in-game purchases
Virtual item sales
In-game purchases are transactions made within a video game to buy virtual items, currency, or features with real money.
These include cosmetic items like character skins, gameplay advantages, or additional content.
Also called microtransactions, they're a primary revenue model for free-to-play games: The game is free but makes millions from in-game purchases.
- microtransactionsSmall payments within software
- loot boxesPaid random virtual rewards
- skinsOuter animal coverings
- DLCSupplemental game content
- special editionEnhanced variant with extras
starter pack · coins · gems · pay-to-win · cosmetics · battle pass · freemium · gacha · virtual currency · unlockables · store · wallet · paywall · premium · credits · bundles · grinding · whales
- gaming regulationage ratings, ESRB, parental controls, age restrictions, content filtering
- game ratingsE, T, M, RP, age gate
in-game purchasesone-time purchase
Single payment acquisition
base price · premium pricing · subscription model · complete edition · shareware
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