)
+ $30 x 4 (two months game time)
$200
- $15 x 4 (one month free game time for you)
$140

OR

Purchasing battlechests on sale -

$5 x 4 (starter game)
+ $30 x 4 (two months game time)
$140
- $15 x 4 (one month free game time for you)
$80

Regardless if you purchase during the sale or not, these are PRICEY pets. Compared to the Blizzard Pet Store companions, RAF pets cost 3-5 times (depending on when you buy) more. It's quite a jump.

On the one hand, I can understand that these pets were originally special pets, even in the Asian regions. To offer them to (nearly) everyone, it's a major decision. So it's somewhat reasonable to put a larger price-tag on these pets.

On the other hand, it makes me a little irritated. Collectors have been requesting for these pets for years, so Blizzard knows that they are hot items and mainly collectors will be going after them. Yet they chose to hand them out in such a capitalistic way, that seems to take advantage of that collector mentality. You want this? Ok, we know how much you've been longing for it, but still pay this huge price. The cost may still mean these pets are out of reach for many people. So does the system accomplish the goal? I don't know since I don't know what the intent was for adding these pets to a (not-really) revamped RAF program.

Even if the prices hadn't changed, if these pets were made giftable or something similar, perhaps it would be more acceptable. Some countries don't allow the RAF system, so how are those collectors supposed to obtain these pets? On top of that, if the pets were giftable, it might also be an incentive for some players (who were recruited back into the game) to start collecting again. Come join me in Azeroth, and here's a neat pet to get you started! Or something like that...

In the end, I'm not all that jazzed about the whole thing. I have mixed feelings of frustration yet gratitude. Thankful, yes, that Blizzard has given us the opportunity to collect (if we have the means to) these "rare" pets. But a little upset with the way they chose to implement it.

It's not just the price of these pets, but the seemingly uncaring mentality behind it. Rather than taking into consideration who exactly has been requesting the pets, and finding a compromise so that the target community doesn't feel like they're being taken advantage of, Blizzard instead puts the pets behind a wall that only a large sum of money will allow access through. I give Blizzard the benefit of the doubt many times, but right now I can't shake the feeling that this is all money driven. (Well, everything is money-driven, but not everything Blizzard has done is as blatantly so.)

There's also this sense of self-contempt that I have since I will be purchasing the battlechests when they go on sale. It feels hypocritical of me since I don't necessarily agree with how the pets were implemented, yet I'm seemingly supporting it by buying into the system. But that's the nature of a collector/completionists. You are literally compelled to collect, no matter the price (in most cases). This mentality is what I feel Blizzard is taking advantage of. They KNOW that many will invest in the RAF program just for the pets. And yet there's no compromise to maybe ease up on those that must collect them all.

Anyway, that's just me ranting a bit about this "new" RAF system. It's not really new; sure there are new pets and you can do it all from within the game itself. But the process is still the same. The price is still the same. There are no other changes other than the formerly mentioned points.

The collector in me squees at the thought of new pets to collect, but every other part of me groans discontently because it just doesn't feel good to think that that side of you that's compelled to collect is being taken advantage of. It may not have been Blizzard's intent, but that's the resulting feeling of it all.

Guardian Cub Revisited

It's been about 4 months since the Guardian Cub was released in the official Blizzard PetStore. This pet was the first of its kind, being a single-use, tradable vanity pet (after a 24 hour CD) that's purchasable for either RL currency or in-game gold.

So was the implementation of this type of companion a hit or a miss? Well it's hard to say since I don't have any hard numbers or access to Blizzard's data, but over the span of the past 4 months I've noticed a large decline in not only the number of Guardian Cubs up for sale on the AH but also a decline in price. This leads me to believe that players are buying the cub (with RL money) and keeping it for themselves and/or most don't see much point in investing in them.

I don't know what the RL money to gold conversion rate is these days, but back when this pet was first released $10 (the price of the Guardian Cub) could buy you about 7k gold. The pets were going for about 10k originally, but now I rarely see the cub being sold for more than 5k on the AH.

At the moment I'm thinking the Guardian Cub was a neat idea but a miss overall. It's a good way to help empower individual players by giving them the choice between paying RL money vs. in-game currency as well as "buying gold legally", but in the end I don't think it was worth the resources to implement. And I'm sure it took more time to implement (compared to the other PetStore pets) due to its unique CD, single-use, and tradable status. Not to mention it's super adorable and has a one-of-a-kind model. :P

We'll see though. If Blizzard sees the release and sale of this type of pet a success I'm sure we'll see more vanity pets with a similar CD, tradable, single-use features in the future.

