Please Consider Other Super Science Power Ideas!
By
AcceleratorRay,
Posted on: 2009-07-01 14:10 in The Global Training Room Test Server
I am one of MANY who think the current Science Booster / Tailor Option is a great idea. The boosters are extras. If you don't like it, don't buy it. Complain, complain.... sheesh !
**Damien**
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." ~Dr. Seuss.
"Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car. "
[ QUOTE ]
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
[/ QUOTE ]
-reads your fortune, then selfdestructs-
The flaw in your argument is that you appear to define "built into the game" as "things that don't cost extra". They don't charge extra for things "built into the game" --> they don't charge extra for things they don't charge extra for --> circular logic.
Most games charge monthly fee only or up-front only. A few money-grubbers, the most expensive MMOs, charge monthly and for major expansions. CoH is somewhat unique in charging monthly (an industry topping $15/month) and for major expansions and for minor expansions too. I know major vs. minor is subjective, but it feels like double dipping to me. Part of the reason I'm not buying it--when customers start feeling like a product is worth less than its price, either because the value goes down (Issue 15 lol) or the price goes up ($10 for the long-desired height slider... and not much else), they can change their minds like that.
[ QUOTE ]
A few money-grubbers, the most expensive MMOs, charge monthly and for major expansions.
[/ QUOTE ]Pretty much any successful MMO that's been around for more than a year or two puts out at least one expansion. Everquest, Everquest II, FFXI, WoW, Star Wars Galaxies, LotRO...the list could go on. And on. And on.
[ QUOTE ]
(an industry topping $15/month)
[/ QUOTE ]You say that like $15 a month is uncommon. That's the price most MMOs are set at.
[ QUOTE ]
and for major expansions
[/ QUOTE ]You mean the one paid expansion we've had, that is now part of the game as a whole? CoV was once completely optional, as will be Going Rogue. If you don't want to pay for it, you don't have to.
[ QUOTE ]
and for minor expansions too.
[/ QUOTE ]...that are, once again, completely optional.
So we will soon have a completely optional major expansion, and a few completely optional minor expansions, with fees that are pretty much the same as other competiton, many of which have mandatory paid expansions.
And you also seem to have forgotten the 15, soon to be 16 minor expansions that are completely and 100% free to everyone (that subscribes to the game).
I'd say we're doing pretty well.
[ QUOTE ]
Pretty much any successful MMO that's been around for more than a year or two puts out at least one expansion. Everquest, Everquest II, FFXI, WoW, Star Wars Galaxies, LotRO...the list could go on. And on. And on.
[/ QUOTE ]
Your definition of "successful" is suspicious. And looks a bit circular. If what you're saying is that some MMOs can get away with double dipping, that's true, but it doesn't change the fact that they've double dipped.
[ QUOTE ]
month is uncommon. That's the price most MMOs are set at.
[/ QUOTE ]
The price of most MMO monthly subscriptions is $0. I doubt more than ten to twenty, including all of NCSoft's, are $15.
[ QUOTE ]
CoV was once completely optional, as will be Going Rogue.
[/ QUOTE ]
I don't see your point. First, and most obvious, all expansions to all MMOs are optional. Subscriptions are optional too; we can cancel any month. None of that alters the fact whether expansions+subscriptions is double dipping or not.
Second, the "optional" defense is one of my pet peeves for how truthy-sounding yet utterly false it is. Basically, the "optional" defense goes like this: the devs can do no wrong because the whole game is optional. We can love each and every thing the devs do, or we can cancel our subscriptions and give you our stuff. How convenient for the devs' forum supporters, eh?
[ QUOTE ]
Your definition of "successful" is suspicious. And looks a bit circular.
[/ QUOTE ]
Some items on that list have been around for about as long as CoX and are still going wrong. Hell, WoW is the posterboy for successful MMOs.
[ QUOTE ]
The price of most MMO monthly subscriptions is $0. I doubt more than ten to twenty, including all of NCSoft's, are $15.
[/ QUOTE ]
On that same note, most MMOs are generic grindfests from Korea. Quality has a price attached.
[ QUOTE ]
I don't see your point. First, and most obvious, all expansions to all MMOs are optional. So that can't alter the fact whether an expansion is double dipping or not.
