When Games Allow Mods, Beautiful Things Can Happen

from the externalities-create-value-for-everyone dept

Wed, May 16th 2012 1:53pm — Leigh Beadon

Recently, Mike wrote about the importance of externalities and spillovers in economics, and the fact that it's often best to allow other people to capture pieces of the value you create and build on top of it. Not only does this benefit the economy as a whole, it benefits the originator, because some of the additional value that people create feeds back to them.

In the video game world, a great example of this is when companies open their games up to mods, so users can tweak them or build entirely new games on top of the same basic engine. Valve's Counter-Strike series grew from a fan-made mod for Half-Life, which was so popular it has been credited with keeping Half-Life on gamers' radars for years longer than it would have been otherwise, leading Valve to hire the creators and turn it into its own game, which remains one of the company's most successful titles. This week another example bubbled up on Reddit, in the form of a captioned screenshot of the Steam store titled "Dear developers, this is why you should make your games moddable":

The game ARMA II: Combined Operations was on track to be another mostly-forgotten game, still enjoyed by a small group of fans with few other prospects. Then, two years after its release, and without getting any kind of promotional sale price, it started selling like crazy and surged to the front page of the Steam leaderboards. Why? ~~Another team of developers~~ One of the company's developers released the alpha of a project he'd been working on independently: Day Z, a zombie-survival game built as an ARMA II mod. Fans have been clamoring for a particular type of zombie game for a while now (and Cracked's Robert Brockway pitched a similar idea recently) and the description of Day Z sounds like it fits the bill—so when the free alpha of the mod was released, lots of people bought a copy of ARMA II so they could give it a try. The developer was expecting it to be a hit within the existing fan community, but he had no idea that it would cross over into the mainstream.

In this situation, everybody wins. Gamers get a new game, ARMA II gets renewed sales, Day Z gets to exist (without the need to build a brand new engine). The sales boost to the original might be temporary, or it might spark new interest in the game and revive it entirely, or it might inspire newer and even more popular mods, or... well, there are a lot of possibilities, none of them bad. All because the ARMA II creators had the foresight to let people add value to what they created.

Update: A commenter pointed out that Day Z is the independent project of one of the developers working on ARMA 3. Post has been updated to reflect that fact.

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Filed Under: arma ii, counter-strike, externalities, half-life, mods, steam, z day
Companies: valve

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Josh in CharlotteNC (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 1:41pm

and
All because the ARMA II developers had the foresight to let others add value to what they created.

And offer it for sale in a convenient manner (Steam) at a reasonable price ($30).

Imagine if the only way to buy it legally was via a physical disc. Or if it cost $60.
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Jeff (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 1:51pm

Re: and
Or with bullshit DRM baked in...
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 1:58pm

Re: and
or even better, offer it on good old games, DRM free and compatible for new systems. That way even new players can get classic games.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:03pm

Who's shooting in Elektro?
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blaktron (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:10pm

Re: Re: and
This is the point most people miss. Steam *IS* bullshit DRM, its just invisible to the User (which is why we dont consider it such), but it meets the technical 'requirements' for all the DRM out there.
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PlagueSD (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:15pm

Re: Re: Re: and
Yep, You ever try to play a steam game WITHOUT an internet connection? You can't even login to the launcher.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:15pm

Re: Re: Re: and
Worst of all, many asshole publishers who sell on steam still insist on having extra drm. Thats how you get games downloaded on steam, and you still have to install securom and other shit.
Talk about redundancy. Just goes to show you how stupid publishers are, and how good of marketers DRM makers are.
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Patrick (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:20pm

DRM but not Bullshit
I realized that some people believe that all DRM is bullshit. Some days I feel that way myself.

However, DRM does exist and when we evaluate DRM the question can be is this DRM worse or better than that DRM. To that end I argue that while Steam is DRM it is not "Bullshit DRM". Steam's DRM differs from many other DRM schemes in several important ways.

1. They are honest about what DRM the games they sell contain and how it works.
2. They provide other benefits that help to balance the "cost" of DRM to the user (the ability to install games on more than one computer, the ability to download my game whenever I want, the fact that they remember all of my CD keys, social features, etc.)
3. They sell games more cheaply. If DRM makes a game just a rental (as some argue) that's fine as long as I am paying rental prices.
4. Offline mode. This is huge as it means that Steams DRM will rarely actually be a burden to the player.

Basically, If DRM protects the seller and doesn�t hurt the consumer then let�s keep the pitchforks aimed at the worst offenders.
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Chronno S. Trigger (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:26pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Seems to open just fine for me, all I have to do is click on the "offline mode" button when it says it can't connect. Games play fine too.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:27pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
That depends on the game.
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DCX2, 16 May 2012 @ 2:28pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Yes, I have. And I have succeeded.