Buy/Selling Vanity Pets

Blizzard released a reminder about the sale of pets/mounts for gold vs. real money. A summary of it basically goes like this (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong):

- If you are buying the physical item (such as a TCG card), you use real money.

- If you are buying an already in-game BoE item (such as a TCG mount/pet that's IN THE GAME and BoE or the Guardian Cub that's IN THE GAME), you use gold.

- For virtual goods that are NOT YET REDEEMED/NOT IN THE GAME YET, such as the pets from the Blizzard PetStore, you use real money.

While there are shades of grey for some transactions, it's likely any deviation from the above is a scam and participation in it will get you suspended/banned. Customer Service/a GM probably won't be able to restore any currency used in-game, and will probably remove the pet you purchased.

If it seems questionable and you're not sure if the sale is legit, just don't do it. As adorable and awesome as vanity pets are, they're not worth losing your account over. Besides, without that account, you can't even use the pet or have a collection! So just play it safe and use common sense/your best judgement. :)

Soul of the Aspects Coming Soon?

With the release of the mount, Heart of the Aspects, in the Blizzard Store, I'm eager and anxious to see if the Soul of the Aspects will come from the PetStore as well. They're both very similar in icon and model style (of course one being much larger than the other and well... a mount lol), so it would only make sense to pair them together in the store.

Unlike the Guardian Cub which had two separate item IDs since it was specially created with a cooldown so it could be traded/sold in-game, the Soul of the Aspects doesn't appear to have alternative IDs, so my guess is that it will be a straight forward BoP PetStore companion that will be mailed to all current and future toons on a single account.

We'll have to wait and see in the coming weeks if this pet will really be purchasable from the PetStore or not. If not, I'm at a loss of where it will come from!

Guardian Cub In Stores Now

"Orphaned by its titan creators, the fledgling Guardian Cub has taken wing to look for a happy home."

Well let me be the first to say the titans must be crazy to let this cute little one go!

The infamous and somewhat controversial FIRST single-use PetStore companion is now for sale for $10 (USD).

It's a really simple purchase, and very straight forward. You choose which character to redeem the Guardian Cub on during the check-out process (BEFORE you pay). Of course after payment, you may need to wait a little bit before the item is mailed to you in-game. I'm currently waiting on my little guy. :)

Much like I mentioned before, IF Blizzard makes pets account wide in the future (hopefully in MoP) or at least accessible to all toons on a server, then this pet will effectively become just like the other PetStore companions (although I'm not sure if FUTURE characters made on the server after you add a cub to your collection will count or not). We'll have to wait and see on this feature, though.

Since this pet has a 24 hour cooldown on it before it can be traded or sold in-game, there aren't any up for sale on the AH yet. I'm curious to find out how people will price this pet and how long it will take before sales drop off and players stop selling it altogether.

In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy the company of my newest family member! :D

First PetStore Tradable Pet

Incoming cuteness alert.
Incoming cuteness alert.

You have been warned!

Blizzard has released an official preview for the soon-to-be-released Guardian Cub. Why the special attention for a pet that's going to be just another PetStore item? Well it's going to be the first of its kind; a tradable PetStore item!

According to Blizzard, due to the desire by players for optional ways of acquiring PetStore companions, the Guardian Cub will be tradable by players in-game (after a cool-down period, likely one hour). Players can also put the pet item up for sale on the Auction House after purchasing it from the PetStore ($10 USD).

What does this mean? Unlike previous PetStore companions that once purchased, could be applied to all characters on a particular server, the Guardian Cub may only be added to one collection per item.

Also, unlike previous PetStore companions that may only be purchased using real life currency, the Guardian Cub item can be purchased using in-game gold or simply traded between characters.

Keep in mind that once added to a collection, the cub's item will disappear from your inventory. You won't be able to mail the item back and forth between characters, but you can hold multiple versions of the item itself in one inventory.

So if you have multiple toons you'd like to give this bundle of cuteness to, you're going to have to buy multiple Guardian Cubs, one for each character. The upside, though, is that you can choose to spend either real life money or gold to acquire the cubs.

These unique features will be exclusive for the Guardian Cub. All previously released PetStore pets will remain unchanged (for now). It's unknown whether or not Blizzard will add future pets with similar usage features as the Guardian Cub. I guess we can consider the cub the "guinea pig" and where Blizzard goes from here will be based on their studies and findings around the sale and usage of the Guardian Cub.