Second, the "optional" defense is one of my pet peeves for how truthy-sounding yet utterly false it is. Basically, the "optional" defense goes like this: the devs can do no wrong because the whole game is optional. We can love each and every thing the devs do, or we can cancel our subscriptions and give you our stuff. How convenient for the devs' forum supporters, eh?
[/ QUOTE ]
We have two kinds of optional stuff you can buy right now. First are the full expansions, the first of which you get for FREE now, and one that has yet to be released. It's something big-names like WoW and FFXI do, too. These expansions are, as the name suggests, expansive. Of course they'll cost many. Next you'll complain that DLC for most games is not free, either.
The other optional stuff are the Booster packs, which are, frankly, neglectable. Wow, self-destruction and tarot-reading. That sure changes everyone's game. They're accessories, at best. But hey, you know what? Even accessories cost money after you bought the rest of the outfit. Funny how this works out, no?
[ QUOTE ]
We have two kinds of optional stuff you can buy right now. First are the full expansions, the first of which you get for FREE now
[/ QUOTE ]
Doesn't mean I get my money back, does it? Double dip.
[ QUOTE ]
Next you'll complain that DLC for most games is not free, either.
[/ QUOTE ]
Double dip. The fact that you predicted my opinion doesn't make it wrong, it just makes it consistent. 
[ QUOTE ]
The other optional stuff are the Booster packs, which are, frankly, neglectable. Wow, self-destruction and tarot-reading.
[/ QUOTE ]
You've completely missed the booster pack and the feature that are the topic of this thread. Height slider and model changing are not nearly as neglectable as the more convenient examples you've chosen.
[ QUOTE ]
Height slider and model changing are not nearly as neglectable as the more convenient examples you've chosen.
[/ QUOTE ]They're even *more* trivial. Making your guy character into a girl isn't going to make you hit harder. Making yourself 8 feet tall isn't going to make you more powerful. It's completely, 100% cosmetic and fluff.
[ QUOTE ]
Most games charge monthly fee only or up-front only. A few money-grubbers, the most expensive MMOs, charge monthly and for major expansions. CoH is somewhat unique in charging monthly (an industry topping $15/month) and for major expansions and for minor expansions too.
[/ QUOTE ]
"Industry topping" is not an accurate statement. For only one example: FF-XI charges $14.95 / month plus $1 / month per character slot, sells a major expansion about every 18 months, and is just getting into selling minor expansions for $10 and some weird real+virtual item specials. It's still going strong after more than 7 years with a worldwide player base of over 2 million... at least an order of magnitude more than CoH.
Also, every MMORPG I'm personally familiar / involved with that even allows gender / major character appearance rewrites charges at least $10 per incident. $10 to be able to change fundamentals every 30 seconds on all your characters forever is a remarkably low price; I'd not be surprised if it's the lowest of any MMORPG of it's scale or larger.
Something else that doesn't get brought up much: when was the last time the price went up on the basic subscription to CoH? As far as I know, the answer is "never"... which means in real terms, the cost is decreasing. Just about every other regular expense I have has gone up noticeably over the last 5+ years. For a company (division) that is expected to not only hold its own, but show profit growth, the choice may well have been to either increase the base cost, or sell more add-ons.
Miuramir, Windchime, Sariel the Golden, Scarlet Antinomist...
Casino Extortion #4031: Neutral, Council+Custom [SFMA/MLMA/SLMA/FHMA/CFMA]
Bad Candy #87938: Neutral, Custom [SFMA/MLMA/SLMA/FHMA/HFMA]
CoH Helper * HijackThis
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
[/ QUOTE ]
-reads your fortune, then selfdestructs-
The flaw in your argument is that you appear to define "built into the game" as "things that don't cost extra". They don't charge extra for things "built into the game" --> they don't charge extra for things they don't charge extra for --> circular logic.
[/ QUOTE ]
You are the one trying to use some odd logic here. I clearly defined what I considered to be "built into the game" in my post, and you quoted it. Choosing a new power. Something that only happens when you level up. In other words, something happening through normal gameplay. Unless you buy your account, create your character, sign off and never log onto the character again you'll level up at some point through normal gameplay. And they don't charge us for levellinhg up, which is the point I made originally that you are trying to twist into something else. Well, I guess some of the MA Babies theoretically could stand around inside the farms, never choose a new power and still get to ding enough times to reach 50 but never train up and choose a power before deleting the character, but that's a very extreme example.
