HB going to microtransactions

[Maddhatter]

Is HB moving toward a microtransaction sales model?

I admit that we got a lot for the small amount of money we paid for the product, but it seems that those days are coming to an end. Most of the profiles/bots/plugins that I use have already moved to being paid. I have nothing against people wanting to get paid for their hard work, but most of the prices are a little outrageous. I've seen prices as high as $150 for profiles. Honorbuddy is selling for what, 30? Most of the addons for Honorbuddy are more expensive than the product itself. People can charge whatever they want, but I think a lot of people are trying to turn profile writing into a job that can support them.

I'm just curious about the direction of Honorbuddy. Blizzard has been trying to take it down for a long time, in the end we may destroy ourselves. If we continue down this path then botting will require hundreds and possibly thousands of dollars to do. Only people with a lot of money or the ability to write their own profiles/bots/plugins will be able to bot. Everyone else will be forced to use the standard bots and profiles. The more people that use a specific profile/bot/plugin the more likely they are to get banned since several people performing the exact same repetitive actions tends to stand out.

If people were asking $2-5 for their profiles/bots/plugins or maybe as high as $30 for advanced ones with good support I don't think it would be a big deal, but the prices I've seen are astronomical. They are more expensive than professionally developed and fully supported games and applications.

 

[namednoob]

I admit that we got a lot for the small amount of money we paid for the product, but it seems that those days are coming to an end. Most of the profiles/bots/plugins that I use have already moved to being paid. I have nothing against people wanting to get paid for their hard work, but most of the prices are a little outrageous. I've seen prices as high as $150 for profiles. Honorbuddy is selling for what, 30? Most of the addons for Honorbuddy are more expensive than the product itself. People can charge whatever they want, but I think a lot of people are trying to turn profile writing into a job that can support them.

Because most of the buyers are high-end pro botters with hundreds of thousands of accounts and to them paying a one time 150$ is nothing if that brings them 10 or 100 x the profit...

Or just people that want a head first of something which at the time horde had no leveling profiles.

I'm just curious about the direction of Honorbuddy. Blizzard has been trying to take it down for a long time, in the end we may destroy ourselves. If we continue down this path then botting will require hundreds and possibly thousands of dollars to do. Only people with a lot of money or the ability to write their own profiles/bots/plugins will be able to bot. Everyone else will be forced to use the standard bots and profiles. The more people that use a specific profile/bot/plugin the more likely they are to get banned since several people performing the exact same repetitive actions tends to stand out.

That is highly incorrect, you're not forced to anything, even a person with no programming knowledge can get things done grinding, questing, profession profiles which is what makes the most profit can be made by anyone that would take the time to understand how the XML's are built. There is even free plugins to create them for you.

Botbase, combat routines and plugins might be out of the league for beginners to create, but in the end it all comes down to making profit if you can't make a profit with the bot or if that is not your goal with the bot, you will never see any of the buddy store paid products as worth of their price, they are mainly targeted at people who can make a living out of it, except for a very few of it which is target to the mass.

If people were asking $2-5 for their profiles/bots/plugins or maybe as high as $30 for advanced ones with good support I don't think it would be a big deal, but the prices I've seen are astronomical. They are more expensive than professionally developed and fully supported games and applications.

Some prices stand to its own due to uniqueness for example the profile you mentioned for 150 if I am not mistaken was the leveling profile which at the time was the only horde profile for leveling, is it expensive yes it is/was and on top of that the product was not even complete it was I think at the time up to lvl 94 or 96 when he placed it at the store.

And its very likely that only those who were desperate to have an automated way to level up their horde toon paid for it, and guess what after a few days kick made his horde profile up to level 100 which means you had not to pay 150$ bucks unless you actually want to have horde toons to 100 at the very begin of the expansion

I think what you're point here are rather invalid, most of the paid combat routine developers also offer a free version to the community and you can nearly find anything that is paid in a free version or even make it yourself.

