You’re darn right I do!
https://www.gamesradar.com/games/fps/bioshock-creator-says-audiences-reward-single-player-games-that-dont-have-other-methods-of-monetization-like-baldurs-gate-3-kingdom-come-deliverance-2-and-clair-obscur-expedition-33/ BioShock creator says "audiences reward" single-player games that don't have "other methods of monetization," like Baldur's Gate 3, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 | GamesRadar+
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Yep, all of these games are signs that these huge companies don’t NEED to charge for monetized content, they’re just fucking us because they don’t know how to do anything else.
All these companies spending $100’s of millions to chase a billion dollar revenue from multiplayer and live service. Thank god for the publishers and developers that see the gap for spending a few million and getting a real return from single player ~30 hr games. Give me a solid 25 hour game without next gen graphics and I’ll spend $40-50 any day on it. Most games don’t need to be 60 hr campaigns pushing my graphics card to the limits. Make AA gaming the norm.
They did things right in the 2000’s. Make a banger game, like Baldur’s Gate II or Diablo II, see it sells well and then make an expansion for it.
I know there’s big money in gacha and loot boxes, but a lot of the players who pay for those just aren’t the same people still buying retail games for $60 or $70. Your business model and platform are part of what determines who your audience is.
That said, if your budget means your game has to be a GOTY mega-hit like BG3 or Expedition 33 or everyone gets laid off, that’s not a good bet for most studios.
I liked BG3 but holy fuck do i wish that people would stop slobbering it for “not having MTX” when you are riding on the backing of others.
the other games were backed on Kickstarter which gave them an assured amount of money to finish the game.
baldurs gate 3 not only used the money earned from the previous game, they also launched it as a FULL PRICE early access for 3 years for people to keep feeding them money to fund their development that only allowed act 1 to be played, and they still didnt deliver on features they promised, such as dice rolled stats.
BG3 literally had a constant money machine akin to games using MTX to make their financial decisions for the game, and then when the game came out they kept making a few changes which is great, and adding a few more endings which is great, and adding a bit more content which is great.
but again the difference is like an author writing a book using only their own money and then selling it to a price to attempt to make the money spent back, vs authors who has an active patreon who can just keep pumping out chapters as long as people keep paying because they are in no rush to actually make the money back as they already have.
All of these games do have some type of other monetization though. They aren’t forced or online type things like some games. Completely optional.
But bg3 and Kcd2 both have “deluxe edition” type upgrades or mission dlc that you don’t get in the base game,e33 has a skin pack.
Imo a better example would of been something like stardew valley where you pay 1 time and the dev makes new content and still you get it free no dlc charge or anything like other games
To some extent, sure, I guess. But the best selling games of this year are:
1. Monster Hunter Wilds
2. Oblivion Remastered
3. Assassin’s Creed Shadows
4. Black Ops 6
5. MLB The Show 25
6. KCD2
7. WWE 2K25
8. Split Fiction
9. NBA 2K25
10. Civ 7
There’s definitely some games like what is described here that are successful, but plenty that are riddled with MTX and/or live service too. So I’m not exactly sure the point of this sentiment is. People aren’t rewarding these kinds of games moreso than their live service/MTX heavy counterparts.
All this really indicates is that there’s a lot of gamers out there with different tastes and that means a lot of different types of games are viable at the same time.
Meanwhile Roblox continues to be more profitable than anything else.
There’s money in chasing stagnating markets, but stagnation and decline come all the same.
On the other hand, do you know much mobile/gacha games make?
No they don’t, unfortunately.
If MTX didn’t work, they wouldn’t keep doing it
i mean, players play games when they’re good
but gacha and mobile games still make 100x what these single player games make in a lifetime
so im not too sure what their point is
The only thing I like about the gacha/f2p microtransaction games is that not many of their tactics get me to spend any money on the games. My dopamine hit comes from getting stuff others have paid for, for free.
What about all the good single player games that don’t have those and don’t sell amazingly well?
Audiences reward good games without other monetization.