It's unfortunate, but in order to go offline, you first need to be online. However, once you go offline, you can play without an Internet connection.
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TDR, 16 May 2012 @ 2:29pm

Another shining example of a game that has not only stood the test of time, but grown because of it, is id software's eternal classic, DOOM. What self-respecting PC gamer hasn't cranked out a few levels of their own, even just for themselves? I know I have. And nowadays there are a ton of source ports, such as ZDoom, Skulltag, and JDoom, that incorporate many modern features into the game, giving this timeless classic new life. This was all possible because id had the foresight to release the game's source code into the wild and let the fans have at it. You can still buy DOOM and DOOM 2 at Good Old Games, and I'm sure it gets a decent amount of sales thanks to all the source ports and mods that are out there for it.
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Chronno S. Trigger (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:31pm

Re: DRM but not Bullshit
They also provide cloud storage for save games (if the game supports it). Saved my 40 hours of Saints Row after my laptop crashed.
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William Chambers, 16 May 2012 @ 2:31pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
No, actually it depends on if you've already installed it.
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Mr. Smarta** (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:32pm

Two years? That's nothing.
Two years is ok. But Neverwinter Nights I is a game by Bioware that was released in 2002. They allowed people to create their own mods, worlds, etc. and the game is still around today. It's still a lot more popular than Neverwinter Nights 2. NWN 1 had SecuRom as a DRM, but the developers removed it completely. There's no verification server anymore, but the game still plays without a hitch.

People are still releasing mods, server worlds, and non-Bioware enthusiests are even releasing a patch for the game (Bioware didn't release the source code, so the patch seems to be viewed as worrying). Just another example of developers doing something right.
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DCX2, 16 May 2012 @ 2:32pm

Modding FTW
Look at the top 20, you'll see Left 4 Dead 2 is still there, despite being almost three years old. Why? Because it can be modded, and you can host your own server on your own network.

Portal 2 is also in the top 20. Probably because of the Steam Workshop and the Perpetual Testing Initiative.

In fact, I've recently been playing another game that's easily modded. Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines. It's about *eight* years old, and yet there is still a fan community releasing patches to improve and tweak gameplay. They're even trying to finish a level whose assets are on disc but it wasn't finished and so it couldn't make it into the official game.
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William Chambers, 16 May 2012 @ 2:32pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Not quite accurate. I've actually tested it quite a bit for my laptop and the key is to have already loaded the game and then shutdown. Then it stores the auth for about a month and you're set.
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Chronno S. Trigger (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:34pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Simple solution (and I follow this idea); don't buy those games.

All I'm saying is that Steam lets you play offline. If a game doesn't, that's added by the game developers and they should be the ones ostracized.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:34pm

Jagged Alliance 2
Getting better every year since 1999.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:36pm

Re: DRM but not Bullshit
The ONLY benefit of DRM is having to say "mother may I" for the rest of eternity to use/play with something YOU paid for.

I long ago quit buying any games except the ones offered by Good Old Games, since they're 100% free.

AND I don't buy books, movies or records unless they're DRM-free or I can jailbreak them.

F**K DRM
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Difster (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:38pm

Somehwere...
Somewhere an MPAA and an RIAA exec are huddled together and sobbing and planning revenge for not getting a cut.
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AzureSky (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 2:40pm

Re: Re: and
of like Activision titles at full price with drm built in.....

this is where EA has been failing hard with the last couple BF games, neither can be moded, Neither allow you to run your own servers.....all because they are more worried about piracy then sales numbers.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:55pm

Re: Modding FTW
I think the one of the main reaons that VtM:B is still enduring is because it is a fantastic game, period. The only thing I've modded is a skin or two and the resolution of items, and yet I still play it once a year.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 2:56pm

Hmmm....
Never played ARMA II nor even heard of Day Z, but now I'm damn curious and considering spending $30.
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Rekrul, 16 May 2012 @ 3:01pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Not quite accurate. I've actually tested it quite a bit for my laptop and the key is to have already loaded the game and then shutdown. Then it stores the auth for about a month and you're set.

And after a month, the leash gets yanked back. Bad dog! Sit! Stay!
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Zos (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 3:08pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
like blizzard.
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Rekrul, 16 May 2012 @ 3:09pm

Re: DRM but not Bullshit
However, DRM does exist and when we evaluate DRM the question can be is this DRM worse or better than that DRM. To that end I argue that while Steam is DRM it is not "Bullshit DRM".

