Following the recent Blizzard controversy in which the developer cancelled offline mode after promising it as a feature pre-release, new research from global research and insights agency Opinium has found that over a third (35%) of gamers would feel scammed if this happened with a game they had purchased.
In addition, almost two fifths (39%) said they would feel let down, a fifth (20%) said they would stop playing the game, and over a third (35%) said they would want a refund – rising to 38% among Blizzard game players. The research found that the majority of gamers want to play their games offline if they have paid for them (65%).
Looking more broadly at the views of the UK public, two thirds (66%) believe that promises made by developers that aren’t kept is false advertising, and most think that even if a game is free, the developers shouldn’t promise things they can’t deliver (64%).
The gaming community is perhaps more forgiving, however, with roughly half (49%) agreeing that video games changing after release is part of the development process now.
Additional Game Content
The majority of UK gamers are generally satisfied when purchasing video game add-ons, and whilst a third (33%) have never bought a full game expansion, only 14% are generally dissatisfied with their purchases.
Loot crates are the least likely item to be purchased, with over two in five (43%) saying they’ve never bought them. Loot crates are also the purchase least likely to satisfy buyers (33%). The most dissatisfied customers, however, are those who buy single cosmetic or small add-on items (17%).
On average, the most gamers want to pay for additional video game content is £10.70 – for a full game expansion. For cosmetic items or loot crates, gamers want to pay between £6.10 and £6.50. With this in mind, the majority of gamers (67%) think that in-game purchases are currently too expensive.
There is also concern among UK consumers about how in-game purchases are controlled, with three in five (58%) wanting regulation on the prices of in-game purchases. In addition, over half (56%) believe that in-game purchases take advantage of fans and vulnerable players.
Trust in developers
Among gamers, trust in developers is low, with only a quarter (25%) describing Nintendo as trustworthy and one in seven (15%) saying they trust Electronic Arts. Epic Games is the least likely to be described as trustworthy, followed by Blizzard (13%) and Activision (13%).
If you enjoy games and gaming and want more NEWS from the Gaming World Click Here