UPDATE:

Further in addition to your last point, take for example Tuan or Millz they have several products and tuan for instance is always implementing, fixing and doing things to it to keep its combat routine as close to a pro player would, I've talked to him on skype several times either to request a feature or to fix something is he always get back to me. Millz is always there to answer his threads and open to request as well.

I honestly don't see where is your point here, you're mainly targeting a single profile which there is already free profile that is just as great or better.

 

[Maddhatter]

I honestly don't see where is your point here, you're mainly targeting a single profile which there is already free profile that is just as great or better.

I thought I was quite clear. You seem to be fixated on the $150 profile, I'm not fixated on that. I was just using it as an example.

I've noticed a trend that more and more profiles/bots/plugins are going to paid only or paid versions with more features. There used to only be a handful of paid addons for HB, but there are quite a few now and more that are planning to go paid once they are finished testing them. I'm not saying that you can't use HB right now without paying. I thought I was clear that this was a future concern about the direction of HB. There are a lot of addons that are free right now.

That is highly incorrect, you're not forced to anything, even a person with no programming knowledge can get things done grinding, questing, profession profiles which is what makes the most profit can be made by anyone that would take the time to understand how the XML's are built. There is even free plugins to create them for you.

Let me break down that paragraph for you into simpler terms: Honorbuddy may get expensive. If you can't afford it or you are not able to write your own stuff then you will be forced to use the standard free stuff.

If you are just arguing for the sake of arguing then stop trolling.

 

[frosticus]

you will be forced to use the standard free stuff.

you actually get a better bot for the base price than the bot offered a year ago. many improvements have been added to the base software for a one time price. we get constant support and an active forum full of helpful people, also free. The buddy store is optional. im not sure how people cant see that.

 

[Maddhatter]

you actually get a better bot for the base price than the bot offered a year ago. many improvements have been added to the base software for a one time price. we get constant support and an active forum full of helpful people, also free. The buddy store is optional. im not sure how people cant see that.

I agree completely, the bot is a lot better now than when I initially bought it. Bossland has done an amazing job of improving upon it. I feel I've definitely gotten my money out of it.

The buddy store is and will likely always be optional. My concern is that if most of the addons that were previously free move to paid versions then more people will be using just the base product and profiles. For example, I feel it is idiotic right now to run BGBuddy. I don't think it is a bad product, quite the contrary, BGBuddy is quite an amazing bot. The reason I don't use BGBuddy is because so many people do. If I were the only person running it in a battleground it is unlikely anyone would notice, but when there is more than one person we start to stand out.

I'm not complaining about people wanting money for their profiles or about Honorbuddy. I'm just concerned that a lot of the releases I've seen lately are paid or are planned to go paid. I think that free community addons/profiles may become a thing of the past. If that is the case then the pricing of those community items seems a bit high.

 

[Giwin]

Forces people to learn to help themselves, This is one of the reasons why I learn't how to code a plugin to do the job I wanted it to do because there was no plugin available to me (and I wouldn't have paid).

I do think that more guides and update on the documentation in the .cs file for examples etc so that people have the choice of making their own profiles and learning how from the guides.

 

[Opply]

Why is it so hard to understand? Bossland provides a programmable API for WoW with a few done bots included with it. That is what you pay for when buy Honorbuddy..

When another private person dedicates alot of skill and time to create something using that API, it does not mean he works for Bossland.. He invests of his own time to use his skills and know-how to create something. And if he then chooses he wants some form of compensation for others to use what he created, that is his right... If you don't like it, don't buy the product. If you object to the way it's being done, be a good example.. Create something youself and give it away for free? If you buy something off the buddyauth store and it is crap, you got a 7 days moneyback guarantee.. That is all Bossland can do, before the store, things were sold for real money, it just wasn't as obvious (3rd party sites etc).

This forum have gotten full of people that is too lazy/stupid to learn how to code or even making simple profiles for grindbot/gatherbuddy, and then bitch over and over that people don't give them shit for free... Learning how to code takes time, and even when knowing how to do this, it takes alot of time to create a product that is wourth while. And when you publish it, shittons of people expect free support and act all entitled and bitchy if there is some bugs there...