Your example is "use an optional power" then "use an optional power". Neither power is required for normal gameplay nor is it something that is built into the game the way levelling up a character and choosing a new power is.
If the game spit out 20 dollar bills people would complain that they weren't sequentially numbered. If they were sequentially numbered people would complain that they weren't random enough.
Black Pebble is my new hero.
[ QUOTE ]
You are the one trying to use some odd logic here. I clearly defined what I considered to be "built into the game" in my post, and you quoted it. Choosing a new power. Something that only happens when you level up. In other words, something happening through normal gameplay.
[/ QUOTE ]
Now "normal gameplay" sounds like "stuff they don't charge extra for." Define normal gameplay?
[ QUOTE ]
And they don't charge us for leveling up
[/ QUOTE ]
Interesting point.
What if Going Rogue raises the level cap to 60 for everyone? Would levels 51-60, available to everyone good enough to get there, be something you'd call "normal gameplay" or "built into the game"? I'd guess yes.
Now, what if Going Rogue raises the level cap to 60 but only for people who buy the expansion? Would levels 51-60, which cost extra, be something you'd call "normal gameplay" or "built into the game"? If no, remember that the only difference between these two scenarios is whether the levels cost extra.
[ QUOTE ]
Your example is "use an optional power" then "use an optional power". Neither power is required for normal gameplay nor is it something that is built into the game the way leveling up a character and choosing a new power is.
[/ QUOTE ]
Oh man, another "optional"/"required" post? Sorry, I went off on another poster for doing this last page, it's driving me nuts. Define "optional" for me, please! Keep in mind that playing this game at all is something many people would consider optional. Also keep in mind that I'm not sure what you mean by "normal gameplay".
[ QUOTE ]
No. It's not double-dipping.
The monthly fee is access to the game and it's built-in content only. That's all.
The Super Boosters are a non-essential add-on. It gets you a few extra frilly's that are nice to have, but not necessary for gameplay.
If you don't like or want what is in the Booster, don't buy it. You aren't missing out on a thing in your game experience. If it's something you want or like, buy it. It won't make your character more Uber than another character. If you want to purchase it to support the company even though it really holds no interest, you can do that as well, and your game experience isn't changed in the slightest.
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
[/ QUOTE ]It's an opinion, not fact. Your opinion is it's not double dipping, mine is that it is. At some point NCSoft decided that they wanted more than our $15 a month, thus these boosters were introduced.
Try this analogy. A movie is released on DVD, you like it and buy it. Some months or years later, the studio decides to re-release the same movie with some extra fluff in it (deleted scenes, more documentary stuff, what have you) and hope that you put down more money for this new one. You already have the movie, so if you get the new "special edition" then you're really only paying for the new fluff. It's called double dipping. Very much like what we've been seeing here.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
No. It's not double-dipping.
The monthly fee is access to the game and it's built-in content only. That's all.
The Super Boosters are a non-essential add-on. It gets you a few extra frilly's that are nice to have, but not necessary for gameplay.
If you don't like or want what is in the Booster, don't buy it. You aren't missing out on a thing in your game experience. If it's something you want or like, buy it. It won't make your character more Uber than another character. If you want to purchase it to support the company even though it really holds no interest, you can do that as well, and your game experience isn't changed in the slightest.
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
[/ QUOTE ]It's an opinion, not fact. Your opinion is it's not double dipping, mine is that it is. At some point NCSoft decided that they wanted more than our $15 a month, thus these boosters were introduced.
Try this analogy. A movie is released on DVD, you like it and buy it. Some months or years later, the studio decides to re-release the same movie with some extra fluff in it (deleted scenes, more documentary stuff, what have you) and hope that you put down more money for this new one. You already have the movie, so if you get the new "special edition" then you're really only paying for the new fluff. It's called double dipping. Very much like what we've been seeing here.
[/ QUOTE ]
The only hope of not getting anymore paid for Boosters is if no one buys them. With no decent costume pieces coming out (vines and Ulterior were TERRIBLE) the odds of no one buying them are zero.
