Gaming is one the fastest growing and most popular professions with the rise of eSports and the billions of dollars the gaming industry makes every year. It is easy to see how gaming excessively can become addictive and dangerous.  

I played Assassins Creed Valhalla, and came to find that in-game boosts, microtransactions, and downloadable content that seemed to be stripped out of the main game and showcased as something completely different or “new”. 

 A microtransaction is a business model where users can purchase virtual goods for micropayments.  The most common form of microtransactions seen are “pay-to-win” and “freemium” models.

Usually microtransactions are found in free-to-play games.  There has been an increase of microtransactions in mainstream games and titles from “AAA” companies and studios are including microtransactions to “help” players level up faster, access exclusive content, and even create unfair advantages in online play.

This has led to games becoming oversaturated with “loot boxes”.  Studies have also found an increase in gambling and lowered attention spans among people who are most likely to pay extra money for something in-game.

Overall, I believe microtransactions in any game has a negative impacts on its fans and player base.