The official sneak peek has a full FAQ and more detailed information on the how and the why, but not so much on the when. "Soon" and in a few weeks is the best guess. :P

Personally, I'm extremely excited to finally hear more about the Guardian Cub. I haven't created a firm opinion on the idea of a tradable PetStore pet yet. Much like Blizzard, I'm waiting to see the outcome of this change.

No Pet For WoW's 6th Anniversary

the game's 6th anniversary is coming up soon. instead of a pet or a mount, players who log in between november 30th and december 14th will be rewarded with just a feat of strength.

"There isn't a pet planned for this year, no. We plan to reserve this sort of celebratory bonus for the most notable milestones or events in the future." - Daxxarri

this is very disappointing news considering there have been two anniversaries where a companion pet was gifted to players that logged in for the anniversary. one of which doesn't seem like much of a "milestone" (4th anniversary).

this change to gift players with pets for more notable events (i'm guessing blizzard's thinking along the lines of 5th anniversary, 10th, 15th, and so on) is yet another curve ball. the inconsistency only makes players feel somewhat cheated and that something is being taken away from them.

something that was mentioned in the thread linked above is that blizzard has the time to create vanity pets to sell in the PetStore but not a free in-game gift for the celebration of another year of gaming success? that does seem a bit... shady, doesn't it? i'm sure blizzard has its reasons, but this is where i'm reminded of one of my older posts where i discuss pay-to-pet companions and the pros and cons of putting them on sale.

i have very little issue with the sale of vanity items as long as there is a balance that's maintained. the sale of pets is fine as long as the same detail and attention is paid to the companions that are free to obtain within the game. ("free" in the sense that you do not have to spend more than the usual subscription fee for a chance at obtaining it.)

in this situation one could argue that the balance IS being kept due to the large number of companions that will be "freely" available in the expansion. however, on the other hand, it could be said that although the developers do have quite a few planned pets for us in the future, players will still have to spend extra money in order to acquire/access them (paying for the expansion). to most, this does not fall in line with a balance of rl money pets vs free in-game pets.

in general, it just looks bad on blizzard's part no matter how the story is spun. another year of wow's success isn't considered a milestone? many players staying loyal and supporting a company and game for however long isn't noteworthy?

i'm pretty disappointed but that won't stop me from logging in for the game's anniversary. nor will it discourage me from purchasing the PetStore companions once they go on sale. my confidence in blizzard DOES waver in situations like these, but i will give them the benefit of the doubt for now. perhaps i just need more time to get a better view of the bigger picture. or perhaps i'm a blind fool who is being led by what some consider a money-hungry gaming cooperation. time will reveal all.

NEW Charity Pet!

moonkin hatchling coming in november!

alright, now that i've had some time to settle down and gather my thoughts, yes! michael morhaime announced at the opening ceremony of blizzcon that the moonkin hatchling will be available for purchase at the official PetStore in november. also, either part or all of the proceeds from this new companion will go to a (yet to be named) nonprofit charity in the same fashion as the pandaren monk.

speaking of which...

over 1.1 million dollars was donated to the make a wish foundation through pandaren monk purchases! so not only did many of us receive a new awesome addition to our collection, we were part of that 1.1 million dollar cause for a greater good. it's really heartwarming to think of it that way. :)

i'm so happy to see blizzard continuing this trend of donations to nonprofit charities through outlets such as vanity items and sales. collectors, while a small portion of the total in-game wow community, will really go that extra mile for something desired to complete a collection. this can be utilized for good or for evil. *queue the sinister villain theme music* however, blizzard's recognition of our overly zealous nature for all things vanity, and channeling some of that energy towards a beneficial entity such as the make a wish foundation is considered "good" in my book *queue the heroic 'saves the day' theme music* kudos to blizzard on this one!

and just because i can... doesn't it just make you swell with pride to be apart of an in-game community who gets a special announcement during the opening ceremony of blizzcon? :P just kidding, just kidding haha. but seriously, collectors are awesome. :)

Jumble of Updates

since i couldn't find the time to write up small posts for each little topic, i decided to just lump everything together into one post. ready for some randomness?! (ok, well coming from a pet blog, it can't be THAT random can it? lol.)

1.) back in april i mentioned a non-profit auction being held for the the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (PVPUSD). the ending and winning bid was $6,700.00! i hope they made good use of that donation, and i hope the winner enjoys their new non-combat companions plus other goodies.

2.) despite my interest in the thor mini-pet (available with purchase of the collector's edition of starcraft 2), my indecision got the better of me. as far as i know, most places have stopped taking pre-orders for the CE version. blizzard can only print so many of these, so pre-ordering them was bound to have only a short duration. well, i guess now all i can do is hope that the companion pet will not be connected to the battle.net account that the CE SC2 game is connected to. maybe then we'll see some decently priced thor pets up on ebay? i can only hope!

