SOE Allows Purchase of In-Game Items In Everquest I, II

Zonk points out some big news for fans of the Everquest games; Sony Online Entertainment has rolled out a system which allows the exchange of real money for items used in the game. Sony is making use of a transaction system called Station Cash which charges your credit card in exchange for a virtual currency which is then spendable on the items. Massively has a walkthrough of how it will work, and shows some of the items up for sale, including vanity armor, non-combat pets, and potions that make various aspects of your character better. "Each of these types of flasks comes in a tier. Tier I flasks increase XP by 10% and cost $1.00. Tier II flasks increase XP by 25% and cost $5.00. Tier III flasks increase XP by 50%, and cost $10.00 each. All flask tiers last for 4 hours on use, and more than one can't be used at a time." Further details on the system are available in the FAQ and the Terms of Service. This comes alongside news today that upcoming MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic will not be subscription-based, but entirely based on micro-transactions instead.

Comments

Re:Breaks the point of the game

[kenp2002]

get out of your mom's basement. You live in reality. MMOs are entertainment, not an alternate universe or second life (pardon the pun.) You statement scares the hell out of me. Too many of you are trying to escape reality by fleeing into a game where you think everyone is on an even playing field. Get a crack pipe or some drugs, no different when it comes to trying to escape reality.

I've heard authentic toss around in this discussion... wtf? Street cred in an MMO? It's GLORIFIED CHUTES AND LADDERS! My God people these are games, you know, Monopoly, Candy Land, Scrabble, Upwords. You know, GAMES. Metal Gear 4 = Jenga people! Games! Have you all gone insaine? A nation that no longer sees a difference between fantasy and reality... we are in trouble...