Bethesda is adding another gameplay micro-transaction to Fallout 76 as part of its latest Atomic Shop update. The update has added a new utility item dubbed the scrap kit. The item will allow players to consume a scrap kit to eliminate junk items in their inventory and deliver it immediately to their Stash.
A single scrap kit will cost 50 Atoms (around € 0.50) but can be purchased in six and fifteen stacks with a discount of 10% and 50% respectively.
Fallout 76 introduced microtransactions that alter the game in April, beginning with the addition of the repair kit. A repair kit, as the name suggests, would repair the condition of every single object to 100 %. These kits could be purchased for real money in a similar way to how scrap kits are purchased.
The introduction of repair kits has caused considerable controversy. For the players, Bethesda has not kept its promises and, with the addition of microtransactions, is ruining the game economy and gameplay. Initially, the community guru of Bethesda had explicitly said that “the Atomic shop will be exclusively cosmetic stuff”.
The Scrap Kit, like the repair kit, makes users feel obliged to buy them. The reason? In Fallout 76 having to repair items or scrap the inventory from the inventory is frustrating. The design of the game has ensured that these actions are very slow and monotonous. Taking time away from the most fun gameplay to repair and discard materials.
The microtransactions that influence gameplay have been highly controversial for over a decade. Many publishers and developers have recognized, as also mentioned by Pete Hines, that there is a dividing line between cosmetic microtransactions and gambling transactions. It is not uncommon for games to choose to cross that line, but it is certainly rare to recognize that line and in any case, to cross it.
Nevertheless, both the repair kits and the scrap kits are now available in Fallout 76 and no further statements have been released regarding Bethesda’s choice to continue with this policy. What do you think of micro-transactions? Are you in favor or against this practice in a video game?
We recall that Fallout 76 is currently available on PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
