Dead Space 3 features optional micro-transactions, allowing less patient players to swipe up the most potent weapons and gear early. You can spend your hard-earned on more advanced guns when you visit Weapon Benches, which also allow you to construct those very same guns yourself using in-game resources. Craven money-grab? Harmless shortcut? Or a bit of both?
"You can absolutely choose to ignore the in game micro-transactions," associate producer Yara Khoury told OXM in an interview, following a two-hour hands-on. "I think it's made for people who aren't necessarily as savvy as others with exploration, or maybe they just don't want to spend the time to go and find resources, and they want to maybe upgrade faster."
"And another thing that is important to know is that you can buy things in the marketplace with in-game currency," Khoury continued. "Things that your scavenger bot gets you. So you don't have to spend dollars if you're a hardcore player and put a lot of hours in - you're going to be rewarded for that."
Scavenger bots? They're these dinky little suitcase droids that double as metal detectors. You can equip one by pressing D-pad up, whereupon you'll be able to follow its radar cone to a spot that's rich in resources. Then, hit the trigger to deploy the bot, which will trundle around scooping up materials unsupervised, and rendezvous with you at the next Weapon Bench you visit.
The trick, I've found, is to do all this without getting pounced on by raging tumours of reanimated bone and gristle. Scavenger bots don't make very good weapons, hand-to-hand or otherwise.
Clumps of resources can also be picked up from lockers and storage cannisters, like ammo and health packs. We'll have more for you on the subject in a preview later today.
11 comments so far...
ItchyRash on 22 Jan '13 said:
I have now absolutely chosen to ignore this game completely. It sounded bad since the moment they revealed it and everything they've mentioned since has only made matters worse
Droidsbane on 22 Jan '13 said:
"EA. ITS IN THE GAME!"
except if you want it your gonna have to pay for it, I remember reading in an interview with their CEO or someone like that that if they would, theyd charge for ammo.... Money grubbing Frakks, I was vagely interested in getting DS3 but now im just going to ignore it all together, Its been EA'd like Mass effect 3, would be surprised if its the same with Crysis 3
FishyGinger on 22 Jan '13 said:
Fair enough. It's like the bf3 shortcuts it really doesn't make any difference if you play the game normally. But lets all get outraged anyway.
I hate you ea.
ItchyRash on 22 Jan '13 said:
You're right, it's like the BF3 shortcut packs and they didn't really bother me at all. In fact, the last two Dead Space games also had gun packs you could buy from the market place that contained more powerful guns. I guess it's the choice of the individual if you pay extra. I just don't like the direction this game seems to have gone in.
I'm a big fan of DLC and have always spoken against those complaining about day one DLC for example but the micro transactions route does feel like eventually they'll start releasing half games were the rest is made up of extras you have to buy for the full experience.
I wasn't planning on getting Dead Space 3 though regardless of this.
SkinnerChinner on 22 Jan '13 said:
It's like the ME3 equipment packs & BF3 kit short-cuts, you can completely ignore it (as I will) & get all the same content just playing the game. I'm not going to waste £££ paying for stuff that's already in the game...but each to their own.
Still a obvious money grab, and seems to be a pattern with EA games of late.
NinthGeorgesw on 22 Jan '13 said:
It sounds like the gun packs for the first 2 games then. It's not going to put me off the game, but I'm not going to buy it for a while anyway, especially considring how close it releases to Colonial Marines.
FishyGinger on 22 Jan '13 said:
I know what you mean itchy, it's not a practice I particularly like but as it doesn't affect me in this case I just can't muster up any emotion other than wow, who cares. I can't see it being popular but hey ho, some people might like it so everyones a winner. Just so long as it stays optional and nothing feels like it's cut out for the purpose of money making. Quite happy with the range of guns in DS1 and 2.
Not particularly a fan of microtransactions meself. Sadly I could see them releasing half games and in theory, like communism, it should work. If the prices are right. Get what you want, nothing that you don't. Sounds good, would never work.
Metalrodent on 22 Jan '13 said:
oh we can ignore them now, but just wait until they start introducing dlc with sections that can only be completed by buying gun packs
Sandbwoy on 22 Jan '13 said:
We're seeing this kind of thing more and more these days, wonder how big a part this will play in gaming's future? I suppose there's nothing wrong with charging extra for additional weaponry as long as it isn't essential to the completion of the game. If someone wants to pay extra to have more choice of weapons for more varied gameplay, that's their choice. But if it gets to the point where a game can't be completed without the additional weapons, and the gamer is forced to pay extra just to be able to finish a game they've already paid full price for, then there would be a problem.
CunningSmile on 23 Jan '13 said:
I went through the whole of DS1 using just the Plasma Cutter unless I'd run out of ammo for it (about twice I think) so really couldn't care less.
SidTheSloth on 23 Jan '13 said:
EA (well, Bioware via EA) did give us ME3's campaign too though, which as i recall had loads of guns of which about 5% were useful - the rest ignored completely when you spot the damage stat is cack in comparison? There's a certain knack to having different guns that equal each other in usefulness that not a tremendous amount of games get right - maybe Halo, but even then there isn't a huge selection...?