Killing Floor 2 developer discredited after adding microtransactions

Developer Tripwire Interactive has been discredited for adding microtransactions for cosmetic upgrades to Killing Floor 2. The game is still in Early Access and players believe that is why Tripwire is setting the wrong priorities.

Killing Floor 2 has received the same Item Store as it was recently seen for the first time with the game Rust. The developer emphasizes that the items players can purchase have no effect on battle stats or performance. The proceeds from the store would be put into the continued development of the game. The store sells skins created by fans as part of a competition. A portion of the proceeds will also go back to the creators. Players also run the risk of being able to get the skins as item drops in the game itself, without paying.

Despite Tripwire’s caution in implementing the Item Store, some of the Killing Floor 2 community is reacting negatively. That can be seen in reviews on Steam and the Killing Floor subreddit. They believe that it is not appropriate to make extra money on a game that is not yet ready for its actual release. In addition, players feel that Tripwire should better spend its manpower on developing the game itself and not on the Item Store and a load of skins. The amount of content Tripwire has added to date is also considered by some to be too little compared to how long the game has been available.

In an email to Kotaku UK, Tripwire head John Gibson responds to the outcry. He said they did not rule out the possibility of negative reactions to the update, similar to what happened with developer Overkill and Payday 2. “We know we can never please everyone. As a developer, we believe this is best for the game as it safeguards the continued development of free content updates.” He believes that in-game economies can be implemented in a good way and can add “value and fun” to the gameplay. “It’s up to us to prove this to the fans.” For implementing the Item Store at such an early stage of development, Gibson cites as giving them time to process feedback on the system.

To players’ biggest complaint about Tripwire better dedicating its manpower to the core game, Gibson replied, “90 to 95 percent of the content in the Store is community-created. The developers working on the backend of the Item Store are not the ones who normally work on maps, weapons, monsters and gameplay, so the introduction of the Trading Floor will not affect when the game gets a new content update.” About the pace at which new content is introduced, Gibson states that it is faster than it was with Killing Floor 1 and that the game already has more content than its predecessor.

Co-op zombie shooter Killing Floor 2 is in development for Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game is currently available through Steam Early Access. Release dates for the different versions of the game have not yet been determined.