Gameloft has announced a second round of changes regarding the monetization for Disney Speedstorm, but it may not be enough to placate players.
To get fans up to date, Disney Speedstorm is a free-to-play multiplatform racing game, whose appeal revolves around being able to play as Disney characters from across multiple IPs. It is Gameloft’s second Disney crossover game, after Disney Dreamlight Valley. However, whereas Disney Dreamlight Valley transitioned to a full retail game with retail prices for their season passes, Disney Speedstorm remains free-to-play.
In yesterday’s update, Gameloft revealed that they would end allowing gamers to buy new season passes using in game currency. As is the case with most free-to-play games, they have two currencies separating those who pay with real money and those who have been earning credits in game. The free currency you have to earn to play is called Tokens, while the currency you buy is called Golden Pass credits.
And of course, Golden Pass credits are what you use to buy Golden Passes, which give you access to the seasons. So, Gameloft’s plans where for players to start buying Golden Pass credits because Tokens would no longer be able to buy those Golden Passes.
After confirming they heard the feedback and are making changes, they shared this message on their website:
“After the latest Community Pit Stop, we heard from players who had previously purchased Tokens with the intention of using them to unlock the premium tier for future Golden Passes. We are making the adjustment that players will be able to purchase Golden Pass Credits from the in-game Shop for 990 Tokens each. The option to purchase these Golden Pass Credits with Tokens will be available until May 16.
A single Golden Pass Credit can be used to unlock the premium tier of the Golden Pass for either Part 1 or Part 2 of any future season, including the upcoming Season 7.”
To keep things short, players can use the Tokens they earned in game to buy Golden Passes, but only until next month. The changes Gameloft had announced will still go in effect, meaning a lot of gamers who were playing for free may have to stop playing, if they never had a way to play for this game after all, or pay up.
It’s not quite the same situation as Gameloft had with Disney Dreamlight Valley, but in essence, Gameloft gave up on free-to-play as a monetization model for Disney Speedstorm. While gamers will be inclined to side with their peers who were playing this game for free, the implicit message is quite clear; free-to-play has proven unsustainable for Gameloft.
We know that there are a select few titles that have made free-to-play a sustainable model with stable communities, but it’s possible that there isn’t enough room in the market for 100 such games. If this turns out to really be the case, than the proverbial gold rush for free-to-play, at least outside mobile platforms, may be over in a matter of years.
