- Free-to-play games often use in-game purchases as a source of revenue.
- Pay-to-win models can give players with more money an unfair advantage.
- The addictive nature of microtransactions and loot boxes is a frequently discussed problem.
3.) Is this immoral or perfidious?
Yes, many people see in-game purchases - especially certain monetization models - as immoral or perfidious . There are some problematic aspects that are repeatedly criticized:
1. Pay-to-Win (P2W) – money for advantage
- Some games are designed in such a way that paying players have an unfair advantage (e.g. stronger weapons or characters).
- This can lead to players without purchases being disadvantaged and making little progress.
2. Manipulative Mechanics (Dark Patterns)
- Psychological tricks : Games often use reward systems to entice players to buy.
- FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) : Limited offers or rare skins create artificial pressure.
- Pseudo-currencies : Virtual currencies (e.g. 1,200 V-Bucks instead of €10) obscure the true perception of cost.
3. Loot boxes – gambling for minors?
- Loot boxes contain random rewards , so players keep paying for a small chance of getting rare items.
- Many experts see this as a type of gambling , which is particularly problematic for young players.
- Countries like Belgium have therefore banned loot boxes .
4. Free-to-Play games – actually pay-to-play?
- Some games advertise themselves as "free" , but if you want to have fun in the long term, you have to pay.
- Example: Mobile games with extremely long waiting times that can only be shortened by purchasing.
5. Gacha games & rip-off mechanics
- Particularly common in Asian games: players "draw" new characters or equipment at random.
- Some players spend hundreds or thousands of euros without being guaranteed to get the character they want.
Are in-game purchases always bad?
No - there are fair models , e.g.:
- Cosmetic purchases (with no gameplay advantage) - Skins in Fortnite or League of Legends
- Expansions with real content - Story DLCs in The Witcher 3
Yes, when it comes to rip-offs - especially pay-to-win or manipulative systems.
(Image-1) What are in-game purchases?
Here is a cartoon depiction of a gamer surrounded by in-game purchases. The satirical illustration shows the absurdity of microtransactions and pay-to-win mechanics.
The MIT License also called MIT License is a very simple and popular open source software license. It was originally developed by the Massachusetts Institute
You can move the Steam folder to an external drive by either moving the entire Steam installation folder or just moving your Steam games library to the external
The Microsoft Office from Microsoft completely free, not quite, there is an Office 365.0 from Microsoft, this is 30 days for free testable Is for several
The Mobile-Voip free or cheap calls via Wifi or 3G to national or international destinations Good solution, for example to save on your mobile phone costs
Anonymous or private browsing on Windows 10 is easy with the famous and fast edge browser Please start the MS-Edge and open the Page in Anonymous-Mode,
This website does not store personal data. However, third-party providers are used to display ads, which are managed by Google and comply with the IAB Transparency and Consent Framework (IAB-TCF). The CMP ID is 300 and can be individually customized at the bottom of the page. more Infos & Privacy Policy ....
