Dirty Bomb removing microtransactions in final update
Go out with a bang
The final update of Dirty Bomb is almost here, the last before Splash Damage end development, and it's coming with a surprise: all the monetisation is being removed. Players will be able to get all characters, weapon skins, and rare doodads without spending a real penny. Splash Damage plan to keep Dirty Bomb servers up until at least the end of 2019, and it does tend to have a couple of hundred players online at any given moment, so it's still not too late to try their fourth version of the Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory formula.
Removing microtransactions isn't the same as removing unlocking and giving everyone everything, mind. Players will still need to unlock stuff with the virtuacash earned by playing, though Splash Damage are also more than doubling the base rate for earning these 'Credits'.
Following Splash Damage's announcement in October that they would end development after one more update, "as we sat down to discuss what fixes we would make, the contents of that build changed," the developers said today.
"Instead, we wanted to turn this update into a celebration of Dirty Bomb, allowing players old and new to experience everything, without a cost. We've been working to remove all monetisation from Dirty Bomb, and also have thrown in a few extra treats as a thank you to all of our players for supporting the title over the years."
They're removing the 'RADs' microtransaction currency, converting any that players own to regular Credits. Many of the old and event items not currently available will return. And increased Credit drops should help folks get the neat-o things they want.
The update is due next Tuesday, January 15th. Splash Damage also note that players who bought the 'Merc Pack' DLC to unlock all characters will get refunds direct to their Steam Wallet by January 31st. After that, well, who knows?
"Dedicated servers will be running in active regions until the end of 2019," Splash Damage say. "Beyond that, no decision has been made so far."
Disclosure: I've known some Splash Damage folks but the ones involved in particularly embarrassing anecdotes have all left so you get this plain ol' disclosure notice. Sorry.