Premium vs Freemium

Discussion in 'General Game Discussion and Questions' started by skeblik, Mar 15, 2013.

  1. Darth Ronfar

    Darth Ronfar Well-Known Member

    Nov 20, 2011
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    Freemium will be the downfall of gaming on iOS,depending on what your views are on it. There's almost freemium content in every game now even the good ones. It's sad that its gotten this bad. Hopefully it doesn't destroy iOS completely.

    Touch Arcade needs to take a strong anti freemium stance, or this site and others will cease to matter...
     
  2. MidianGTX

    MidianGTX Well-Known Member

    Jun 16, 2009
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    I dislike freemium "done wrong" but I think you're pretty far off with that last sentence. The TA page views are probably soaring high, the forums are as busy as ever and every single week there are enough new game release to garner excitement among iOS owners. With no sign of anything slowing down and freemium games still attracting attention how do you figure TA is in trouble? Seems more like you just want that to be the case rather than it really being the case.
     
  3. syntheticvoid

    syntheticvoid Well-Known Member

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    Whale Trail needs a widescreen update.

    =oP
     
  4. backtothis

    backtothis im in ur base killin ur d00dz
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    #24 backtothis, Mar 17, 2013
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2013
    Lol, freemium is what keeps iOS alive. I know that's pretty blunt, but if you just look through the charts and sales stats on a weekly basis, there's really not much to argue about. It's been this way for a good anount of time already, and the iOS isn't going downhill. It's going up, up, up. People, as in the eight year old boy or the mom who has ten minutes of time to play games daily, matter when it comes to assessing your target audience, not the most hardcore gamers on a gaming forum.

    Unless you're making games for the love of it, your goal will be to make money. The top 50 premium games make pennies, generally speaking, when compared to the top 50 freemium games.
     
  5. Montanx

    Montanx Well-Known Member

    Mar 3, 2012
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    Freemium is garbage, premium is good, that's pretty much the end of it.

    But freemium gets the kids to spend their moms iTunes money so it will always be preferred by devs. Funny how someone can look at a 2 buck game like its just too expensive, but then buy 5 bucks worth of freemium gems.

    It's a sad state we are in, but maybe we can wade through the muck. Premium is the only way to go.
     
  6. Darth Ronfar

    Darth Ronfar Well-Known Member

    Nov 20, 2011
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    Maybe I took it a bit overboard, but you know things are pretty bad when we need an Iap-free games thread. Ya I realize it generates money so devolopers can stay in business but its getting to be way too much IMO.
     
  7. skeblik

    skeblik Well-Known Member

    Jul 3, 2012
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    My honest opinion in a nutshell about freemium games is that some people can't live with 'em, and you can't live without 'em.
     
  8. Rubicon

    Rubicon Well-Known Member

    Feb 22, 2011
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    I think you need to spend time thinking about who this "we" is that you refer to.
     
  9. Zeldaniac

    Zeldaniac Well-Known Member

    Dec 22, 2012
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    Well, me for starters. I've bought a couple of games from that thread and been happy with all of them.

    Besides we (or at least I) am not against all IAP. Example: anything by Triniti Interactive = intrusive and unenjoyable. Heroes and castles = completely optional and not bothersome.
     
  10. skeblik

    skeblik Well-Known Member

    Jul 3, 2012
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    Another thing I've been noticing: freemium has also spread to PC gaming as free2play. Even a few downloadable console titles are free. So if a few people on this thread are correct, freemium is the downfall of all gaming, not just iOS.
     
  11. MidianGTX

    MidianGTX Well-Known Member

    Jun 16, 2009
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    This is an increasing concern among console and PC owners. The backlash against micro-transactions and always-online games is pretty strong. It seems nobody "really" wants it to happen, except maybe EA. I suppose freemium's biggest success story is League of Legends, but come on, the game is garbage.
     
  12. metalmandave83

    metalmandave83 Well-Known Member

    Jan 26, 2013
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    Considering how little devs make from these apps, I understand why many choose freemium. Unfortunately I think the prices for virtual goods get a bit ridiculous.

    I used to buy a lot of games from Gameloft until they went this route. Personally, I'd rather pay more for the game to avoid IAP. I see nothing wrong with paying $10-$20 for an iOS game, if its worth it. I'm not going to pay $20 for a Temple Run game obviously.

    I think devs need to start asking more and we need to be willing to pay more if we want good quality games with no IAP.

    Maybe I'm wrong about how much devs make. I'm going off what a dev said in another forum for one of the games they made. Might have been PWN: Combat Hacking.
     
  13. skeblik

    skeblik Well-Known Member

    Jul 3, 2012
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    An example of the complete fail of always online is the late launch of Simcity.
     
  14. Zeldaniac

    Zeldaniac Well-Known Member

    Dec 22, 2012
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    That's a whooole other discussion...lol
     
  15. ScottColbert

    ScottColbert Well-Known Member

    Granted this is almost a year old, I doubt it's changed much. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404012,00.asp
     

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