Virtual world will run on real cash
Posted by Sleeper on 13 December 2002 - 20:25 · 9 comments & 1343 views
About the Author
Full name: Unknown
Forum name:
Sleeper
Contact: via forum PM
Submissions: Normal · Headline
Full name: Unknown
Forum name:
SleeperContact: via forum PM
Submissions: Normal · Headline
Slashdot It!
Submit to reddit
Submit to blinklist
Bookmark on del.icio.us
Add to furl
Share on Facebook
Add to Windows Live
Add to Google- Advertisement
-
-
#1 Posted by lrnecnaecge on 13 Dec 2002 - 20:38
- [QUOTE]He found that the real world value of the virtual items in EverQuest effectively made the game the 77th wealthiest "nation" in the world.[/QUOTE] woah... that's an impressive stat...
-
#2 Posted by kennisonxgs on 13 Dec 2002 - 23:01
- Oooh. Wonder how they will punish "thiefs." Throw them into virtual jails with virtual rapes or something?
-
#3 Posted by Tom Servo on 13 Dec 2002 - 23:22
- Yeah right. As if I'm going to throw real money into their game to buy virtual items, that prolly get lost in numerous server crashes?
-
#4 Posted by sodapop on 14 Dec 2002 - 01:35
- I beta tested this game and it is a very pretty game but I won't be participating in it. By the way when this game was in early beta lots of people lost money and the boards were filled with nothing but complaints.
-
#5 Posted by jago6498 on 14 Dec 2002 - 01:41
- I wonder how long it will take for some kind of lawsuit to filed against this company...
-
#6 Posted by Solarix on 14 Dec 2002 - 03:09
- well with all the hacking going on maybe ill start off with all of bill gates money hmmm .....
-
#7 Posted by Maxious on 14 Dec 2002 - 08:55
- well two nice facts
a) these guys got sued by microsoft because they got more hits than hotmail
b) the best sword in the game ATM costs 5 real cents... might be because of testing
-
#8 Posted by MxxCon on 14 Dec 2002 - 17:39
- $1USD=10D. for $10=100D you can totaly equip yourself and go hunt huge ass dinos which drop like 200D loot. after about 4-5hours of gameplay you can make a profit in this game
-
#9 Posted by docholoday on 14 Dec 2002 - 17:45
- Great... now we can have "virtual" consumer whores. Fantastic. How long before they start charging $2 to use an ATM? I give it a month before the advertisers back out, no one can find treasure and the entire "world" goes into an economic recession. Will they be providing unemployment checks?
Project Entropia is a 3D futuristic role-playing game in which players must colonise an alien planet while overcoming various computer-generated obstacles, such as natural disasters and nasty monsters.
Unlike other online games, there will be no charge for downloading the software needed to play Project Entropia. Instead, players must convert real money into the currency of the game - Project Entropia Dollars - in order to buy the things they need to survive. These items will degrade with time, meaning players will need to keep paying to keep playing.
But the Swedish software company behind the game, MindArk, says players will also be able to convert things they acquire inside the game back into real money. Treasure chests, paid for through advertising within the game, will be hidden inside the virtual world.
Beefed up
A few thousand people have been testing a pre-release version of the game since early 2002. Some players reported bugs that caused their money or possessions to disappear, but Jan Welter, CEO of MindArk, says these problems have been resolved.
"We've had extensive tests and have especially focused on beefing up the security," Welter told New Scientist.
The game has a secure trading interface that will allow players to exchange items for money. Benny Iggland, chairman of MindArk says: "A market economy is rapidly evolving, with our users defining prices on various commodities and items available in the virtual universe."
Welter adds: "There will be a few ways for players to make money. They can trade with other gamers. We also have an engine that will spawn items that can be collected."
Major economy
It is not the first time that virtual and real world economics have interacted. Some virtual items from another online game EverQuest have been bought and sold through the online trading service eBay.
This prompted Edward Castronova, an economist at California State University at Fullerton, US, to compare the game's economy to real ones.
He found that the real world value of the virtual items in EverQuest effectively made the game the 77th wealthiest "nation" in the world.