Monetization

So I'm probably being very "get off my lawn," but it's disappointing to see the new cat store tab. I know, obviously, that this free game needs to have profit generating elements. I also think, however, that the recent additions to that are against the spirit of a community, competitive game. I also think it takes away from the drive an individual player has towards working for champs, working to push content for rank up materials, and going into the aw/aq modes with real motivation. By making everything available for purchase, it seems kabam is doing 2 things. First is pushing everyone to end game play, because if you can get all the champs and rank them all the way the only thing left is to use them against each other. The second is trying to use these purchases to get cash earlier from players, as if expecting them to not stick around. It seems the spending over a long lifetime of an account is no longer viable amd they want a quick payout. It also makes me assume that the next step will be paying for arena wins or content completion, just like paying for the calendar skips. Im sure I'll be seen as just another old man who needs to hang up his sidekick and shut up, but I wanted to throw it out there in case others felt the same.

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ESF

I know, obviously, that this free game needs to have profit generating elements.

If you know this — if you truly, on a fundamental level, understand this — than what is the complaint about?

Why is is that some people think a for-profit company should only make just enough money that you are comfortable with, when that company is providing services to other people who want different things AND employs actual human beings with lives?

The game is the game. It needs monetization otherwise there will be no game!

It’s not anymore complicated than that. Not one bit more complicated.

Let this company function like every other company!

ArbenBisha

The second is trying to use these purchases to get cash earlier
The items in the cat store cost some units,most of the price is reasonable (probably except T5Bs)
Moreover you could always GRIND those units, I myself grind about 2.5k units in 10-11 days

That is very admirable lmao, how the .... do u get that many units, how many hours of arena do you do?

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Colinwhitworth69

I would think FTPers would be thrilled that they can grind for units to get rank up materials. No money required.

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Doosra

Think about the people who are not willing to be in any alliance this would serve them as a glory store

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Demonzfyre

Think about the people who are not willing to be in any alliance this would serve them as a glory store

It's not sustainable though unless you have a steady source of disposable units. That would be arena grinders or whales. Whales are usually in alliances. Glory is way easier to come by vs grinding arena. Probably an hour to hour and half over the course of 5 days vs 4 to 5 hours a day for 10-12 days.

I see this as a way to get what you need in a pinch vs being the spot everyone goes to get resources.

SuelGames

im F2P and that store saved my life. Had a bunch of expiring catalysts that i couldnt use cause i was missing other types of catalysts. Very good move by kabam

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Chatterofforums

im F2P and that store saved my life. Had a bunch of expiring catalysts that i couldnt use cause i was missing other types of catalysts. Very good move by kabam
Yeah I agree and im sure I'll take advantage of the store too, but it will definitely cut down my playtime.

Kabam doesn't make money based on how much you play (which might matter if they did ads, but they don't so it's irrelevant for them). A complaint that's been around since the beginning of this game is that's it's too grindy, therefore, you really answered your own question/concern.

Kabam, as a for profit company, needs to find ways to get the paying customers to spend or game doesn't exist. Many people out there want to take shortcuts, speed up progress or just avoid the grind, that's really the point of many of the deals Kabam offers.

This store fits right into a fairly smart business model targeted towards people who want fairly common resources without the grind. People can get some here and there without spending real money but for those who try and use this as a primary method to get them will be whaling out.

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NearJr

My gripe is about the competitive nature of the game and the community aspects of it. One of the best parts of the game is going through tough stuff or pulling bad champs, and then talking with alliance mates about it. Or getting excited about finding the champ you've been looking for for a year or finally getting through content that gets you resources to rank him up. Being able to just press a button and Google pay for that not only takes from that experience for individuals, who won't get to experience that and will potentially lose interest faster without goals to work towards, but also will handicap the competition by giving everyone r4 ht and Hercules to go crush content or wars or whatever. Just making everyone have the same account goes against every good business sense.
Mind you, I know that you're right and that a company wants money and will get it via whatever means they have available, that doesn't mean they are right or that the product doesn't suffer from bad decisions

You mention things you like in the game, like pulling bad champs and the journey that in itself entails, pulling the champ you like and getting resources as a reward and that's fine. But none of those things will be affected by this new feature.

A lot of people don't enjoy the same things you do and a lot of people have completely different issues with the game than yours.

You're trying to project (and doing a terrible job at it) a specific feature with an unrelated personal preference.

The bottom line is, and it has been said repeatedly ad nauseam, no one is forcing you to pay units for catalysts. If people being able to buy it pisses you off and lessens your enjoyment of the game, that's a "you problem", not a game problem.

If you go about with the philosophy of "if I can't have X, no one should" or "in my days, we had it rough" you're terribly mistaken and you should rethink a lot of things, not just in game.

This new addition is fantastic to bail you out of problems and it only cost units. Like many people have already said, this is a godsend for FTP players and a pretty awesome change for the rest of us who like to spend.

GroundedWisdom

They're obtainable by Units, not money. Units are an in-game currency. They're not only acquired by spending.

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GroundedWisdom

They're obtainable by Units, not money. Units are an in-game currency. They're not only acquired by spending.
Yeah, thanks dude, I understand that. Just as you understand my point.

I don't, really. If you're surprised that resources can be gained by spending, I'm afraid you may be new here.

NearJr

You are complaining about a feature and assuming it's bad beause YOU don't agree with it. You are generalizing and by definition you're assuming others feel like you, which they might or might not.

