Well, the Internet is what allows money to continually enter the picture. No Internet, no IAP. When's the last time you played an actual physical board game? That is how games were before the Internet. It was just the game itself because there was nothing that allowed it to be anything more than that.
Each year we buy our daughter a few board games for Xmas, and either I, or my husband make sure she gets time to play at least once a week, it's good way to spend time with her. I bought monopoly for my daughter in the Xmas price drop and it's not even been installed yet as she much prefers the actual board game, I dunno, it's not the same huddled around a device as it is the real thing (you can't sneak money from the bank into your own funds on an iPad lol) Sorry I went off topic.
Well the Internet was around before IOS existed and Internet was around while IOS games without IAP existed, so I don't think it's exactly that simple. Anyone know what was the first IOS game to offer IAP? And by IAP, I mean consumables and currency, not expansions or game unlocks
I don't think it's as cut and dry as that. They also couldn't exist without devices capable of playing games, be that consoles or mobiles. So you could also say the things we use to play our games make iaps possible. The internet plays a part in allowing them to be there but I don't think the internet is the cause or the main factor in why they are possible. It's a mixture of lots of things.
I think you might be missing what I'm saying. IAP would not be possible without the Internet. How would you propose a developer receive the money from an In-App Purchase? Through the mail? Via pigeon with an envelope attached to its foot?
In the old days couldn't you call up a Nintendo hotline for help, tips, and cheats? And those in-person calls would cost per minute?
I think you'll find that IAP which are woven into the framework of how the game operates and into the fabric of how someone gets paid is a far different scenario than getting help with a game by reading Nintendo Power.
No I get all that. I'm only saying that the Internet allows a company or developer to keep one hand in your pocket. It's not like the old days where you'd go to Toys 'R' Us, buy the game and that was it, with the experience being just you and what you bought. Everyone feels sorry for developers, but trust me, the iOS environment is PERFECT for them. Even if their games are sold for a small price they are always connected to you, with the potential to get more money via IAP from you at any time. That is why every Tom, Dick and Harry is on here making a game.
