One thing I’ve been wondering about is why Developers don’t seem to take longterm customer retention in mind when setting price. They think if they can tempt players into paying a high price once, this is the optimum price and players will keep on paying that price. However, players may view that one transaction as a moment of weakness – they may be disappointed with their purchase or feel they were tricked into buying by false advertising. Then players see no change in pricing policy as Developers try to build on their initial “success”. That leaves players to either grumble a lot or leave the game all together. Such grumbling shouldn’t be dismissed – it’s negative buzz about the game, costing the game future customers.

Many of your blog posts focus on how to maximize profits within an F2P context, but do you look at short-term windfalls versus long-term stickiness? Do Developers ever consider that consumers can fight back if their practices are unethical?

I’m not an economist, and I feel under-equipped to take on this issue. But perhaps in raising this issue I can inspire someone with the right education and analytical tools to take it on.