Helldivers 2 developer believes games should "earn the right to monetize"
Arrowhead CEO and Helldivers 2 creative director Johan Pilestedt has expressed his opinion on in-game monetization, stating that titles should "earn" the right to offer microtransactions.
The details:
Following the game's release last week, Pilestedt took to X to reply to a fan who pointed out that its microtransactions were "not predatory" since it allows players to earn currency in-game. “I'm partial but we really applied ourselves to not make it p2w even though items are functionally different,” the developer said. “The only item that's p2w is the revolver - which will win you any "cool gun" competition. Only (minor) problem is that it's not that good.”
In response to another player, Pilestedt stated that he believes that games should "have to earn the right to monetize." The developer says that by offering microtransactions, players have the option to directly support the game after the initial purchase, but that Arrowhead is "never forcing anyone to do so."
Helldivers 2 is currently priced at $40, but it includes a battle pass and a rotating in-game store, which are common in live service games and offer skins for $2 to $5. Currently, the battle pass must be purchased separately; however, players can earn currency to purchase skins from the store by playing the game, and gameplay is still required to unlock battle pass items.
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