And, you're comparing things that YOU like or YOU think are morally ambiguous. If YOU don't agree with it, it's fine. Again, a mistaken generalization.

You are free to do whatever you like, give other people the same freedom.

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LeNoirFaineant

It makes no difference to me other than further cluttering up the store tab. I can't see ever using units for these catalysts. There is also no chance I spend money for 5*s.

GroundedWisdom

They're obtainable by Units, not money. Units are an in-game currency. They're not only acquired by spending.
Yeah, thanks dude, I understand that. Just as you understand my point.
I don't, really. If you're surprised that resources can be gained by spending, I'm afraid you may be new here.
Oh cmon now buddy. I know you love pretending to be obtuse while arguing the pedantic, but you know exactly what I mean. At the very least, putting this stuff in the store or offering specific champs is unprecedented as a readily available opportunity. Glory store or whatever dandy gameplay, this can be turned into real dollars for game progression.

I'm not being pedantic at all, just matter-of-fact. There is NO competition between F2P and spending Players. People who spend will always have SOMETHING that people who don't, won't. It's still limited enough so that both can play the game alongside each other.

Drauglin

So I'm probably being very "get off my lawn," but it's disappointing to see the new cat store tab. I know, obviously, that this free game needs to have profit generating elements. I also think, however, that the recent additions to that are against the spirit of a community, competitive game. I also think it takes away from the drive an individual player has towards working for champs, working to push content for rank up materials, and going into the aw/aq modes with real motivation. By making everything available for purchase, it seems kabam is doing 2 things. First is pushing everyone to end game play, because if you can get all the champs and rank them all the way the only thing left is to use them against each other. The second is trying to use these purchases to get cash earlier from players, as if expecting them to not stick around. It seems the spending over a long lifetime of an account is no longer viable amd they want a quick payout. It also makes me assume that the next step will be paying for arena wins or content completion, just like paying for the calendar skips. Im sure I'll be seen as just another old man who needs to hang up his sidekick and shut up, but I wanted to throw it out there in case others felt the same.

I’m a FTP player who grinds arena and am currently working my way through Act 7 and is active in AQ/AW. I don’t view the catalyst store as a substitute for the content I mentioned but as a supplemental source of catalysts to help rank up champs to take on challenging content to gain more resources to rank up more champions to take on even more challenging content.

DNA3000

By making everything available for purchase

Everything has always been available for purchase. It is the details that matter. The catalyst store, depending on your progress, makes some things available for purchase in an unlimited fashion, some things available for purchase in a limited fashion, and some things unavailable for purchase.

I find it interesting that so far, I haven't seen anyone really consider that separation carefully. Because for me, that's the only detail that matters.

In the past I've tried to highlight the changes to the game that I think are important to consider when trying to guess what's coming next. I think my batting average has been pretty good over time. Let's see what's happening now. 3* and 4* champs have always been plentiful. But they are now giving 2* champs away. They are selling 5* champs directly. They are making low tier rank up catalysts almost free. They are making medium tier rank up catalysts highly available. And they are running out of 6* progression.

And that's just recently. A lot of things over the past year or more have been heading this way. I can't be 100% certain what it adds up to, but I am absolutely certain what the shape of what's coming next will be.

DNA3000

My gripe is about the competitive nature of the game and the community aspects of it. One of the best parts of the game is going through tough stuff or pulling bad champs, and then talking with alliance mates about it. Or getting excited about finding the champ you've been looking for for a year or finally getting through content that gets you resources to rank him up. Being able to just press a button and Google pay for that not only takes from that experience for individuals, who won't get to experience that and will potentially lose interest faster without goals to work towards, but also will handicap the competition by giving everyone r4 ht and Hercules to go crush content or wars or whatever. Just making everyone have the same account goes against every good business sense.
Mind you, I know that you're right and that a company wants money and will get it via whatever means they have available, that doesn't mean they are right or that the product doesn't suffer from bad decisions
You mention things you like in the game, like pulling bad champs and the journey that in itself entails, pulling the champ you like and getting resources as a reward and that's fine. But none of those things will be affected by this new feature.

A lot of people don't enjoy the same things you do and a lot of people have completely different issues with the game than yours.

You're trying to project (and doing a terrible job at it) a specific feature with an unrelated personal preference.

The bottom line is, and it has been said repeatedly ad nauseam, no one is forcing you to pay units for catalysts. If people being able to buy it pisses you off and lessens your enjoyment of the game, that's a "you problem", not a game problem.

If you go about with the philosophy of "if I can't have X, no one should" or "in my days, we had it rough" you're terribly mistaken and you should rethink a lot of things, not just in game.

This new addition is fantastic to bail you out of problems and it only cost units. Like many people have already said, this is a godsend for FTP players and a pretty awesome change for the rest of us who like to spend.

That's funny man, thank you. I don't remember saying that people need to enjoy what I do or like what I like. Im looking at it as a whole and giving my 2 cents on what it does to the game in the long run. Mind you im doing this on a platform specifically designed for talking about stuff in the game and marked as general discussion. If I wanted everyone e to play like me, I'd have posted it in the suggestions forum.
I just view it like any other game. You can win the world series by spending all the money for a beefy roster and basically buy a championship, or ypu can build up the resources you have and put in the work to get there. For me, one way is morally ambiguous (in terms of sportsmanship, not like real morals), and kabam is leaning into it which is disappointing. I'm not saying you're bad for buying catalysts.

I think most people being told their sportsmanship rests on disappointingly ambiguous morality would consider that to be a negative.