If people could buy credits instead of the table

[foxystyle]

If people could buy credits instead of the table and play on any TPA table they want (from the list of tables that have not been bought). Would that business model work?

You could still buy a table. It would be an alternative option to play on tables you don't want to buy at the moment.

 

[neglectoid]

Probably not. I would have alot less table packs instead of all of them. I would of also missed out on some tables that I learned to love.

 

[Jeff Strong]

Being able to play a purchased table as many times as you want for as long as you want...that's pretty damn cool!

Having to buy a credit every time you want to play...not so cool.

 

[foxystyle]

I wonder what's the ratio of pinball enthusiasts to casual gamers in TPA player base.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

I wouldn't mind if earning a replay or special on a previously purchased table gave you a credit to play a score-unlimited game on an unpurchased table, just as an incentive to get players to explore new machines.

Whether this feature would be worth the development time? On that, I'm very unsure.

 

[Kadett785]

Worst idea, I have heard for a long time. Does the OP want to pay 1000s of dollars to play TPA? I think for most other people the answer would be no.

 

[foxystyle]

Worst idea, I have heard for a long time. Does the OP want to pay 1000s of dollars to play TPA? I think for most other people the answer would be no.

You could still buy a table. It would be an alternative option to play on tables that you don't want to buy.

 

[Sean DonCarlos]

Worst idea, I have heard for a long time. Does the OP want to pay 1000s of dollars to play TPA? I think for most other people the answer would be no.

Why would anyone pay that? After a few credits, if someone likes the table they would purchase it for $3, $5 or at most $8 with Pro Mode.

 

[warsaw303]

You could still buy a table. It would be an alternative option to play on tables that you don't want to buy.

I think the free play until the first high score accomplishes just that. I've played all the tables, and have not bought a few based on the free play (EL DORADO).

Now, if there was no option to play without buying, you might be onto something. Zen Pinball (at least on Android) doesn't let you play a table at all without buying it, and that's just lame.

 

[shutyertrap]

I don't know, why do people pay $.99 to unlock levels or get bonus moves in popular games like Candy Crush? Especially when if they just wait a few minutes, they can go again for free? It makes no sense to me, but obviously it makes a ton of sense to these freemium mobile games.

 

[Crawley]

Microsoft tried this with Xbox Game Room. Had a bunch of classic arcade games you could either buy outright or play a single game for 50 cents a pop. No matter how much I enjoy Asteroids no way I could see putting 50 cents towards a single game anymore. Think they gave up on Game Room after a year.

 

[Kadett785]

You could still buy a table. It would be an alternative option to play on tables that you don't want to buy.

Well, that's fair enough, but this was not mentioned as an option in your original post.

Why would anyone pay that? After a few credits, if someone likes the table they would purchase it for $3, $5 or at most $8 with Pro Mode.

See above, this was not the proposal in the orignal post.

 

[Espy]

On most platforms you can play the table up to the first high score for free. I think that's probably enough leeway to see if a machine is to your liking or not.

On most real machines, it would cost me a lot more than the price of one TPA table to make even the default high scores.

 

[Fungi]

The original premise is interesting, only if the business model was like it is in the real world. Buy tokens to play any table in FarSight's "arcade", or buy the tables for $6,000 to $12,000 each. Otherwise, the tables right now are too cheap for the pay to play model to work.

If I were to walk into the PHOF in Vegas and a sign said "all games .50 per play, or $5 to take any table home with you", guess what I'd pick.


But, what if the numbers were adapted? $5 gets 500 credits, only cost 1 credit to play, or $20 to buy a table.

 

[Dumpstar]

Be ok if it just allowed in addition to demo mode, to be able to stack specials earnt on other tables to play on tables you don't own. Maybe make it that you can have up to 5 credits or something.

 

[Worf]

I don't think it's a really bad idea, actually.

When you get the app, it gives you say, 100 credits. 1 credit to play. When you play, you could use a credit, play as a demo, or buy the table.

Would eliminate a lot of the "ripoff" reviews you see the app stores and everything because honestly, the app description isn't that clear, and I feel TPA is "too quick to money" (i.e., it asks for money way too early). And perhaps a nice prominent button that says "Table of the Month: Ulimited play for FREE!".

Because to be honest, people don't see that and within 5 seconds of installing they get a request for money. Give them 100 credits and let them play for a while. They can buy 100 credits for $1, 700 for $5, or purchase unlimited free play of one table for the current price.

 

[shutyertrap]

Careful what you wish for people. Or at least think it through thoroughly.

How long were a small subset of people begging for FS to slow their roll and only do 1 table a month? But now we have to deal with people complaining about the price in this forum. The idea of credits, I think there is a fine line between doing something like that as an additional alternative to buying the normal way, with per table pack or season passes.

What's the fine line you say? I don't want TPA to become a micro transaction game. I don't want the program to be suddenly inundated with pop ups asking if I want an 'extra ball' that when you click on it you are taken to a store that offers 10, 20, 50 extra balls for $$. I don't want to have to beg facebook friends to give me extra tokens so I can play some mode of the game. I know the majority of TPA players are on a mobile device, but that doesn't mean we have to turn TPA into what so many mobile games play like.

So keep that in the back of your mind. Draw the line in the sand for what would be alright to you, and what would turn you off. Also keep in mind what would be realistic for FS to do while having it make business sense.