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Most “Apex Legends” players may have always wondered about the chances for the game’s cosmetic items’ prices to change. This was one of the questions fans asked Respawn Entertainment in a recent Ask Me Anything session. While the developers entertained the pricing-related inquiry, it seems that Respawn is not committing to any significant price movements.
Respawn recently held a Reddit AMA through the “Apex Legends” subreddit. To the developers’ credit, they opened the discussion to questions about the game’s microtransactions, which is an oft-evaded topic in many Q&A sessions.
One of the questions came from Reddit user x5hadau, who pointed out that paying $18 for a cosmetic item seems a bit much despite the understanding that the game needs to turn a profit to stay alive. In “Apex Legends,” a Legendary skin can be bought with 1,800 Apex Coins (AC), which translates to $18 in real money. “As the game grows, is there any potential movement towards more affordable content across the board?” the fan asked.
To answer the question, Respawn cited four main areas that primarily affect their strategy for the game’s monetization. In the case of “Apex Legends” cosmetic items pricing, the developer said their ability to keep the game alive “depends on operating a healthy business.” Aside from keeping the game running, Respawn added that a healthy business is essential to the studio’s ability to deliver new game modes, maps, and other gameplay features.
As mentioned, it was quite refreshing for a game developer to take up questions (directly from fans) about the prices of cosmetic items in a game that follows a free-to-play model. However, some fans pointed out that the response Respawn provided was a “non-answer” as it does not directly address whether or not they can expect prices to change.
Meanwhile, Respawn developers reiterated in the same discussion that they follow a “gameplay first” principle when it comes to setting prices in microtransactions. The studio also told fans that the costs of creating content for “Apex Legends” are high saying, “It's more expensive than people think in terms of number of people and hours.”
Developers also stated that they recognize not all “Apex Legends” players can purchase cosmetic items and this is the reason behind adding a prize track system in the game. In every Battle Pass, the game offers two different tracks of rewards, Premium and Free prizes. Respawn said this is their way to make sure players who are not buying things from microtransaction still have a chance to acquire “pretty high value rewards” just by playing.
