There’s a rapidly growing trend of implementing microtransactions in video games, although this is a process that is typically seen more in AAA titles rather than indie games. However, Rocket League is a game that has rocketed (pun intended) to success in a short amount of time. With its vast amounts of eSports potential, the game’s competitive multiplayer has become quite the frenzied place to best opponents. Things will continue to grow heated as Rocket League’s vice president, Jeremy Dunham, officially confirmed and defended the implementation of in-game microtransactions.
Essentially, Rocket League’s new Loot Crate system works in a similar fashion to CS: Go’s crates, where players can fork over real cash in exchange for a crate that will drop randomized items. It was noted that Rocket League’s new Loot Crates will not contain items that grant players an edge over others. Dunham discussed the implementation of Loot Crates, stating that these new
“Those assets are, indeed, early pieces of an upcoming system we plan on implementing to fund our [Rocket League’s] eSports prize pools and events. We plan on officially announcing it next month at (or near) the RLCS Live Finals since it directly relates to that event and other events like it, but since this image came out before our official word, we wanted to clarify some things for you.”
Dunham further elaborated on Reddit how the Loot Crates will not facilitate a pay-to-play environment in Rocket League:
- “Crates will contain cosmetic content only. We have a strict “Don’t Sell Advantage” policy for Rocket League, and we’re sticking with that.
- There will be no Steam Marketplace integration with crates. We are definitely aware of the problems related to third-party gambling in other games and we are not interested in taking that approach.
- Players who don’t want to interact with this system can hide it entirely with a single checkbox. Also of note, this won’t affect or impact our current item-drop system in any way.
- We also want to reassure you guys that we are sticking with our approach to keep introducing free new Arenas, Modes, and Items, along with the occasional paid DLC just like we always have.”
Despite the clarification provided by Dunham, Rocket League’s fans remain concerned, especially after scandal which recently arose concerning CS: Go facilitating scams and gambling with its in-game items. However, it appears Dunham is aware of these concerns, and with the game’s Loot Crates having no integration with the Steam Marketplace, one can hope these microtransactions won’t sully the overall experience of Rocket League, which garnered over 110 million dollars in revenue over the past two years.
