{{
`${userDetail.user.displayName}${userDetail.user.cachedBungieGlobalDisplayNameCode ? `#${standardizeBungieGlobalCode(userDetail.user.cachedBungieGlobalDisplayNameCode)}` : ""}`}}
{{getUserClans()}}
9/24/2013 5:10:14 AM
18
Speculation on Destiny's Economy and Trade System
We all know that one of Destiny's pillars of foundation is the ability to customize yourself and tell your character's story through your appearance. This means we'll be obtaining cool gear and weapons through our adventures, whether it be during raids, strikes, missions, PvP, or whatever other features Bungie has in store for us. We also know there will be an in-game currency (many speculate Glimmer will serve this purpose), which would imply buying and selling items. We do, in fact, have confirmation that trading and buying gear are both possible in Destiny, as is gambling for items. This pretty much sums up all we know about this subject.
Right now I have many questions surrounding how Destiny's economy and trade system will work. First off, will players be trading with each other directly, or will there be an auction house/exchange system that all trading will be conducted through? Is it possible Destiny has something completely different in store for us? Right now we can only speculate, but I'm just kind of hoping I can get some good discussion going on this.
I'm also wondering if there will be any sort of regulation on a given item's value. Will Bungie have a hand in regulating Destiny's economy, or will Bungie take a more hands off laissez-faire, free market approach? Artificially controlling item prices can get tricky, especially in MMOs, and Bungie doesn't really have much experience in building in-game economies. I'm thinking Bungie will likely stay away from interfering with the Destiny economy too much for these reasons.
Additionally, I'm curious as to how much item trading we'll be able to do. I'm guessing there will be a lot of items we earn that we won't be able to give to other players. Maybe some special weapons or armor we obtain during certain activities will be ours and only ours. For instance, if I earn a certain helmet for reaching a milestone in competitive multiplayer, it wouldn't make sense for me to be able to trade that helmet to someone else if they haven't reached that milestone yet. That's sort of my line of thinking here.
Perhaps my biggest question here lies with the overall significance of Destiny's economy. Will I have to spend weeks or longer saving up in-game currency in order to be able to afford the most powerful weapons or the coolest looking gear? Am I going to constantly be trying to trade in my pulse rifle for the next best one with a slightly greater power level, or am I going to be spending months working my current rifle up through its talent tree? I'm wondering how long it'll take us to reach that "end-game" point where we have the definitively most bad-ass armor and the super-rare weapons. Once we get to this point, we won't really have a need to participate in Destiny's economy because we'll be happy with what we already have. Is this something you all can see happening, or is this just crazy?
These are just a few thoughts going through my mind right now. I'm trying to visualize what Destiny will look and feel like when we finally get our hands on it, and this is a particular aspect I'm having trouble wrapping my head around. If you've got your own ideas or feedback on what I've said, please share. Thanks!
-
2 RepliesReported for leaking classified info.
-
4 RepliesExcellent post. I am expecting a fantastic economy in Destiny and have given it a lot of thought as well. MMOs have been around for a very long time, and with so many examples it becomes easy to see what works and what doesn't. The economy I envision is one where you can both trade items from player to player, as well as have an auction house. The player to player is great for friends and it builds a strong, friendly community. "Oh I got the same drop again, here, you can have it" kind of scenarios are great. The auction house facilitates actual gameplay, instead of having to sit around spamming "red:wave: Buying exotic pulse rifle" over and over. Bungie DIRECTLY influencing prices, setting caps etc, is just a bad idea. We've seen in previous game economies what happens when outside forces act on prices. Instead, the best way is to adjust drop rates but slowly, overtime. Some of more unique features (all speculation here) is that you can only sell/trade/gamble (what I am calling) vanilla gear. We know you can extensively upgrade and personalize your weapons, beyond just the look. I would wager that in order to sell that weapon, you would have to remove all upgrades first. In Guild Wars 2, if you customize your gear in some way it becomes "bound" to your character. This feature would work in Destiny too, because in order to upgrade your weapons, you have to use them extensively. By buying an already upgraded weapon, you're essentially skipping over a fairly important part of the weapon system and creating a economic divide. On one side you have the less rich, casual players, spending a lot of time to upgrade their weapons. On the other you have the rich who someone got a ton of money and spent no time getting fully upgraded weapons. It cheapens the experience. As for constantly buying a new weapon as you level, it seems that by being able to upgrade your weapons through use, you won't always feel like you need a new weapon. Perhaps only when you get to the end of the weapon skill tree will you really need a new gun, or half way, or whenever.
-
I can't wait to break and exploit a new economy.
-
Anyone have any thoughts?
-
1 ReplyHoping tomorrow's announcement and new gameplay trailer will shed some light on these questions!
-
1 ReplyI don't think trading will be like in borderlands where you can duplicate items whenever you want. They seem to be putting too much effort in these weapons to have people multiply them like crazy. It also makes you want to hold on to weapons that took you a while to grab. Even trading (item for item) will most likely be possible. I don't like the idea of an auction house, and I don't think we will be able to purchase the most powerful weapons. The best items should only be obtainable through lot drops from bosses.
