Mike Ybarra, former president of Blizzard, suggested an avenue for remuneration of video game developers: the implementation of tips, to thank the creators of a game that was very popular.
Imagine for a moment: after more than a hundred hours invested, you defeat the final boss ofElden Ring. The feeling of duty accomplished is immense, the pleasure immeasurable. Then comes the scrolling credits, which cite one by one all the people who made this video game adventure a reality. Then, a final screen appears: it asks you if you want to pay €10 or €20 as a thank you. A tip, in short.
Mike Ybarra, former president of Blizzard Entertainment, dreams of introducing such gratification in certain video games. He suggested this idea in a tweet published on April 11. “ I know most of you won’t like this idea », he concedes, recognizing that the games are already quite expensive (they went to 80 euros with the PS5 and the Xbox Series). But the person concerned nevertheless wishes to explore this avenue.
For or against tipping in video games?
His argument: the greater emotion that we gained compared to what we initially invested in. “ After finishing them, some games leave us speechless at the incredible experience. For a handful of them, I sometimes thought, ‘I wish I had given the developers $10 or $20 more, because it was worth way more than the initial $70 and they didn’t try to trick me into rewarding myself every second “, he confides.
Among the games that marked him, he mentions Horizon Zero Dawn, God of War, Red Dead Redemption 2, Baldur’s Gate 3 or Elden Ring — only the big names who were unanimous, or almost unanimous. These are also only solo (or almost) experiences in this list. Indeed, online games already make it easy to inject money, on a regular basis (via maintaining the subscription) or occasionally, by purchasing any cosmetic item – such as an outfit in Fortnite. It’s a sort of disguised tip.
Mike Ybarra’s idea has the merit of leaving it to each player to decide, at the end of the day, whether to pay a small additional bonus. The choice is at the discretion. This would in no way be an obligation, but an additional way to thank the developers, if the adventure was up to par.
In a way, these “tips” already exist with the more expensive versions of the games (with the deluxe, collector’s editions, etc.), and nothing prevents you from purchasing the same game several times and, why not, from share it with your loved ones. It’s the same thing with cinema. Do you like a movie? You can go see it several times.
However, the implementation of this remuneration requires clarification. In particular, the destination of the money is essential: tips must be allocated correctly, so that they really go into the pockets of those who made the game, and not into those of the publisher. Another unknown: the culture of tipping is very anchored in consumption in the United States. It is less so in other countries, such as France.
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