If i16 has no new 'good' costume pieces, i will not buy another booster myself. I love the add ons, i dont mind paying for extras but when it effects what is placed in the updates i start getting peeved.
Now to add a feature that everyone has been asking for... the tailor body option... to a booster pack... very bad idea.... leaves a bad taste in my mouth....
No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded...
"The potato goes in the FRONT."
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
No. It's not double-dipping.
The monthly fee is access to the game and it's built-in content only. That's all.
The Super Boosters are a non-essential add-on. It gets you a few extra frilly's that are nice to have, but not necessary for gameplay.
If you don't like or want what is in the Booster, don't buy it. You aren't missing out on a thing in your game experience. If it's something you want or like, buy it. It won't make your character more Uber than another character. If you want to purchase it to support the company even though it really holds no interest, you can do that as well, and your game experience isn't changed in the slightest.
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
[/ QUOTE ]It's an opinion, not fact. Your opinion is it's not double dipping, mine is that it is. At some point NCSoft decided that they wanted more than our $15 a month, thus these boosters were introduced.
Try this analogy. A movie is released on DVD, you like it and buy it. Some months or years later, the studio decides to re-release the same movie with some extra fluff in it (deleted scenes, more documentary stuff, what have you) and hope that you put down more money for this new one. You already have the movie, so if you get the new "special edition" then you're really only paying for the new fluff. It's called double dipping. Very much like what we've been seeing here.
[/ QUOTE ]
Your DVD analogy fails, you bought the movie (CoX) then you have the option to buy the extras, you are not required to buy both, again.
As far as 'double-dipping' is concerned, that refers to government workers getting paid for working and pulling their government pension at the same time.
CoX is more like your phone company, you're paying for you basic phone line, if you then want Caller ID/Call Waiting/Voice Mail, that's extra.
[ QUOTE ]
Now to add a feature that everyone has been asking for... the tailor body option... to a booster pack... very bad idea.... leaves a bad taste in my mouth....
[/ QUOTE ]Sorry, it's not. It's *far* from a feature that everyone has been asking for. There are many people who won't use the feature at all.
And you know what? They won't buy the pack. That's exactly why it's in a booster. Those that want it, will buy it. Those that don't, won't.
And as for all those MMO's that don't include a monthly fee...
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>
Lineage NCSoft 9/1/98 $15.00
EverQuest II Sony 11/8/04 $14.99
City of Heroes Paragon 04/27/04 $14.99
Star Wars Galaxies LucasArts 06/23/03 $14.99
EverQuest Sony 3/16/99 $14.99
Anarchy Online Funcom 6/27/01 $14.99
World of Warcraft Blizzard 11/23/04 $14.99
BG Eu: WWII Cornered 6/4/01 $14.99
LotR Online Turbine 4/24/07 $14.99
Lineage 2 NCSoft 4/27/04 $14.99
EQ Online Sony 2/11/03 $14.99
Pirates ot Burning S. Flying La.. 1/22/08 $14.99
Vanguard Sony 1/30/07 $14.99
D&D Online Turbine 2/28/06 $14.99
Age of Conan: Funcom 5/20/08 $14.99
Spellborn Spellborn 4/23/09 $14.99
Warhammer Online Mythic En 9/18/08 $14.99
Dark Age of Camelot Mythic En 10/10/01 $14.95
EVE Online CCP Games 5/6/03 $14.95
Istaria Artifact 12/8/03 $14.95
Tale in the Desert IV eGenesis 5/27/06 $13.95
Ultima Online EA Mythic 9/30/97 $12.99
Priston Tale Priston 2001 $12.99
Asheron's Call Turbine 11/1/99 $12.95
PlanetSide Sony 5/20/03 $12.95
Final Fantasy XI Square En 10/28/03 $12.95
Ragnarok Online Gravity I 11/30/02 $12.00
</pre><hr />
Yep, I can see where you'd think that...
/endsarcasm
[ QUOTE ]
And as for all those MMO's that don't include a monthly fee...