3.) and finally:

"Some of you guys are coming from the angle that players should take responsibility for not playing more than they want to. I agree with that of course, but I also think the game design should not be something that puts that kind of pressure on you. We don't want to make a game full of traps or temptations that you should have to resist. It's more fun, I think, if what the game asks of you is reasonable." - ghostcrawler

keep in mind when reading the rest of this post that this quote has been TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT, and he is referring more to raiding than anything else.

Balancing Act

the whole lil' xt commotion makes me wonder how blizzard will address the growing concern that only money will get the "better" pets. again, better, best, etc. is all relative. in general when i say "better pet" i mean in terms of how rare it is (fairly rare, not quite TCG rare but not vendor common), how unique it is (something original instead of a recycled version of an existing companion), and the quality of the pet (interacts with a wide range of emotes or other items and is graphically well-done).

for those who didn't or can't buy Lil' XT and other Blizzard PetStore items, what would be an in-game equivalent of paying $10 for a "well-made", "super cool", "better" FREE non-combat companion? a new pet-rewarded quest? farmed companions? vendored ones? specific instance drops? something else that no one has thought of yet?

paying $10, in my eyes, for a pet would almost be the same as receiving a pet as a reward for doing a semi-epic quest chain like the sprite darter questline or the mechanical chicken chain. these pets took a little research and i had to go off the beaten path in order to start and finish. in the end it was worth it though.

the quest would make the pet rare/unique for a while, or at least until news of it spread via word of mouth. but being a long chain, it would create an adventure which would add to the companion's charm and quality.

i mean, provided that the pet is actually worth the time and effort to do the entire quest. going out of my way for another vanilla-style cat that does absolutely nothing and is colored the same as say the siamese cat would not be considered the equivalent of paying $10 in my book. the pet would need to be new and fresh and not a recycled version of an already existing in-game companion.

and of course, keeping in mind with the generalized "better" definition, the new quest pet would have to be more interactive in order to be on par with a PetStore companion. more pixels are nice too.

i enjoy all the pets that blizzard has released thus far. the newer ones may have more more detail, but this cannot replace the sentimental value of the older pets who may not be as interactive or shiny. this is why i make it a point to include all pets, old and new at random, in my weekly review of each non-combat companion.

even so, i would still like to see blizzard take steps to find balance with the sale of virtual goods and the availability of "free" virtual goods of similar excellence.

A Divided Community

as expected, the release of lil' xt and the celestial steed has the WoW community and pet collecting community in a buzz. some are ok with the idea of paying-to-pet, while others feel it's a poor decision on blizzard's part.

the big question that hangs over my head as i contemplate the wider and wider selection of vanity items being sold online for real money, is: 'is this right?' "right" and "wrong" are very vague and often subjective ideas though. perhaps a better way to pose the question is, 'is this ethical?'

Succumbing to Temptation

i spent $61 (including shipping/handling + tax) on both the Wind Rider Cub and Gryphon Hatchling today. X_x

Key features:

Available for a limited time only

Catch him now before this offer, like the Gryphon Hatchling/Wind Rider Cub, flies away!

yea, that made me "lol". what an effective marketing ploy. make any item a limited offer and you're bound to get an increase of sales for at least the first few weeks or so.

anyway, hopefully they will arrive in the mail within the next couple weeks. my order is still "pending" which can either mean they're flooded with orders or their inventory hasn't actually been stocked with plushies yet. we'll see how long it takes from start to finish.

i must ask myself, though, what's the difference between buying blizzard petstore pets and ebay'ed TCG pet loot cards? how do i justify buying one but not the other?

Money Sinkhole

blizzard and wow.com just announced that soon there will be two new plushies to buy in blizzard's official online store. these plushies will have matching companion pet codes attached to both. a wind rider cub for the horde plush, and a gryphon hatchling for the alliance plush. of course people of either faction can purchase both should they wish to.

there is still some time before the actual release of the two new items, and before blizzard places an official price tag on them, i hope they think carefully and deeply about the path they are taking.

Sticky Situation

there's a huge divide between those of the pet collecting community. the disagreement? for or against blizzard's new movement into "pay-to-pet" services.

this article, written by wow insider's Mike Schramm, explains (very well might i add) the idea and pro's/con's of "pay-to-pet" services or microtransactions.

my two cents on the matter is that blizzard should take some steps to make sure that both sides of the argument are acknowledged and taken care of.