What If You Could Tip Games After Playing Them

Would you tip the makers of a great video game? Normally, of course, games are a one time purchase, and AAA games these days cost at least $60. That's a pretty steep price already, but some games make you feel like you owe the developers a little tip, don't they?

This is the view of Blizzard president Mike Ybarra, who recently shared his tipping idea on 𝕏.

I've thought about this idea for a while, as a player, since I've been diving into single player games lately. When I beat a game, there are some that just leave me in awe of how amazing the experience was. At the end of the game, I've often thought "I wish I could give these...

— Mike Ybarra (@Qwik) April 11, 2024

Should We Give Excellent Games A Tip?

While premium games are becoming more and more expensive, many forget that the experience of playing premium games is also becoming richer, more immersive and more memorable. The more possibilities technological progress brings us, the better experiences can be offered to the player.

At least from a dollar-per-hour of entertainment perspective, it makes sense to spend $60 on a game that can keep you occupied for over 40 hours.

With the release of stunning single-player adventures such as Horizon Zero Dawn, God of War and Red Dead Redemption 2, the idea of voluntarily contributing more after completing a game is becoming increasingly popular. As Ybarra said, many might be opposed to this idea at first, but in the end, a tipping function for games wouldn't do anyone any harm. In fact, there could be several benefits rising from it.

Benefits Of Tipping Games

Firstly, tipping allows players to express their appreciation for outstanding game development, encouraging developers to continue creating high-quality content.

Secondly, tipping provides developers with additional revenue beyond the initial purchase price, which can be especially beneficial for indie developers or smaller studios. Tipping is already a common thing among indie studios and aspiring game developers. Indie platforms such as Itch.io always offer you the opportunity to give the developer of a game a small tip as recognition of their work, since those games tend to be very cheap or even free to begin with.

Lastly, the tipping idea could also incentivize developers to provide ongoing updates, expansions, or additional content for their games to keep players engaged.

Now we want to know YOUR opinion! Are there any games that you would like to give a tip to? Well for me, it would 100% be Red Dead Redemption 2! Let us know in the comments what you think.