Skills to pay the bills on new online competitive title
Kwari, a London-based developer and publisher, has announced its new multiplayer online gaming service: a first-person shooter where players win and lose money with every shot.
The game, also called Kwari, is subscription-free and available as a no-cost download, but requires players to put down a ‘stake’ when they enter an arena. Shooting other players awards you money from their stake, and conversely players lose money for every hit they take.
Kwari claims that this dynamic changes the social networks that typically form around online games, causing players to favour anonymity and self-segregation when their own money is at stake.
“Money changes everything,” said Eddie Gill, founder and creator of Kwari.
“I wanted to create something that had more of a buzz than a traditional FPS. The concept of playing for money is not a new one. However, these games tend to be an existing multiplayer game with a cash prize tagged on the end, much like clan tournaments, which means only a minority walk away with cash winnings – and usually a small amount at that.”
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“This is an inevitable evolution for online gaming,” added Al King, global marketing director for Kwari. “Like most skill-based or competitive games, once played at a professional level or where money is involved, it’s unappealing to return to an amateur status.”
This reminds me a lot of those Online Casino websites a bit - I wouldn't ever play a game for money myself, but if you're okay with risking losses, then go right ahead...
However, it is an FPS - and, as everyone has known since ye olde days of Quake, FPS + Online = Aimbotters, Wallhackers, and the like. If you were going to play what I suppose you could call a "gambling FPS" like this, you'd better be sure that your net protocalls are good enough to outsmart the lete hacksaws who are bound to try and break it.
Also, you'd better find a REALLY good way to avoid lag. There's nothing quite as irritating as lining up your BFG9000 with your opponents' head/heart/groin and then getting a brief "CONNECTION LOST" message which goes away just in time for you to see a rocket an inch from your face.
I'm not saying that the game is a bad idea - I'm merely saying that by increasing the stakes with money you'll need to ensure that you also decrease the likelihood that you'll lose it unfairly.
Further to the previous commenter, there are many technical problems (cheats, as mentioned, plus totally 'legit' exploitation of the unmodified game) related to online games that players are happy to live with since, well it's just a game. But this isn't just a game when money is involved. I think the risks won't cause much trouble since their presence will put many people off playing this at all.... I don't expect this to take off.
Another thing:
I was wondering how this game would actually earn it's creators any profit, seeing as it's free to download and play. It turns out that you have to buy all your ammo from Kwari.
Let's think about this: You pay money to enable you to gamble (and possibly lose) even more money playing an FPS.
Alternatively, you could play OpenArena for free. Which would you choose?
