I’ve raved about “R6 Siege” in the past--hailing it as a must-buy title for any shooter fan. Now, after seeing what Ubisoft has done to one of my beloved multiplayer titles–I’m not sure if it’s even playable anymore. That’s where the games as a service model can come in and destroy something beautiful.
What is games as a service? According to my boi Wiki, games as a service represents providing video games or game content on a continuing revenue model. In layman’s terms, developers are carb-loading the game with unnecessary content for extra cash in their pockets long after the game releases.
Games as a service is a double-edged sword. It does keep the player base up, but at the sacrifice of the actual core game. Add-on after add-on usually creates a some sort of glitchy experience. Again, these said add-ons are generating dollars for the devs. Sure, an ill-conceived, new map can be a nice surprise–but that should be something the creators should provide anyway without having to be spurred on by more money.
I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty done with skin hype. “Fortnite” is a prime example of the drop-a-million-skins model. Shill the game for free then bank on players spending hundreds on cosmetics. Luckily, these skins don’t change the core game at all but it’s still annoying and I love bagging on Bros Intro to Gaming. If I had it my way, a game would cost $60 flat–cosmetics nowhere to be found.
So, what’s next for video games as this new revenue model takes hold of the industry? Will playing the same game for years and years become a standard? Could the model stunt innovation in the biz? Let me know what you think!
Here is a little vid on the topic to get your brain working: