this post was submitted on 20 Nov 2025
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No different than buying a game if they get the same amount of playtime.
I think it's a little different. With new games comes novelty. Sticking with a single game and just buying cosmetics doesn't provide nearly as much novelty.
I don't think this is a children only issue either. Its a trap adults fall into as well.
And why does this "novelty" matter if what they spent money on got them the same amount of fun?
Not sure why novelty is in quotes, it's a quantifiable measurement based on differences. Anyway, novelty has shown to have a wide range of mental benefits. This is a pretty good overview, and if you want to dig into specific papers they're listed as well.
Even if you want to ignore any potential benefits of novelty, generally when you have a new experience for the first time, you will have more fun that you typically do. The downside is some new experiences may not be fun, but that's very low risk in the context of gaming.
Currencies often unlock completely new content and the fact that you might not like a new game could cancel out the potential to have a slightly better time. Ultimately, how you spend gaming money is up to you.
I would say the vast majority of micro transactions are cosmetic or time unlocking. Not adding much novelty.
Also the context of this post is about gifting kids on Christmas, so no, not necessarily "up to you". I guess there's an argument to just give kids whatever they want, but I don't think think that leads to the best development outcomes. You can't force kids to do anything either, but there does exist a middle ground.