To be fair, I don’t think anyone who buys avatar clothing or props on the new avatar marketplace is a fool. I’m sure before it’s all said and done I’ll have bought a giant Q-tip or something. I do, however, predictably have a problem with the price point. To fully garb your avatar in Jedi gear with lightsaber you’ll be dropping 10 bucks. Want the clone armor and a lightsaber? That’s 12 bucks, the helmet is a separate purchase.
One item at a time, Avatar Dude.
Apparently Microsoft hasn’t been told that there’s a recession ’round these here parts.
I’d been avoiding the new avatar marketplace since its inception, partly because I had vowed not to drop my hard-earned space bucks on virtual goods, and partly because I know what a sucker I am for impulse buys. But a tip from the latest X3F Fancast got me curious. Dustin Burg reported that there was a Halo ring to be purchased. A ring celebrating the deadly laser. A red ring celebrating the death weapon. A… Red Ring of Death! Microsoft is hawking RRODs for 40 MS points and most likely doesn’t even realize it.
One digit short of a sale.
It was a stretch, but the irony was delicious and I was intrigued. Unfortunately, while the ring is bargain priced at 50 cents, even a 40-inch HD screen isn’t enough to appreciate all the detail and splendor that Microsoft most assuredly packed into those pixels.
But now Pandora’s box had been opened and the avatar marketplace was laid open before me. For those that haven’t checked it out yet, the marketplace is extremely user-friendly, showcasing clothing from various games and sponsors.
You gotta rock the wife-beater to pimp the Big Daddy.
But it wasn’t time for clothes, it was all about the props. After all the talk on podcasts and game sites it was time to settle a standoff in my mind: Giant Q-tip or Lightsaber? I had seen screenshots of both in action, but stills couldn’t convey the quirky comedic animations that accompany the props. The RC Halo Warthog, for example, has your avatar dancing over the mini-hog as it spins in circles. I hesitate to use the word “cute” with positive connotations, but…
Initially the clear winner seemed to be the Q-tip. First he prods at the screen with it in a semi-suggestive manner before finishing up with a Bruce Lee-esque defensive pose with the earwax wrangler at the ready. The lightsaber animations are just a couple of flourishes and a force-push, but in the end I just couldn’t get over how gosh-darn happy my little guy looks firing up that Jedi pig-sticker.
Deja vu.
I was briefly tempted to drop a paltry 80 MS points on a Yoda T-shirt, until I noticed it was also listed in the “Most Popular” section. That just won’t do. If the Most Popular listings are to be trusted, it seems we shall shortly be seeing a steady influx of Sam Fishers, Clone Troopers and UNSC Marines.
Great post! I bet you put a lot of research into it.
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