Avatar Related Accessories

Twilightning · 10-10-2009 5:31pm #1

It's totally beyond me why people are actually spending money on this crap, but I suppose Microsoft and their associated partners like to prey on the stupidity of people with more money than sense, like any other good business.

I was browsing through my friends list and I came across a bunch of guys I usually play with in a party. Decided to check the details to see what they were up to. Whilst browsing, their respective avatars came up. One was playing a guitar, another was using an RC Warthog and another was dicking around on a skateboard.

Why oh why would you pay for this stuff?

amacachi · 10-10-2009 5:53pm

Twilightning wrote: »

It's totally beyond me why people are actually spending money on this crap, but I suppose Microsoft and their associated partners like to prey on the stupidity of people with more money than sense, like any other good business.

I was browsing through my friends list and I came across a bunch of guys I usually play with in a party. Decided to check the details to see what they were up to. Whilst browsing, their respective avatars came up. One was playing a guitar, another was using an RC Warthog and another was dicking around on a skateboard.

Why oh why would you pay for this stuff?

Because people are idiots. There are a million and one things that there's no reason to buy them but people still do.

Mickeroo · 10-10-2009 6:48pm

It's like those stupid ring tone ads you get all over Sky TV these days. The thing is every time one comes on some mentally challenged pleb somewhere goes "oooh I must get one of those" :mad:

silvine · 10-10-2009 7:43pm

Not at all tempted by the light sabre then??

Twilightning · 10-10-2009 7:59pm

silvine wrote: »

Not at all tempted by the light sabre then??

I'm not bashing the accessories in the slightest, I love the fact that they add new customization as far as avatar creation goes, but I don't believe they're worth paying for. They should have been free from the beginning but I suppose it's best for Microsoft to charge for them since they know people are going to lap it up regardless of the pricetag.

At the end of the day they're just virtual objects which make your avatar perform a scripted animation over and over if you keep looking at it long enough. Why would you want to spend money on something as insignificant as that?

Asmodean · 10-10-2009 8:28pm

Ah OP I know exactly what you mean. I started a thread about the exact same topic a few months back. Took a bit of flack off people who are defenders of this type of money wasting so I'm sure they'll make their opinion known here soon enough:)
I can't say much myself because I had 80 points left over from a purchase of an arcade game so I bought a T-shirt with it. It's the people you see in the full outfits with the lightsabres and stuff that's really annoying. About 5-6 quid straight down the pisser.

Twilightning · 10-10-2009 10:45pm

Asmodean wrote: »

Ah OP I know exactly what you mean. I started a thread about the exact same topic a few months back. Took a bit of flack off people who are defenders of this type of money wasting so I'm sure they'll make their opinion known here soon enough:)
I can't say much myself because I had 80 points left over from a purchase of an arcade game so I bought a T-shirt with it. It's the people you see in the full outfits with the lightsabres and stuff that's really annoying. About 5-6 quid straight down the pisser.

How could people possibly defend that?

cardio,shoot me · 11-10-2009 11:26am

they shouldnt have been free, you should have unlocked them with gamerscore

silvine · 11-10-2009 11:46am

Agreed on the Gamerscore thing. They're must be money in paying for these kind of things. I see Facebook has something similar where you can buy virtual gifts.

calex71 · 11-10-2009 12:58pm

cardio,shoot me wrote: »

you should have unlocked them with gamerscore

There was talk of that being part of the update before last during the summer and there is a portion of the guide for unlockables . But as yet I have not seen it implemented in any game. Maybe it wasn't avitar related items though

End of the day though "A fool and his money ......" and all that.

dazftw · 11-10-2009 1:12pm

I bought the camera, cause im into photography and also because I had just enough points to get it and nothing else. I wouldn't buy points just for clothes but if I had points left over from buying a game I might.

Burning Eclipse · 11-10-2009 2:09pm

Twilightning wrote: »

Why oh why would you pay for this stuff?

Why oh why do you care what I spend my money on? I'm positive that you've spent money on something that I would consider frivolous; do I start a thread judging you or your actions? And you are judging when you say things like... "the stupidity of people with more money than sense".

That_Guy · 11-10-2009 3:08pm

I've only bought avatar accessories whenever I've a few MS points left over from buying a game. I don't condemn people for buying these items. It's their money after all and they can do whatever they like.

RobertFoster · 11-10-2009 3:26pm

I'd rather spend money on real clothes (there's holes in my jeans, damnit) or save up the excess points for games (they don't expire you know...) than buy avatar stuff.

I wouldn't condemn people for purchasing avatar stuff though. There's obviously a market for them if people are buying it. It doesn't affect me at all as there's still a free alternative. If they got rid of the free stuff and everything for your avatar had to be bought or else you weren't allowed to play certain games avatar-less, then it'd be a cause for concern.

Twilightning · 11-10-2009 4:42pm

Burning Eclipse wrote: »

Why oh why do you care what I spend my money on? I'm positive that you've spent money on something that I would consider frivolous; do I start a thread judging you or your actions? And you are judging when you say things like... "the stupidity of people with more money than sense".

