Joyride will be a FREE video game released on the XBOX Live Arcade by Microsoft.
What’s the catch? Your Avatar customization and micro-transactions inside the game.
While the game will be free, Microsoft is betting on the fact that you’ll want to customize your experience. And I think they’re making a great bet.
After all, when we play a First Person Shooter or especially when we play a Role Playing Game we customize our character in-game. Microsoft has tested this theory by marketing “upgradeable†or “exclusive†in-game items, such as the golden lancer in Gears of War 2.
Gamers want to be unique. Just look at the armor permutations in Halo 3. Would you have paid money for a special weapon? For special armor? For new abilities and equipment?
With Microsoft reporting that they’re expecting to generate $1 Billion, they are already seeing the growth of micro-transactions over their network. Gamers are spending many millions of dollars of maps and downloadable content that months later would be free to download. Gamers want exclusive content.
In Joyride, you’ll be able to play the game for free and you’ll be playing with your Avatar that you’ve got set-up in your New XBOX Experience dashboard. You’ll even be able to share some in-game content with other players for free (e.g., you can send them maps that you’ve gotten).
However, Microsoft is going to sell you upgrades for the game. Besides the obvious upgrades that you can make to your Avatar through the soon-to-be-released Avatar Marketplace, you’ll be able to buy in-game content and features for your presence in the Joyride game. You’ll be able to buy a new car, buy new engines and parts for it in a car marketplace, buy new maps, and unlock new features by paying money.
While it’s uncertain just what exactly you can buy, I wonder if those that can afford the upgrades will have any advantages over those that can’t.
I can’t help but wonder how much money MSBungie would have made it they made, say, the Halo 1 pistol a $10 purchase. Would the majority of hardcore Halo fans have made the purchase?
I know I sure would’ve.