Fashionistas spend $2,000 on a Prada handbag. Gamers spend $20 on an imaginary tractor or avatar or sword. It’s the same, Ries says, except “the virtual objects are all tied to the specific environment in which they were developed.” A sword purchased in the game World of Warcraft can’t be taken into the real world, or into other games.
While I understand the spirit of that statement, there’s also this stuff:
- You don’t own anything online, really.
- Zynga can take away everything you have in a second.
- Prada’s advertising ends when you buy the purse, where as you are the product in Zynga world.
- $2,000 is a ton more than $20.
But hey, it’s working for now, right?