Bawwwww. If you don't like it, don't read it. I noticed you come across as highly offended, probably because you spend your points on the likes of useless **** like a pirate hat for your avatar. If you want to piss away your cash I don't particularly care, I just thought I'd let everyone on this forum get my side of the story on how I can't understand people with your mindset.

You also conveniently avoided the question I put forth at the beginning of the thread itself. If you're not gonna answer, don't bother.

Mr. K · 11-10-2009 9:44pm

Relax! I see your point, Microsoft are kinda milking us by charging for it. But some things make people silly, lightsabers (and pirate hats) are some of those things!

From your perspective, at least the items make your viewing other peoples avatars more interesting.

Twilightning · 11-10-2009 10:08pm

People have said they'd buy and item or two to get rid of their leftover points, that's fair enough. I wouldn't go out of my way to buy points specifically for that purpose though. x-x

Asmodean · 11-10-2009 10:49pm

I'm positive that you've spent money on something that I would consider frivolous

Oh yeah now I remember who takes this avatar thing way too seriously. Only joking dude but seriously we're not attacking you personally so relax a bit. You think its ok to buy it, fair enough, but we're entitled to our opinion too.

People have said they'd buy and item or two to get rid of their leftover points, that's fair enough. I wouldn't go out of my way to buy points specifically for that purpose though

My sentiments exactly. It's sad when you just know people are buying points for that sole purpose.

From your perspective, at least the items make your viewing other peoples avatars more interesting.

I dunno if that's true though because so many people have it now the avatars just look boring and repetitive all over again!

That_Guy · 12-10-2009 11:15am

Twilightning wrote: »

People have said they'd buy and item or two to get rid of their leftover points, that's fair enough. I wouldn't go out of my way to buy points specifically for that purpose though. x-x

While I agree that there are other things to buy with MS points, games for example, it's not really for anyone to say what peopole should be spending their money/points on.

People will continue to buy avatar accessories so Microsoft will still milk it for all it's worth. It won't stop until people cease buying these items but at the moment it doesn't look like happening.

If I've got 60 points left over I'll buy an avatar accessory but I don't think I'd lose sleep if somebody bought MS points for just customising their avatar.

Asmodean · 12-10-2009 1:26pm

I don't think I'd lose sleep if somebody bought MS points for just customising their avatar.

I don't think I would either, just an observation some of us are making. It's unreal how defensive some people get when money is brought into the equation though.

voxpop · 12-10-2009 1:32pm

Who cares - do what you want - sure you've spent hundreds on a console that lets you play through virtual worlds where nothing is real. It can all be considered a waste of money if you look at it from different a perspective.

Asmodean · 12-10-2009 1:35pm

Very nice point! Never thought of it that way.

armour87 · 12-10-2009 2:12pm

The only time I've spent points on accesories was the day the avatar marketplace came out and I bought my guy a Gears shirt the same as Richiepunx there for 80 points. Voxpop makes a very good point though that really settles the thread.

I do think some of the items are over priced and really aren't implemented well into the live experience. With the exception of some games, Worms Armageddon comes to mind, the only place you will see you and your friends Avatars will be in the dashboard.

Twilightning · 12-10-2009 4:08pm

voxpop wrote: »

Who cares - do what you want - sure you've spent hundreds on a console that lets you play through virtual worlds where nothing is real. It can all be considered a waste of money if you look at it from different a perspective.

I've spent hundreds on a console that functions as a media centre and a video games console which provides me with entertainment, where as a static object on a virtual character which has to be paid for with real world currency provides me with none whatsoever; you surely can't be comparing the two. It's as ludicrous as say paying for a different helmet model for one of the Gear soldiers in Gears of War 2. If you heard of somebody doing that I'm sure you'd consider it ludicrous, which it would be.

This is just another one of the mandatory 'do what you want' posts that always comes with topics like these, we've already had one previously. I've already said I don't particularly care if you spend money on stuff as useless as clothing or accessories, I just started this topic so I could get a few answers as to why people do it in the first place. So far I've had "I use up the last few points I have leftover" and nothing else. People either get defensive or ask why I care.

voxpop · 12-10-2009 4:25pm

Have you ever purchased a special edition of a game, dvd, cd or book ?

Have you ever purchased a particular brand of runner over a cheaper brand ?

Have you ever added anything to your car to personalise it ?

Did you upgrade your dvd player with a blu-ray player and re-purchase your dvd collection on blu-ray ?

All the above can be seen as a "waste" of money.

TBH - the whole point of these avatars from the start were to allow ppl to have personalised characters. Releasing addons for these characters is surely something that was expected and if someone wants to spend money to personalise the avatar in a different way - then so be it.

People who customise their avatars with purchased addons obviously get some satisfaction or "entertainment" out of it.

If you want to list out what you have spend on consoles, computer games and media centers over the years - im sure there would be plenty of people telling you that you've "wasted" your money.