Honest question; What happens when Valve's license to sell a particular game runs out or is revoked by the original publisher?

The last I heard, they were selling copies of the game Jedi Knight, which is owned by Lucasarts. If their license runs out and they don't renew it, or LA decides they no longer want the game sold through Steam, will all the copies that they 'sold' continue to work? What happens if someone's drive crashes and they need to re-download the game, but Valve no longer has the rights to distribute it? Also, as they add more and more games to the Steam catalog, will they still be supporting all of these games a decade from now?
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Rekrul, 16 May 2012 @ 3:12pm

Re: Two years? That's nothing.
Thief: The Dark Project was released in 1998 and is a singly-player only game, but people are still creating new levels for it.
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DCX2, 16 May 2012 @ 3:19pm

Re: Re: Modding FTW
Wesp's Plus Patch is definitely awesome, although some purists don't like the fact that he changed some things (e.g. adding Blood Heal, nerfing Blood Buff, sending Gimble to Vandal to fulfill Replanting a Lily quest, more Poster Session items to fetch, etc). There are also lots of mods; Camarilla Edition, Final Nights, Companion Mod, Clan Quest Mod...
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Stuart, 16 May 2012 @ 3:43pm

I can.
Any game I have already downloaded and played at least once that is not an online game I can ply in offline mode.
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jaf, 16 May 2012 @ 3:43pm

not just mods
this phenomenon is not just limited to mods entirely new games can revive long dead franchises a good example is the free fan made WingCommanderSaga:DarkestDawn which got 50000 downloads its first day and prompted the classic WingCommander games to go on sale at gog.com like a week later.

but now it looks like EA is going to step in http://www.wcsaga.com/forum/index.php?f=19&t=680&rb_v=viewtopic&start=10 there was also a thread posted by the devs with a C&D letter in it but it disappeared soon after I hit the submit story button
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Patrick (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 3:51pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
I agree that there are substantial problem inherent to DRM. As I note in my original post some days I feel like all DRM is bullshit.

The problems you point out are quite real (see EA server shutdowns) and while they haven't effected Steam yet they could.

The thrust of my argument is that I am a realist. I don't see the ideal world of no DRM coming to pass any time soon. Steam as DRM is certainly not the worst offender currently available so lets direct our focus and energy at the people using truly "Bullshit" DRM first.

Also lets give Steam and Valve credit for what they do get right. Their games and client are available cross platform, are incredibly mod-able, and are sold at reasonable prices with frequent significant sales.

Basically this my whole post was spurred by one word "bullshit" I just don't like to see Steam (a relative good guy) get lumped in with the Ubisofts and EAs of the world.
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The Groove Tiger (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 3:55pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
I'll hound you night and day!

I�ll skewer you like a sow at a buffet!

When I�m done with you, you�ll be a boneless filet!
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Ben (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 4:00pm

Re: Re: and ... better?
offer it on good old games

Which has been bought out by GameFly with annoying spam mail that I can't seem to get out of.

I liked gog.com; the prices were nice, and the lack of DRM made the games worth a try. I have no interest in GameFly
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Franklin G Ryzzo (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 4:13pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Simple... If the legitimate version of something you paid for no longer works, you download a version that does work. Now this may not work with online games that require external server support, but you have to accept that as a possible consequence when you purchase that type of game.

Just to clarify, I don't think that you should have to do any of this, but it's easy enough and it is the solution to your question. I have a couple dozen games I purchased on Steam, and if any of them stops working because they lost the license (or for whatever stupid excuse is given at the time), I will fire up my favorite torrent client and download a version that isn't broken. And not a single moment of sleep will lost.
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Ed C., 16 May 2012 @ 4:14pm

Re: Re: Two years? That's nothing.
Really? Where did I put that disk...
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Xenophorge (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 4:34pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Real world example:

EA pulled Crysis 2 off of Steam, yet I can still install and play it from Steam. They only took it off the store, but they support and give me the game I paid money for. Even took the time to make it a seamless transition for me. It doesn't point me to Origin (like I bet EA would want it to), it just installs and goes, with not a problem to be had.

So that's what happens when Steam loses a game. Nothing at all.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 5:51pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Yes the copies already sold will continue to work. There was an issue with EA when they started Origin and most EA games were taken down. I had a few already and they continue to work just fine. I could be wrong but I believe that Steam will no longer be allowed to sell the games in the market but the game will still remain on their servers for those who have purchased it already to re-download.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 5:58pm

Another round of hot coffee for all!
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 6:35pm

Do not give them more reason to revive anything.

