Blizzard launches real money in-game pet store (plus some goes to charity)

[Demetra]

I am so tempted to buy that Lich.

Added push, the lil lich will kill critters you are standing near from time to time.

[Teleku]

Squee.

[DraconianOne]

Did you just "squee"? 

I caved and bought the Pandaren via the US site to see if it'll just do the conversion.  Will let you know when I check the statement.  Further to what Lakov said, it bows when anybody bows to it not just it's owner. 

By far the best pet I've got (which, granted, isn't many).

[Mrbloodworth]

Not sure why people are saying this is an in game store, I only see the blizzard store.

[sickrubik]

Ya know, that's a good point. I didn't even think about it when I copied it. I think I just got hit with awesome cuteness and overlooked that.

[Delmania]

The Lich is tempting but I intend to resist.

[Lakov_Sanite]

I caved and bought the lich...

I can't be sure but it seems he laughs when raid members die too, which is awesome.

[Sjofn]

I caved and bought the lich...

I can't be sure but it seems he laughs when raid members die too, which is awesome.

Shit, I extra need him then. 

[Jayce]

Damn, why did Blizzard have to go and provide extra value for your money....  

If I have to eat my words...  


(edit for clarity: by buying one)

[Sheepherder]

I caved and bought the lich...

I can't be sure but it seems he laughs when raid members die too, which is awesome.

Shit, I extra need him then. 

The only thing missing is the ability to rename him chuckles.

[Fargull]

So...

Both pets look great, but I also get the feel they are a big FU to China...

 

[SurfD]

I am so tempted to buy that Lich.

Added push, the lil lich will kill critters you are standing near from time to time.

The Scorchling pet from Ahune (the fire festival holidy boss) will Scorch critters too.  It's awesome.

[DraconianOne]

Blizz have cottoned on to the regional price differences and are making it so that the codes only work for the region that they're purchased for. Won't affect any pets purchased prior to the change, fortunately.

[Delmania]

I caved and bought the lich...

I can't be sure but it seems he laughs when raid members die too, which is awesome.

You really are not making this easy.  Seriously.

[sickrubik]

I really wish Lil' KT interacted with the Siamese Cat pet. :(

[Sjofn]

I will celebrate my NEW COMPUTER finally getting here by buying BOTH pets, watch out! 

[Jayce]

I just "heard" from a co-worker that Blizzard was "selling raid equipment for real-life money", to help people catch up to the current level of gear, dontcha know.

I wonder if they considered how the rumor mill would treat this.  I know that if I heard this, and didn't think to check up on it to find it out was only flavor items, I'd probably just give the game a miss.

Also, when I was telling him that they have stated they would never microtrans things that affect gameplay, I started thinking you should never say never.  I wonder if they would?  Would they sell (for example) lower-tier gear?  Mounts that go faster than you're able to get in game?  Buffs?  Anyone have a source either way?

[LK]

Blizzard will do RMT for an MMO how people want RMT for an MMO to be done. With as little impact on gameplay as possible, if any at all. They have high integrity when it comes to preserving the sanctity of the "game" environment.

[apocrypha]

The next phase of microtrans has been announced - Auction House access via the Armory as a "premium service".

Since the launch of the World of Warcraft Armory, we've been regularly releasing updates and new features designed to help players stay connected to the game even when they're not logged in. Today, we wanted to give you a heads-up about a new service now in development that will let players access the Auction House directly through the Armory website or Armory App for iPhone or iPod touch.

While there are still plenty of details to be worked out, we're designing the service to offer auction functionality similar to what's available in-game. Players have been requesting -- and we've been hoping to implement -- a feature like this for a long time, and we're excited that the Armory and the game have evolved to a point that makes it possible.

This is a fairly complex service to develop, due in large part to its unprecedented integration with the game, so we don't have an exact release date yet. It's important to note here that certain elements of the service will be premium-based, which we'll go into more detail on once the service functionality is finalized.

I think the future's starting to look pretty clear on this stuff - existing functionality is unlikely to become further monetarised but more and more things will be added that are. So far all of the premium content has been fluff - pets, mounts, etc. - but this is a step further IMO.

[Oban]

So I would be able to log in to my character online and then buy and sell goods?  So I could access my character's bank storage, mail and backpack without being near the AH?

That would be very useful during down times in raids.