Twilightning · 12-10-2009 4:53pm

voxpop wrote: »

Have you ever purchased a special edition of a game, dvd, cd or book ?

Have you ever purchased a particular brand of runner over a cheaper brand ?

Have you ever added anything to your car to personalise it ?

Did you upgrade your dvd player with a blu-ray player and re-purchase your dvd collection on blu-ray ?

All the above can be seen as a "waste" of money.

All of the above are a waste of money, and I can honestly say I've never done any of the above listed. I didn't preorder the legendary edition of Halo 3 on launch night, I queued up like everyone else to get the regular edition because I don't really care for bonus DVDs I can easily watch on the internet or hardcover art books, I just wanted the game. The only special edition of a game I have is Gears of War 2, and it was a gift. I haven't bothered looking at the artbook that came with it and the only reason I once used the bonus DVD that came with it was to take the gamerpictures off it. It's been collecting dust for nearly a year now.

voxpop wrote: »

TBH - the whole point of these avatars from the start were to allow ppl to have personalised characters. Releasing addons for these characters is surely something that was expected and if someone wants to spend money to personalise the avatar in a different way - then so be it.

People who customise their avatars with purchased addons obviously get some satisfaction or "entertainment" out of it.

If you'd read any of what I said previously in the topic you'd know I have nothing against avatars or their customization. In fact I welcomed it all on board. I just said that all of it should have been free from the get-go and that paying for such trivial stuff is, in the eyes of myself and many others (including people who have already replied to this topic, not alone with this point of view), a waste of money. A little pirate hat on your avatar or a full Halo UNSC marine outfit can be entertaining, I just don't think it's enough entertainment worth paying for.

voxpop wrote: »

If you want to list out what you have spend on consoles, computer games and media centers over the years - im sure there would be plenty of people telling you that you've "wasted" your money.

I don't really spent vast amounts on video games to begin with. I'm not a fan of football in the slightest but if somebody pays to watch different matches on TV, I don't call it a waste of money. It's just not my cup of tea is all. I just feel differently towards the likes of this.

Asmodean · 12-10-2009 4:53pm

I think it's criminal the way they make you pay extra for helmets with outfits. That's some extortionist activity right there! MS are all about the 'Show off factor' though because it helps earn them bucketloads of money. Started with achievements (Could host an entire site for such arguments/discussions) and now the latest schtick is this number indicating how long you've been a subscribed Gold member.
Now I completely agree that a lot of people view these perks as an extra element to their online experience, which is true, but it gets under my skin slightly speaking from personal point of view.
Whats everyone else's 2 cents?

voxpop · 12-10-2009 5:01pm

Twilightning wrote: »

If you'd read any of what I said previously in the topic you'd know I have nothing against avatars or their customization. In fact I welcomed it all on board. I just said that all of it should have been free from the get-go and that paying for such trivial stuff is, in the eyes of myself and many others (including people who have already replied to this topic, not alone with this point of view),a waste of money. A little pirate hat on your avatar or a full Halo UNSC marine outfit can be entertaining, I just don't think it's enough entertainment worth paying for.

Thats my point - what you thinks is a waste, others are happy to pay. Look Im not in favour of paying for these things, but on the other hand there is obviously a market.

If I was going to start complaining about LIVE and the costs involved, I would start with gold subscription and points.

LIVE is the only platform where you pay to play online and the points always work out that you have some left over or not just enough. This ties in nicely with this thread as the left over points are then spent without thought (on avatar props,etc)

Micro payments is something that MS have been trying to get into for ages - its like the mobile phone jigles, lots of small little payments add up over time.

Twilightning · 12-10-2009 5:04pm

voxpop wrote: »

Thats my point - what you thinks is a waste, others are happy to pay.

If people weren't so willingly ready to spend money on this stuff then there wouldn't be a market for it and it'd be free from the start, that's the main gripe I have with this.

voxpop · 12-10-2009 5:26pm

Yeah - but people are people though. MS have engineered the system to have points and when you buy something on Live you just happen to have enough points left to get an item for your avatar. Coincidence?
They also tap into the type of person that buys the halo3 "platinum" version with figurine - these ppl who want a halo figurine also want halo cloths for their online doll.

If we all stopped subscribing for live, it might be free - but thats never going to happen.

Btw - did you pay for your gamercard pic

Twilightning · 12-10-2009 5:42pm

voxpop wrote: »

Yeah - but people are people though. MS have engineered the system to have points and when you buy something on Live you just happen to have enough points left to get an item for your avatar. Coincidence?
They also tap into the type of person that buys the halo3 "platinum" version with figurine - these ppl who want a halo figurine also want halo cloths for their online doll.

If we all stopped subscribing for live, it might be free - but thats never going to happen.

Btw - did you pay for your gamercard pic

Nope, it came free along with 2 other gamerpics and a free Halo: Combat Evolved theme for the older dashboard when Xbox Originals was first launched. I'll be damned if I'm paying for one of those.

Avatar Related Accessories

Comments