FOR ALL OF YOU WHO DON'T LIKE 3RD PARTY DEVELOPERS CHARGING FOR THEIR PRODUCTS: Invest the time, learn how to create the products and publish them for free... Long, long, long before you are close of having something working, you will understand why people want a few coins for the time invested...

 

[Maddhatter]

Forces people to learn to help themselves, This is one of the reasons why I learn't how to code a plugin to do the job I wanted it to do because there was no plugin available to me (and I wouldn't have paid).

I do think that more guides and update on the documentation in the .cs file for examples etc so that people have the choice of making their own profiles and learning how from the guides.

True, when there was a limited selection of gathering profiles I learned to create my own. It was really easy once you figured it out, and the hotspot profiles are pretty much the same across several bots. I haven't looked into what it would take to write anything beyond and xml profile though. If it got to the point I had to go beyond xml if and or conditional type stuff then I don't think I personally would bother.

 

[namednoob]

You seem to be fixated on the $150 profile, I'm not fixated on that. I was just using it as an example.

Given that was the only thing you could actually point out as an example sure.

Let me break down that paragraph for you into simpler terms: Honorbuddy may get expensive. If you can't afford it or you are not able to write your own stuff then you will be forced to use the standard free stuff.

Let me break that down for you, there is no I can't do it. There are those who take the time to learn and those who don't care to learn and want it done and done now without having to pay for it which was never included with HB in first place but hte staff offers you many for free.

 

[mishrathium]

Without Honorbuddy there is no warcraft for us. May they make money and last as long as wow does.

 

[facedark]

Because most of the buyers are high-end pro botters with hundreds of thousands of accounts and to them paying a one time 150$ is nothing if that brings them 10 or 100 x the profit...

You show or tell me who runs hundreds of thousands of accounts, even if its per year. Please!

 

[namednoob]

You show or tell me who runs hundreds of thousands of accounts, even if its per year. Please!

That's an assumption, would you buy something that would give you no benefits be it personal or professional? Regardless based on the fact he only listed that single product which in very few days lost its focus because of a free product that came in, which have a better or equal quality, makes you wonder who would buy it to get ahead of others in that short period.

In the end the only reason I see why he made this thread was made clear here:

BGBuddy

 

[dmac21]

So OP is mad people are looking for additional income/ a job lmao..? if not than what the hell are you talking about, anyways if every profile was free you would have higher ban rates via over population.. in addition there's tons of free profiles out there for just about anything even some CR's.

i know its already been stated but what the hell are you talking about OP? surely you were drunk or very stoned .. ah well

 

[virtual]

So much has changed with honorbuddy since it first started.

The biggest problem was the one time charge.
I don't think they thought that one through at all.

Same thing with these buddy store products, one time fees for what.
Lets say 100,000 users buy a store product for 10$ the dev makes 35k a years salary. ( after everyone else takes there share)
Lets say his product was a good one and everyone used it. But you still have the same 100k userbase.
Whats he going to do for next years salary or the year after. OR what are you going to do when he gets bored after a year and stops working on the project?
Buy it from him again when he comes back as a different user with a renamed project in the buddystore and charges everyone again?

 

[namednoob]

So much has changed with honorbuddy since it first started.

The biggest problem was the one time charge.
I don't think they thought that one through at all.

Same thing with these buddy store products, one time fees for what.
Lets say 100,000 users buy a store product for 10$ the dev makes 35k a years salary. ( after everyone else takes there share)
Lets say his product was a good one and everyone used it. But you still have the same 100k userbase.
Whats he going to do for next years salary or the year after. OR what are you going to do when he gets bored after a year and stops working on the project?
Buy it from him again when he comes back as a different user with a renamed project in the buddystore and charges everyone again?

Most developers were already using the one time pricing model before buddy store even came to life... and of course before they would retain full amount of the product, but still a one time pricing.