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>
Lineage NCSoft 9/1/98 $15.00
EverQuest II Sony 11/8/04 $14.99
City of Heroes Paragon 04/27/04 $14.99
Star Wars Galaxies LucasArts 06/23/03 $14.99
EverQuest Sony 3/16/99 $14.99
Anarchy Online Funcom 6/27/01 $14.99
World of Warcraft Blizzard 11/23/04 $14.99
BG Eu: WWII Cornered 6/4/01 $14.99
LotR Online Turbine 4/24/07 $14.99
Lineage 2 NCSoft 4/27/04 $14.99
EQ Online Sony 2/11/03 $14.99
Pirates ot Burning S. Flying La.. 1/22/08 $14.99
Vanguard Sony 1/30/07 $14.99
D&D Online Turbine 2/28/06 $14.99
Age of Conan: Funcom 5/20/08 $14.99
Spellborn Spellborn 4/23/09 $14.99
Warhammer Online Mythic En 9/18/08 $14.99
Dark Age of Camelot Mythic En 10/10/01 $14.95
EVE Online CCP Games 5/6/03 $14.95
Istaria Artifact 12/8/03 $14.95
Tale in the Desert IV eGenesis 5/27/06 $13.95
Ultima Online EA Mythic 9/30/97 $12.99
Priston Tale Priston 2001 $12.99
Asheron's Call Turbine 11/1/99 $12.95
PlanetSide Sony 5/20/03 $12.95
Final Fantasy XI Square En 10/28/03 $12.95
Ragnarok Online Gravity I 11/30/02 $12.00
</pre><hr />
Yep, I can see where you'd think that...
/endsarcasm
[/ QUOTE ]
someone just got pwned
I look at it this way. The body swapping feature while new and sexy is also, at this point, somewhat buggy. Not sure it's something that SHOULD be released into the wilds of the general playerbase, as there's some potential to completely hose your character.
What I feel would be a wise move would be to release it to a smaller section of the player base, those who won't mind some of the early bugs and pain as much. Let them help kick the kinks out of it. Then, a year or so down the road, incorporate the more polished version into the costume editor (possibly with Going Rogue).
So what does that make the people who're buying the booster? Paying guinea pigs? Yeah. But so what? For a "bank busting" TEN WHOLE DOLLARS, you get early access to a neat feature.
Personally, the feature is cool enough that I'll pay for early access to it. While I'm not COMPLETELY thrilled with the direction the game is heading in, I like it enough to throw money at the devs to help boost their revenues.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
This is pretty much the entire reason for having a Test Server: It is a fairly small population, but it's expected to be large enough to actually test for stress and bugs and possiblities of corruption of player character data. Especially since my own testing of the costume bugs seem to be affecting players who are seeing the players who have made the changes, but not the player who makes the changes to their own characters.
Bringing beta testing to the Live servers seems like a really, really, really, really, really...not good idea.
| Issue 9 Fly poses | IO's and ED
| Cycling the Combat Monitor | Load Macros from a Text File |
[ QUOTE ]
"Industry topping" is not an accurate statement. For only one example: FF-XI charges $14.95 / month plus $1 / month per character slot,
[/ QUOTE ]
It's $12.95 + $1 beyond the first character slot.
Orc&Pie No.53230 There is an orc, and somehow, he got a pie. And you are hungry.
www.repeat-offenders.net
Negaduck: I see you found the crumb. I knew you'd never notice the huge flag.
Honestly, I don't mind that they're charging for the Super Tailor, but there would be two things I would prefer:
1. Leaving the Booster as is but giving everyone the height slider (even if it's locked into all used costume slots; 'adjust-one-adjust-all')... that's the one thing that should've been allowed from the start (barring standard code rants). Genderbending and stockmorphing I don't feel warrant the privy of being a mandatory must-have for everyone.
2. Giving everyone this feature in lieu of making the Booster power an on-demand build changer (no trainer needed) on a long recharge click that isn't modifiable by global recharge bonuses.
Apparently, I play "City of Shakespeare"
*Arc #95278-Gathering the Four Winds -3 step arc; challenging - 5 Ratings/3 Stars (still working out the kinks)
*Arc #177826-Lights, Camera, Scream! - 3 step arc, camp horror; try out in 1st person POV - 35 Ratings/4 Stars
I look at it this way: odds are, the height / gender change tailor wouldn't exist at all if someone hadn't convinced the bean counters at NCSoft that the booster sales would pay for the development expenses.