[Ubvman]

The new premium AH service:

So they intend to charge for "Quality of Life" convenience changes?
Meh... Once you start charging for conveniences its another slippery slope down the wholesale "epic lootz for dollars" route.

Go look through all the previous WoW patches. Single out all the little fixes, modifications and changes that does not impact gameplay but makes more "convenient", less tiresome or saves time. Start putting little $$$$ signs on them. I will imagine that that will be the trend for all the future patches. The nicer changes will have dollar signs on them.

My prediction for a possible premium item:
An instant teleportation device that can go to all the flight points instantly... Who knows?  it may even be in the form a cute looking Mage pet that can cast portals.

[Jayce]

Sky status: falling

[Rendakor]

World of Warcraft: Circling the Drain

[Lakov_Sanite]

Well...i am loathe to think where this could lead but if this is simply being able to use the AH through a website or your iphone without having to be on wow proper than its not exactly an in game convenience. This is a service outside the regular game and I can see some sort of justification for paying for that functionality.

[Merusk]

The people who will make the most use of it are the goldfarmers who buy up anything below their ridiculous prices on the AH, then relist them.  For example, the chick on my server who seems to feel that no shaman glyph should sell for less than 75g. 

I can see Blizz wanting to recoup some of that money for themselves.   I have no problem with this at all.

[Dren]

I never use the Armory (too impatient to wait for its slow ass to function) and I only use the AH when I'm too lazy to have one of my alts make me stuff or farm.  I'd never pay for this feature.

Merusk has it right.  This is for people playing the AH, not really the game.

[Malakili]

Doesn't anyone else absolutely loathe the word "Premium"?  I

[angry.bob]

Doesn't anyone else absolutely loathe the word "Premium"?  I

Not as much as the word "Innovate", which seems to be businessspeak for "new ways to f@ck customers"

Personally, I think every single item in the game should be available for cash, including stuff like the one per server bug mount from AQ opening. With the ammount of RL money being made by shallow facebook games from people buying "premium" stuff in petville, castle age, etc, it's going to happen.

[Nebu]

Personally, I think every single item in the game should be available for cash, including stuff like the one per server bug mount from AQ opening.

I agree for many reasons.  If the prices were set correctly, it would eliminate gold sellers almost entirely sending the profits where they belong.

The only reason I could imagine that this isn't already happening is the volume of legal hassles/CSR issues that it would create. 

[Rasix]

Might be easy enough to implement the items like pets/mounts are currently.  That way one use and they can never be deleted.  A new tab for items, "Made by Visa".

The amount of money made through this would dwarf the ill will it would generate from the poopsockers.

[JWIV]

Might be easy enough to implement the items like pets/mounts are currently.  That way one use and they can never be deleted.  A new tab for items, "Made by Visa".

The amount of money made through this would dwarf the ill will it would generate from the poopsockers.

Didn't EQ2 go this route?  Has SOE put out any numbers regarding how successful or not it's been?

[Nebu]

The amount of money made through this would dwarf the ill will it would generate from the poopsockers.

They're a vocal minority who apparently have more free time than sense.  Let them howl! 

[Lantyssa]

The people who will make the most use of it are the goldfarmers who buy up anything below their ridiculous prices on the AH, then relist them.  For example, the chick on my server who seems to feel that no shaman glyph should sell for less than 75g.

That sounds like a wonderful and guaranteed market niche.  Time to start selling Shaman glyphs for 50g each.

[Musashi]

Only problem with that Lantyssa, is that you have to be available to repost and undercut at all hours in order for it to work.  I have a friend who put WoW on his travel laptop, and played the glyph market like a minigame.  He's got like 300k spread across a couple servers and several dudes.  You need to be able to undercut the farmers a lot.  That's where the appeal for this app comes in.  It gives guys like my friend an opportunity to repost in between meetings.

Contrary to what you might think at first, I think it will fuck farmers right in the ass.  Now my friend will be able to compete with those farmers who's job it is to out repost my friend while sitting there chain smoking at their terminal in a net cafe in Viet Nam, knocking back Tiger beers.

You can still make money if you only repost a couple times a day, but it will be closer to repair money than buy all your friends a motorcycle money.

[Lantyssa]

The idea isn't to outsell the farmers and capture the market.  It's to make glyph chick buy all his to resell.