Because they believe its garbage they will throw it out eventually like Warzone 2100, that is now open source :)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warzone_2100

They(the open source dudes) are looking for new artwork and music for the game.
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Bengie, 16 May 2012 @ 6:56pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
If I can't access the internet for a month, I have bigger problems than not being able to play my video games.

There are corner cases like our brave military who just wants to get away from reality for a bit and are thousands of miles from home with no internet.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 7:18pm

Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Quote:
I don't see the ideal world of no DRM coming to pass any time soon.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_open-source_video_games

I don't know about you, but I am living in that world right now, I don't have to worry about DRM, I only have to worry about the devs and to that end I contribute everything I can, work, money and ideas.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 May 2012 @ 7:33pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Personally, I find steam DRM suits me fine.
I always managed to play offline when I needed to, I never once was locked out of a game due to lack of Internet connection (except for cases where the publisher's DRM is at fault, such as Dragon Age).

The one thing I worry about with Steam is what happens if one day Steam won't let me play my games anymore? As you say, this is something that could happen. Steam could shut down one day or ban/block my account for some reason or block access to a specific game for any reason...

If that day ever comes, I'll go to the Pirate Bay to get my games back. It's as simple as that. And I'll download games I never bought in my life while I'm at it. This way I keep what I paid for and the publishers have an incentive to make sure Steam keeps giving me access. And downloading music and games is 100% legal in my country.
I realize this solution might not work for everybody but it suits me personally.

Of course I wish Steam wasn't DRM and had less restrictions, in fact I try to avoid Steam as much as I can. But often it's worth what I get out of it, for me at least. And again, any problems Steam DRM can cause, the Pirate Bay can solve. Simple as that.
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David, 16 May 2012 @ 9:28pm

Correction
"Another team of developers released the alpha of Day Z, a zombie-survival game built as an ARMA II mod."

It's actually a guy who works for the developer that makes ARMA II that made the mod.

Check the URL for an interview with him.
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Watchit (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 9:31pm

Re:
here, here!
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Watchit (profile), 16 May 2012 @ 9:41pm

OMGWTFBBQ DRM!!!!
My take on the discussion so far

Regular Commenters: Yeah steam DRM's really not that bad, I hardly ever notice it.

AC: OMGWTFBBQ!!! IT'S DRM AND EVIL!!!!1! I WANT TEH OLD SCHOOL GAMES.

And as for what happens when steam ends? Well, what happened when they stopped making Nindindo 64s? Emulators and Cracks!
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Trenchman, 16 May 2012 @ 11:41pm

Re: OMGWTFBBQ DRM!!!!
Emulators and cracks already exist for Steam. I've used them a few times when Steam seemed to absolutely refuse to authenticate and install my games because it couldn't connect to the Steam server.
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The Moondoggie, 17 May 2012 @ 12:13am

THAT FEEL....
I don't think this is a cause for celebration as modding has existed before Steam and has done wonders to a lot of old video games, making them cult classics and the measure we judge modern games today.

DOOM, Starcraft, Warcraft, Diablo, Red Alert are a few classics that are still completely playable today due to modded levels and maps.

I'd go so far as to say that the real strength of PC games is not the beauty of the graphics, but in the possibility of re-playability and the extension of the player's fun.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 12:46am

Re: Re: and
Ever try steam at times you don't have internets?

It's a real crapshoot, and part of why I oppose propritary software.
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Jeff, 17 May 2012 @ 12:50am

This is why I haven't dusted off my ps3 in months. I still rock my older games on my pc. I found a crisis mod based on mechwarrior franchise that looks promising.
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bill., 17 May 2012 @ 1:16am

Re: Re: Re: Re: and
You DO realise that's complete BS, right? You DO know that you can play offline, right? Do you?
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Ninja (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 4:17am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Sorry but I don't agree with that "don't buy if you don't agree with DRM" stance. I recently started playing Diablo III and it's a quite enjoyable game, much like its predecessors. However, unlike D2 for instance (which I bought the original after years playing the pirated copy) D3 requires an internet connection. I've lost count of how many times I've copied D2 folders over (in usb sticks and DVDs) without ever reinstalling. I've lost count of how many times I got together with a few friends to link our lappies over a router to play in the local network (sometimes we didn't even bother to make a copy in every computer). D2 is over a decade old and I still play, regardless of battle.net supporting it or not. Total

Annihilation, from Cavedog. I've built my own custom units for that game. It's incredibly fun even now and it's AGES old. I can carry around in an USB stick if I want.