That's the whole point to Super Boosters. They allow the devs to use resources that their bosses would not otherwise give them to produce things that would not otherwise be considered worth it to add. (Worth it in a business sense, I mean.)
Sad fact of life... bean counters run the company and they, not the devs, decide how many resources get devoted to things like costumes and emotes. Super Boosters let the devs get more resources to spend on those things because they will earn a return on the investment. Yes, having to pay 10 bucks for cool new fluff is annoying, but it's better than having a lot less cool new fluff at all.
Now the day they start offering anything truly game changing, like real powers or XP bonuses (looks at some Korean MMOs) that's completely different. That stuff needs to stay in free-to-play MMOs. But paying for fluff that we'd never be able to get at all otherwise is fine.
Cascade, level 50 Blaster (NRG/NRG since before it was cool)
Mechmeister, level 50 Bots / Traps MM
FAR too many non-50 alts to name
[u]Arcs[u]
The Scavenger Hunt: 187076
The Instant Lair Delivery Service: 206636
[ QUOTE ]
And as for all those MMO's that don't include a monthly fee...
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>
Lineage NCSoft 9/1/98 $15.00
EverQuest II Sony 11/8/04 $14.99
City of Heroes Paragon 04/27/04 $14.99
Star Wars Galaxies LucasArts 06/23/03 $14.99
EverQuest Sony 3/16/99 $14.99
Anarchy Online Funcom 6/27/01 $14.99
World of Warcraft Blizzard 11/23/04 $14.99
BG Eu: WWII Cornered 6/4/01 $14.99
LotR Online Turbine 4/24/07 $14.99
Lineage 2 NCSoft 4/27/04 $14.99
EQ Online Sony 2/11/03 $14.99
Pirates ot Burning S. Flying La.. 1/22/08 $14.99
Vanguard Sony 1/30/07 $14.99
D&D Online Turbine 2/28/06 $14.99
Age of Conan: Funcom 5/20/08 $14.99
Spellborn Spellborn 4/23/09 $14.99
Warhammer Online Mythic En 9/18/08 $14.99
Dark Age of Camelot Mythic En 10/10/01 $14.95
EVE Online CCP Games 5/6/03 $14.95
Istaria Artifact 12/8/03 $14.95
Tale in the Desert IV eGenesis 5/27/06 $13.95
Ultima Online EA Mythic 9/30/97 $12.99
Priston Tale Priston 2001 $12.99
Asheron's Call Turbine 11/1/99 $12.95
PlanetSide Sony 5/20/03 $12.95
Final Fantasy XI Square En 10/28/03 $12.95
Ragnarok Online Gravity I 11/30/02 $12.00
</pre><hr />
Yep, I can see where you'd think that...
/endsarcasm
[/ QUOTE ]
um, there's several dozen+ f2p MMOs, many, many more if you include eastern MMOs.
sarcasm doesn't work if it's uniformed.
Political correctness is a stench in the nose of God. Yes, your God(s) also.
[ QUOTE ]
um, there's several dozen+ f2p MMOs, many, many more if you include eastern MMOs.
sarcasm doesn't work if it's uniformed.
[/ QUOTE ]
Oh no, please don't bring those up.
Sorry, but comparing the "free grinders" to pay2play MMORPGs doesn't do the latter any justice.
I find it amusing that earlier - I think in this thread - someone was complaining about CoH being the most expensive MMO, when a good two thirds or so of that list is the exact same price per month.
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
No. It's not double-dipping.
The monthly fee is access to the game and it's built-in content only. That's all.
The Super Boosters are a non-essential add-on. It gets you a few extra frilly's that are nice to have, but not necessary for gameplay.
If you don't like or want what is in the Booster, don't buy it. You aren't missing out on a thing in your game experience. If it's something you want or like, buy it. It won't make your character more Uber than another character. If you want to purchase it to support the company even though it really holds no interest, you can do that as well, and your game experience isn't changed in the slightest.
Double-dipping would be charging us a monthly fee, then charging us again each time we wanted to do something built into the game itself, such as choosing a new power.
If the game spit out 20 dollar bills people would complain that they weren't sequentially numbered. If they were sequentially numbered people would complain that they weren't random enough.
Black Pebble is my new hero.