-
1 ReplyI don't see a problem with a Auction House trade system for non rare/epic/legendary items. I think it would bring a great element to the game. I also think that they should keep real money out of the game period. I think that you shouldn't be able to spend real money to get items or currency in game that's not fair. But an open trade AH for common items is fine.
-
3 RepliesA private trading/gifting system ala Darksiders 2 would be lovely
-
1 ReplyHoping I can get some more input!
-
3 RepliesGlimmer? What this glimmer stuff all about?
-
3 RepliesEdited by Sledgehammer73 : 9/25/2013 3:34:41 PMTrading After hearing there will be multiple versions of each weapon in the POD cast, I see where trading could be a good thing. Player one has (x) version of Thorn and runs into player two who has (y) version of Closing Time. Player one prefers the long rifles while player two is trying to collect every version of the Thorn because it's their favorite weapon. I do feel that precautions should be in place to prevent duping or every player in the game will have the best weapons in the game relatively quickly, removing the excitement of uncovering rare items. ( I'm not going to deny that if Duping is possible in some way I will not take advantage of it, but I do feel it's best if it is not there at all ). I do not think that Auction Houses are a good thing at all. No player should ever have an advantage over another based on their real world wallet. The real world has enough economic hardships world wide we don't need those with more to have advantages over those with less in our fantasy adventure as well. Some parts of reality should be left from games, even when they are trying for some sense of realism. Loot With a lot of confirmation coming that the loot drop mechanics will be similar to Borderlands; in that you have a base weapon and multiple pieces and attributes to randomly generate different versions of each gun, I can see how trading can become an important part of an individuals quest for collecting many versions of their favorite weapon. The downfall to a system like this was best represented by [i]Kingdoms of Amalur[/i]. Here the loot system was so random that not only did you not know what would be in the next loot drop (enemy or chest) you also had no Idea what the best possible items in the game were and this caused two things. One it made shops obsolete and Two it made it so you were never attached to any piece of gear for very long Because you knew there were better weapons and armor literally in the next chest you would open. I'm sure that Bungie is working on things to prevent situations like this (duping and water downed weapon system) and hopefully not only will trading be in the game, but in game shops will have quality loot as well for in game currency not real world currency.
-
1 ReplyI'm hoping that weapons are one tier of customization that we will see in this game. I would love to see customization in armor, aesthetic clothing, vehicle upgrades, several types of ships with upgrades, maybe even storage for your belongings (houses?). If even a few of these make the cut, we will likely have so many options that we will never fully buy every item. Beyond this, I wanted to comment on "end game" weapons. I think Bungie understands what makes games fun, but they also know how to give something longevity. While weapons will surely have better perks for different situations, I doubt they will take a Borderlands approach where you are always trading in for the next best thing. They want people to grow attached to weapons, so I think they will become more useful/powerful as you use them. Also, I imagine there will be variations of power and precision, but I really doubt that we will see statistical damage in weapons. Bungie has never been about the numbers and I can't imagine them resorting to "I choose this damage cuz it has 2 higher damage" when they are trying to build lore into their weapons. I think they are going to revolutionize FPS, and to do so they will have to do something never done before. I am so pumped to hear more about what they're doing with Destiny!
-
2 RepliesMy speculation is that there is no trading. They said in an interview you had to find your weapons on your own, so you can't trade them.
-
If people can sell there own stuff they would inflate it to get the weapon they want that does worry me. Same for armor.
-
4 RepliesI think you're delving WAY to deep at this point. The game is still close to a year out. I'd just relax and let yourself be surprised when the game is in your hands next year. And my honest opinion. There definitely should NOT be an open market or Auction House. Games with any type of AH or open market just bring the fun of the game to a screeching halt. You want that cool weapon you saw that Titan with earlier? Go out and find it and earn it! Give yourself a story to tell newer players as to how you yourself got it. Sitting on an AH hoping a cheap weapon that's good pops up so you can bid is a waste of time and Life.... LITERALLY.
-
1 ReplyEdited by Sledgehammer73 : 9/24/2013 5:34:42 AMVery well thought out questions and I am curious for those answers as well. Will leveled weapons keep their attributes in a trade or will the skill trees restart with a new owner? Part of me hopes it does, only that it seems unfair that someone could gain top level weapons without [i]earning[/i] them. But at the same time if they do maintain attributes then I will do my best to procure the best gear for our clan [b]StarSide Echoes[/b] so that we can better aid each other. It will also be interesting to see what kind of cuurrency will be in the game. Gold, credits or a new currency based on the Golden Age. I hope for NPC markets in the city for buying and selling gear.
-
1 ReplyEdited by Zeldafan92: 9/24/2013 7:37:35 PMI cant say with certainty how destiny's economy will operate, I don't work for them so how could I or anyone know, however I know that bungie is going to take it seriously , since they hired a real life economist to monitor it .
-
I am anxious to -blam!- Destiny's economy assuming it is free trade. Was my favorite part of World of Warcraft.
