Why do people beg for cash shop stuff?

[Talraen]

Most of us don't care how you spend your money, we care that how you spend your money affects the game. The trend is showing that if you ask for it to be put in the CS then the devs seem to respond to you throwing cash at them. The people who are not throwing money at the cash shop feel like the minority and that their requests to put items in the game are being ignored. That's the major issue here. People are upsettl that their opinions don't seem to matter. People should stop with the name calling and try to see things from both sides. Most of the nice looking glamors are coming through the CS or promotions vs found in the game. While in the game you're getting a lot of reused gear models. It is starting to appear that my monthly sub doesn't carry the same weight as your extra CS purchases.

I think (well, hope) your worries are overinflated here. While we don't know the specific financials, we do know that the next expansion is getting a bigger budget, and people are using the cash shop. That certainly implies that the cash shop is helping the game.

But to your more important point about people feeling ignored, so far I think it's hard to make that case. As far as glamour (i.e., ignoring mounts and minions for the moment), they've historically added specific character outfits and old event glamours. There was also the wedding stuff which of course goes along with the wedding being a cash shop thing. But right now, the far eastern gear is an exception, and one with some justification, given its source.

If the cash shop remains limited to scion gear, old event gear, and special promo gear from other regions, I think everything will be fine. Once they start selling things like NPC gear or the stuff that has up until now been high-level crafted gear, that will be a bad sign. And several people have been asking for that specifically on the cash shop, which I don't agree with personally.

In short, I have no problem with them adding very special stuff to the cash shop, but I don't want to see it become the place where you buy arbitrary glamour. (I'm not too hopeful on that front, to be honest.)

[Kaurie]

I think (well, hope) your worries are overinflated here. While we don't know the specific financials, we do know that the next expansion is getting a bigger budget, and people are using the cash shop. That certainly implies that the cash shop is helping the game.

It may (not certainly) imply that the cash shop is helping the game. You're conflating correlation and causation.

[Talraen]

It may (not certainly) imply that the cash shop is helping the game. You're conflating correlation and causation.

It's not rocket science to think that a system which brings in more money to the game leads to the game having more money. It's by no means proven but it is definitely implied.

To put it another way, correlation doesn't conflict causation, and it's quite logical to conclude that the cash shop has caused the budget for the game to increase. Again, not saying it's certain, but I think "imply" is more than fair in this case.

[SpookyGhost]

It's not rocket science to think that a system which brings in more money to the game leads to the game having more money. It's by no means proven but it is definitely implied.

It would be that simple if XIV was the only game being produced by Square Enix. However, as it stands, that money could be going into any number of projects - not necessarily back into XIV.

[Talraen]

It would be that simple if XIV was the only game being produced by Square Enix. However, as it stands, that money could be going into any number of projects - not necessarily back into XIV.

Yet we know the following:

1.) People use the cash shop
2.) The next expansion has a higher budget than the last one

Aside from not liking the cash shop, do you have any reason to conclude that it hasn't helped the game financially?

[Kaurie]

Yet we know the following:

1.) People use the cash shop
2.) The next expansion has a higher budget than the last one

Aside from not liking the cash shop, do you have any reason to conclude that it hasn't helped the game financially?

This line of reasoning is similar to:

1.) Someone unsubbed from FFXIV
2.) Someone subbed to WoW

Conclusion: Game is dying and everyone is flocking from FFXIV to WoW.

While it is a possibility based on the information, it's hardly enough information to draw the conclusion.

[Welsper59]

This line of reasoning is similar to:

1.) Someone unsubbed from FFXIV
2.) Someone subbed to WoW

Conclusion: Game is dying and everyone is flocking from FFXIV to WoW.

While it is a possibility based on the information, it's hardly enough information to draw the conclusion.

To be honest though, the unlinking of helpful funding that the cash shop offers to this game is unreasonable. Working in a business level and having zero exposure to video games, someone of that nature could logically draw the conclusion that more money coming in, means more money being (potentially) available to the maker. It's not a secret to anyone with some baseline business knowledge to know that companies commonly pool their resources, regardless of where it comes from. Nor is it a secret that they will be more willing to invest (encumber) greater numbers to the budget of a product that has proven potential to turn a profit.

In this case, drawing the conclusion that successfully making money/profit for a company doesn't mean it helps them, is one of pure ignorance. Saying it does help is a conclusion based on a system and practical textbook practice, rather than something completely unknown, like figuring out what someone will specifically do with their time and money when they quit the game. While it's not a 100% guarantee that it's the reason for things like a better budget, it's definitely a far more sound argument to say it helps rather than does nothing at all. It's just... poor business if it didn't help, as in a business that will file for bankruptcy within its first year type of poor.

[PharisHanasaki]

It would be that simple if XIV was the only game being produced by Square Enix. However, as it stands, that money could be going into any number of projects - not necessarily back into XIV.

Same thing happened with previous FF's revenues. They funded FFXIV, which wasn't cheap btw.
I'm not against this being done. It anything it means they aren't dropping this game soon, and I don't mind it as long as the CS items don't become must-have items in that they start granting ridiculously goods stats and the like. And I can keep deciding on whether to buy them or not.

[ReplicaX]

Same thing happened with previous FF's revenues. They funded FFXIV, which wasn't cheap btw.
I'm not against this being done. It anything it means they aren't dropping this game soon, and I don't mind it as long as the CS items don't become must-have items in that they start granting ridiculously goods stats and the like. And I can keep deciding on whether to buy them or not.

Just to add:

It's well known that FFXI subscriptions helped fund both XIII and XIV 1.0-2.0. 1.0 and XIII both having longer than anticipated Dev Cycles and its extremely expensive in-house Crystal Tools Engine Development for both titles. XI revenue saved SE during an extremely rocky era.

[Kaurie]

It's not rocket science to think that a system which brings in more money to the game leads to the game having more money. It's by no means proven but it is definitely implied.

To put it another way, correlation doesn't conflict causation, and it's quite logical to conclude that the cash shop has caused the budget for the game to increase. Again, not saying it's certain, but I think "imply" is more than fair in this case.

Indeed, you can make that assumption, but "we do know that the next expansion is getting a bigger budget, and people are using the cash shop" does not give you that certainty. You're using other information to come to that conclusion. In this case, it "may" and not "certainly" implies it. You could even just say it implies it and remove the word certainly, and it would be more accurate.

I do, however, disagree with the conclusion. I think the higher budget is solely based on the fact that they are putting less money into FFXV development, than they were previously (due to it being near its launch).