You know what I liked about Dragon Age?

[MetaMop]

The money system! It was a system that made sense.
Have you ever thought about logic when you're playing an rpg and spend 10,000 gold coins on a sword? Do you know how much gold weighs? Can you imagine carrying sacks of the stuff around?
Can you imagine having to count out 10,000 individual pieces of gold for your sword? It would be like if you decided to start buying everything you wanted or needed with very heavy pennies!
It was just a small detail they added to Dragon Age that I respect. You get -

- Bronze = pennies/cents
- Silver = pounds/dollars
- Gold = one hundred silvers

It makes sense, that's all I'm saying. Why can't more games come up with a system that makes sense?

 

[Jim Grim]

I never played Dragon Age, but that system sounds similar, if not identical to World of Warcraft's.

 

[freedomweasel]

Other games have that system as well. I mostly liked that for the most part the money actually had value, as in, it wasn't all over the place. When the homeless dude asked for some gold pieces, it was actually kind of a big deal, as I needed that gold to buy stuff. It seems like in most games I'm always swimming in cash, spending it without a thought.

 

[SonicWaffle]

- Bronze = pennies/cents
- Silver = pounds/dollars
- Gold = one hundred silvers

It makes sense, that's all I'm saying. Why can't more games come up with a system that makes sense?

That's not exactly the best example when inventory is handled much the same as any other RPG.

My problem with money in games is with stuff like GTAIV or The Godfather 2 - the game keeps giving you money as a reward a long, long time after you have anything to spend it on. It utterly destroys much of a character's motivation - take Niko Bellic, who started out doing odd jobs for quick cash and by the end has a million dollars in his pocket, yet still takes random odd jobs to make a few more bucks. He never spends it on anything, he never does anything other than the aforementioned jobs and occasionally going for a beer, but the game keeps throwing cash at you anyway. After a point it just becomes a way of keeping score. At least in RPG games like Dragon Age there is high-end and useful stuff that makes farming money and looting corpses worthwhile.

 

[Canid117]

I enjoyed the infinite Money glitch in the Tavern at Redcliff.

 

[MetaMop]

It's just something that bothers me for some reason. Try carrying 40,000 pieces of gold and see how far you can walk. Or do these fantasy worlds have banks and credit cards?

 

[SonicWaffle]

Other games have that system as well. I mostly liked that for the most part the money actually had value, as in, it wasn't all over the place. When the homeless dude asked for some gold pieces, it was actually kind of a big deal, as I needed that gold to buy stuff. It seems like in most games I'm always swimming in cash, spending it without a thought.

Which made it more annoying when I, playing as a good guy, kept giving money to the beggars in the Alienage. Yeah, they were funny, but after a while they started to repeat themselves and I thought "What? I've just spent half my cash on you for no real reward other than a couple of amusing lines? Bollocks"

 

[Akihiko]

Well. If I'm honest when it comes to Japan. Their prices are similar. A video game is like 8,000 yen. Consequently it isn't odd that they would use that kind of pricing in their games as well.

Also other games have used Bronze, Silver and Gold. World of Warcraft uses it too if I recall correctly. Guild wars used miltiple levels of currency too.

 

[Celtic_Kerr]

The money system! It was a system that made sense.
Have you ever thought about logic when you're playing an rpg and spend 10,000 gold coins on a sword? Do you know how much gold weighs? Can you imagine carrying sacks of the stuff around?
Can you imagine having to count out 10,000 individual pieces of gold for your sword? It would be like if you decided to start buying everything you wanted or needed with very heavy pennies!
It was just a small detail they added to Dragon Age that I respect. You get -

- Bronze = pennies/cents
- Silver = pounds/dollars
- Gold = one hundred silvers

It makes sense, that's all I'm saying. Why can't more games come up with a system that makes sense?

Alrihtnow, think of it this way I kill 1,000,000 Dark spawn, each one gives me 14 bronze. Now TECHNICALLY I have 1400 Gold. But I got all that gold in little bronze chunks right? Technically my $100 sword now has me countint out a million pennies... THat's the "realistic" look at it, because your bronze doens't amgically turn into silver when you collect 100 of them

 

[MetaMop]

- Bronze = pennies/cents
- Silver = pounds/dollars
- Gold = one hundred silvers

It makes sense, that's all I'm saying. Why can't more games come up with a system that makes sense?

That's not exactly the best example when inventory is handled much the same as any other RPG.

My problem with money in games is with stuff like GTAIV or The Godfather 2 - the game keeps giving you money as a reward a long, long time after you have anything to spend it on. It utterly destroys much of a character's motivation - take Niko Bellic, who started out doing odd jobs for quick cash and by the end has a million dollars in his pocket, yet still takes random odd jobs to make a few more bucks. He never spends it on anything, he never does anything other than the aforementioned jobs and occasionally going for a beer, but the game keeps throwing cash at you anyway. After a point it just becomes a way of keeping score. At least in RPG games like Dragon Age there is high-end and useful stuff that makes farming money and looting corpses worthwhile.

Yeah, that annoyed me as well. Niko acting like he was destitute while he has 700k literally in his pocket. "I don't know if I should do that deal, Kate." He says. Screw you, Niko!
I could live the rest of my life in luxury on a fraction of the money I got in GTA4.

 

[SnootyEnglishman]

I agree, it was easy to keep track of the amount of money i had at times and i was able to manage how much i need spend on armor, weapons and health items.

 

[Casimir_Effect]

I remember Spellforce did the same thing many years ago, they dropped it for the sequel though and just went with 'Gold'.

To be honest I prefer the single currency denomination method. Means I can ***** and whinge when games screw you over inventory space (Dragon Age, Diablo, Borderlands, The Witcher) yet allow you to carry hundreds of thousands of gold pieces. Inventory space and carry limits should be confined to the past or at least made optional, like having to identify items should be (and possibly has been). It's annoying and promotes micro-management in games which don't need it. The only people who enjoy that shit are the realism freaks, and they can mod it in for all I care.

 

[punkrocker27]

I think WoW beat 'em to it actually.

 

[MetaMop]

Well. If I'm honest when it comes to Japan. Their prices are similar. A video game is like 8,000 yen. Consequently it isn't odd that they would use that kind of pricing in their games as well.

Also other games have used Bronze, Silver and Gold. World of Warcraft uses it too if I recall correctly. Guild wars used miltiple levels of currency too.

Sorry if I sound ignorant here, but do you only have yen in Japan? Is there a hierarchy of value or is it just yen?

 

[KEM10]

Other games have that system as well. I mostly liked that for the most part the money actually had value, as in, it wasn't all over the place. When the homeless dude asked for some gold pieces, it was actually kind of a big deal, as I needed that gold to buy stuff. It seems like in most games I'm always swimming in cash, spending it without a thought.

Which made it more annoying when I, playing as a good guy, kept giving money to the beggars in the Alienage. Yeah, they were funny, but after a while they started to repeat themselves and I thought "What? I've just spent half my cash on you for no real reward other than a couple of amusing lines? Bollocks"

I loved that part. I had multiple saves running just to see it through and when to end it and their reactions when I did. It was great.

 

[BeeRye]

It's just something that bothers me for some reason. Try carrying 40,000 pieces of gold and see how far you can walk. Or do these fantasy worlds have banks and credit cards?

What you forget is that when you get 100 copper the came automatically converts it into one silver without any mention of how this is done. So try hundreds of thousands of copper coins and see how far you get.

 

[MetaMop]

What you forget is that when you get 100 copper the came automatically converts it into one silver without any mention of how this is done. So try hundreds of thousands of copper coins and see how far you get.

Point taken. But I stand by my frivilous trivial opinion!