Microtransactions…That very word can bring up a lot of anger in the hearts of core gamers. Whether they see it as “play to win” or a cash grab for publishers and developers, it’s rarely seen as something that goes very well favorably. Take for instance the report on Mortal Kombat X selling easy fatalities as DLC. In this edition of the Sanchez Soapbox, I’m going to give my view of the Mortal Kombat X controversy. If you wish to read the review of Mortal Kombat X click here.

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I completely understand the mentality of being angered by the Mortal Kombat X people selling easy fatalities and the contents of the krypt (or should I spell it like “kontents”?). For about 5 bucks you’re selling a cheat code…Actually about 30 of them. It takes a little bit away for those that have taken the time to memorize their favorite character’s fatalities. Then for some extra money, players don’t have to grind through fights, the challenge tower, or story mode to unlock everything in the MK Krypt.

All this kind of takes away from those players that worked on memorizing the right buttons to press for the fatalities, and those that grinded away at unlocking all the krypt items. Not to mention the price points of the items with all the other downloadable content nearly doubles the price on the game. Is there any good reason to sell what some may look at as “cheat codes” to people? It’s not as easy as an answer as one might think.

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Not to mention that the term and ideas behind microtransactions are rooted in mobile and Facebook games. Microtransactions aren’t seen as much in the triple A games. A significant portion of gamers still don’t see mobile and Facebook games on the same level as their console and PC counterparts. With microtransactions littered throughout the mobile and Facebook gaming market, at times it’s hard to take those games as seriously as a triple A game that gets a lot of attention from those gamers.

I try to look at both sides of the argument whenever possible. The more I think about “easy fatalities” the more I think of my younger self. Back then, every once in a while we’d have a few people over, and play any number of games. If we had MK on, we’d often times have to look up the fatalities via one of those books filled with cheat codes…No we didn’t have internet in those days yet. Point of the story is, it would slow down the pace of the game we were having to look through and figure out what we needed to utilize. Now with them selling the easy fatalities, I can’t help but think my younger self would have been all over that…If I had the money for it.

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So as we flash forward to the present, I can see how this helps some people. Mostly for those that don’t have the time to take the time to memorize the fatalities. Also take into account the massive amount of items in the krypt, people that just don’t have time might want to forgo grinding and just buy the DLC instead.

Microtransactions might be one of the new trends coming to more games today, at looks like it’s here to stay. Though some gamers might hate this with a passion, we have to remember one thing: All DLC is optional to buy. Sure, there are some that advance gameplay for those that just pay for it and that kind of ruins it for those that did put in their time to advance to get that better equipment, higher levels, whatever else. There are other DLC options that offer skipping all the grinding and memorization for those that may not have as much time to play video games because of other commitments like full time jobs, family commitments, and outside engagements. At least it looks that way to me.

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So what do you guys have to say? Do you hate microtransactions? Have you ever bought some DLC to skip unlocking everything and why did you buy it? Let us know in the comment section. Also, while you’re here check out some of our other features, reviews, and all things gaming here on New Gamer Nation.

About The Author

As a three time platinum trophy earner, Jose is always serving his master Gaming...FOREVER MAY HE (or she) REIGN!!! Writing for New Gamer Nation and might pop up just about anywhere. Oh yeah, follow him on Twitter @DSB_IV