Entry · Category basics

Free-to-play economies

A game that costs nothing to download still needs revenue. This entry defines the four mechanisms the genre uses to raise it, shows how to convert an in-game price into Australian dollars, and sets out the consumer questions worth asking before the first purchase.

Two currencies, and why there are always two

Almost every game in this category runs two parallel currencies. The first is earned by playing — usually called credits, silver or something similar — and pays for the ordinary running costs of the game: buying a researched ship, fitting modules, restocking consumables, covering repair bills after a poor battle. The second is bought with real money. It is often called gold, gems or, in naval titles, doubloons. It converts into the earned currency, buys premium time and unlocks things the earned currency cannot reach.

The split exists because it lets a developer tune two dials independently. The earned currency controls how fast an unpaying player progresses; the purchased currency controls what a paying player can skip. Neither dial is hidden, but neither is announced either, and a game can be adjusted quietly by changing repair costs or experience rates. This is why reading a shop page tells you much less than playing for a fortnight and noticing whether the pace feels like a game or like a queue.

The four revenue mechanisms

Cosmetic items — flags, camouflage patterns, commander portraits — sit alongside these. Where they are purely decorative they have no bearing on play, but in several titles camouflage also carries statistical bonuses, which moves it from decoration into the progression economy. It is worth reading the item description rather than assuming.

Working out what something costs in Australian dollars

In-game prices are quoted in the game’s own currency, which makes comparison difficult by design. The arithmetic to undo that takes a minute.

1. Find the real-money price, in AUD, of each premium currency bundle in the shop, and note how much currency each bundle contains.
2. Divide price by quantity for each bundle. That gives a cost per unit of premium currency, and it will usually fall as bundle size rises.
3. Take the in-game price of the item you are considering and multiply it by the unit cost of the bundle you would realistically buy — not the largest bundle, unless you would actually buy the largest bundle.
4. Add the cost of any top-up you would need because the item price sits just above a bundle boundary. This is not an accident of pricing, and including it gives you the honest figure.
5. Compare that figure to the price of a complete game you would enjoy for the same number of hours. If the comparison is uncomfortable, that discomfort is information.

Currency conversion adds a second layer. Where a shop quotes prices in euros or United States dollars, the amount debited in AUD depends on the exchange rate at the moment of purchase and on any international transaction fee your card or bank applies. Check your own statement after the first purchase rather than assuming the quoted figure is what you paid.

Randomised containers and what they are

A randomised container — often called a loot box, crate or case — is an item whose contents are determined when it is opened, from a pool the publisher defines. Some are earned through play, some are bought, and many games offer both routes to the same container. The design is effective because a variable, unpredictable reward holds attention more firmly than a fixed one, which is exactly the property that has made randomised items a subject of ongoing regulatory attention in a number of countries.

Two practical points. First, where a publisher discloses the probability of each outcome, read it, and read it as the cost of the expected number of attempts rather than the cost of one. Second, the presence of purchasable randomised items is directly relevant to whether a game is suitable for a younger person in the household, and it feeds into how games are classified. The classification entry explains where to look up a game’s Australian classification and the consumer advice that accompanies it, and the Australian Classification Board is the authority that publishes those decisions.

Consumer rights when buying digital items in Australia

Buying premium currency or a bundle is a purchase, not a donation, and purchases made in Australia are subject to the Australian Consumer Law. The ACCC publishes plain-language guidance on consumer guarantees and on what businesses may and may not claim about their products; it is the right starting point if a purchase does not deliver what was described. Note that the seller in these transactions may be a games publisher, a platform, or a payment processor in another country, and identifying who you actually contracted with is the first step in any complaint.

Three things are worth doing at purchase time and are difficult to reconstruct later: keep the receipt or confirmation email, note the exact description of what the item promised, and record the date. If the matter becomes a dispute, that record is the whole case.

Where to read next

The glossary defines each currency term in one line if you need a quick reference. Account safety covers the scams built around free currency and bonus codes. The product entry in this library describes what the advertising programme behind one game states, and carries a paid link.