I’ve always been a fan of PlayStation Plus. I don’t always love the free games on offer, but I love that they are on offer. I think the program allows a lot of people to experience a lot of games they might not have otherwise. I mean, sure, PlayStation Plus (and Xbox Live) are systems that put online play behind a paywall, but I like that games are offered in addition. I know many folks out there who have to budget for games, and sometimes those freebies are more than welcome additions to their libraries. It’s a great convenience to be able to add something to your library without even having to download it at that time.

I like it even more when the free games on offer are co-op.

Last month when Killing Floor 2 was available, I jumped at the chance to play it. I wound up having far more fun with it than I thought I would, and I still find myself driven to play it.

Every Tuesday, I look at the PlayStation Store to see what new games have been covertly released. I also look at the sales. Today, when I booted up the store, I noticed there was a limited time event for Killing Floor 2 called The Summer Sideshow. Now, I am a super sucker for anything carnival or amusement park themed, and this looks right up my (sideshow) alley. I also saw there were microtransactions for cosmetic items.

I almost bought a couple through the store interface, but stopped myself. I don’t like to buy into microtransactions in a lot of situations. That being said, I’ve certainly done it before (e.g.: Destiny, Overwatch), and almost immediately felt bad about it.

But.

The one situation where I feel far less weird about throwing money at a game is when that game was free. Or, at least, free to me.

When Pokemon Go released, I didn’t have a phone that could play it. Less than a month later I had to replace my very broken phone and wound up with a phone that could play it. I spent so much time with it and had so much joy from the experience, I didn’t feel bad spending $20 in-game to support the developers and their continued support of the title.

Since Killing Floor 2 was free (to me), and I’ve been having a lot of fun with it, I realized I wouldn’t mind supporting the developers by throwing a little money their way, even if it was for some purely cosmetic items. I do think it’s important to support a game, particularly when it is free and receives continued support (such as The Summer Sideshow event).

I suppose the line for me (even when I occasionally cross it) is if a game is free and I enjoy it, I am glad to support the developer behind it. When it is a game I’ve already paid full price for, those microtransactions tend to sting a little more.

How do you feel about this subject? Are you anti-microtransaction? Or do you like supporting developers of free (to you) games you enjoy?

Microtransactions aside, I’m looking forward to the Sideshow event! I plan to spend some quality time with it as soon as possible.