Making the random cash shop better for all players.
Jagex is not unfamiliar with criticism over its cash shop, something that has only intensified with last year’s UK Parliament report that singled out RuneScape by name when talking about the gaming industry and predatory microtransactions with reference to one player who had spent $62 thousand on his account.
Last November Jagex hosted a stream talking about the future of microtransactions and like many of their “serious” Q&A streams, they didn’t really answer anything in a substantive manner. The limited time microtransaction-centric events have only gotten worse in the meantime.
But it’s okay because Jagex announced changes to the Treasure Hunter system to promote fairness and transparency. Treasure Hunter is like RuneScape’s lootboxes where players receive daily keys as well as bonus keys for completing tasks, but can purchase them for real money. The transparency gives players some options in what rewards they receive from their boxes.
As we’ve previously explained, we remain committed to making Treasure Hunter fairer and more transparent. We’re taking another big step towards that by removing ‘blind choice’ from many of our promotions.
You’ll be able to try this mechanic for yourself with Loot Duels from April 16th, which will allow you to choose from three different prizes of the same rarity at the end of each game.
Also on the docket according to the announcement is the possibility of a system where players can set spending limits for those who might impulsively spend more than they want. Maybe. Possibly. Someday.
In other news, our Player Support team have started reaching out to players proactively when they detect unusual spending activity. Our aim is to increase the amount of control that players have in regards to their spending, and so we’re offering options to block future purchases and change account management options. If this trial is successful, we would like to introduce ways for players to set their own spending limits, although this will take some time.
Source: RuneScape
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