I'll finish my comment with a single question:

Will I come back here in 10, 20 years and say the same about D3 and these Steam DRM games?
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Ninja (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 4:37am

Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Every DRM is bullshit. If Steam closes down tomorrow what happens to their DRM? Sure you have the games on offline for now but what when you buy a new computer? It's bullshit. All of it.
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Ninja (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 4:50am

Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
What happens when Steam closes down?
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clinton (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 6:02am

Bohemia Interactive are the best developer out there, they've managed to keep me coming back for ten years.
Things like the no CD patches they release are awesome.
Shame there are not many like these guys.
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*|EFU|* 50kBTU (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 6:26am

Re: Re: Two years? That's nothing.
I am a BIG FAN of the Thief series. I have all of them installed in Win7 and I play them when I feel like sneaking around in the shadows... hehehe.

Many many fan made levels, mods and a lot of additional fun.
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*|EFU|* 50kBTU (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 6:30am

Re: THAT FEEL....
I agree so much with you. Who cares if those faces in old games looks blocky??? I do not need them to look like in real life but I want them to be FUN!
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 8:21am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: and
Probably not. You rent modern games, you don't own them.
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Leigh Beadon (profile), 17 May 2012 @ 8:27am

Re: Correction
Ah, cool! Post is updated - thanks

(the more i read about this Day Z game, the more I want to play it...)
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Rekrul, 17 May 2012 @ 8:55am

Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Also lets give Steam and Valve credit for what they do get right. Their games and client are available cross platform, are incredibly mod-able, and are sold at reasonable prices with frequent significant sales.

One of the things that Steam gets very wrong is that it can retroactively change the minimum requirements for a game. It's already happened once. Retail packages of Half-Life II list the minimum Windows version as Windows 98, however since Steam has been changed to require at least Windows XP, it's no longer possible to play HL2 on anything less. Many of the older games that they sell through Steam were also designed to work under older versions of Windows, but have now inherited Steam's minimum requirements. When Valve decides to up the requirements to Windows 7, anyone still using XP is going to find themselves unable to play any of their Steam-crippled games.

Most will say that people using older versions of Windows are too few to count, or that they're dumb for not using the latest version, but that doesn't change the fact that when Valve upgrades Steam, they are effectively taking away software that people have paid for.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 9:32am

Re: Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
What's that supposed to mean? I still use XP, for the only reason that I still need it to play old windows games. My main OS is Debian, and although WINE works well for some games, it doesn't work well enough.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 12:21pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Valve has stated that they will release a patch to remove the drm from all steam games in the unlikely event that they ever shut down.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 12:25pm

Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
I agree but Steam DRM is unfortunately a necessary evil. If they didn't include it the vast majority of piracy obsessed game publishers wouldn't let Valve sell their games. So I'm just thankful that the DRM isn't intrusive and the games tend to be cheap and go on sale frequently.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 1:59pm

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Thats not true at all, its just a stupid rumor going around the internet, spread fiercely by Valve fanboys.
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Anonymous Coward, 17 May 2012 @ 11:39pm

Re: Re: Re: and
And even more people don't realize that Steam DRM is optional, but the majority of publishers choose to include it.
For example Dungeons of Dredmor can run without Steam.
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Watchit (profile), 18 May 2012 @ 1:28am

Re: Re: OMGWTFBBQ DRM!!!!
A perfectly reasonable time to use them. As for me, I've never had a problem with steam, and it makes it easier to start up games with friends so I use it anyway.
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TaCktiX (profile), 18 May 2012 @ 8:06am

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: DRM but not Bullshit
Yeah, I actually researched it and it's an urban legend. There are no official statements I can dig up, though the myth would not surprise me if it became reality.
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Anonymous Coward, 18 May 2012 @ 11:34am

Are there any PC games that aren't modable or haven't been modded?.

Really, every PC game I have has been modded in some way. This includes games on disc, and games by major publishers. Take the Sims franchise for example, despite being published by teh ebil EA, they are some of the most modded games available. Teh ebil EA has, to date, not made any attempt to stop or limit the Sims modding community and openly encurages such practise.

Why is this article acting as if game modding or the modding comminity is new or somehow unique to DRM free sources. Modding is as old as the hills and is an accepted practice even by the worst of the "Old Guard Gate Keepers".
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Meh, 6 Jun 2012 @ 7:40pm

Modding is just fancy talk for limited sandbox editing, underneath the hood there's allot more shit going on than what they want the general public to know. Some of it are trade secrets others are simply a level of abstraction that would be useless to the general audience at large. Modding is not the same tools devs use to build games, that's a load of hype geared to promote more sales otherwise no one would buy the product. It's all in the economics of virtual trades, you want to make games? Try your hand at UDK or Cryengine!
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