New Changes To PLEX?

CCP Games announced the company was making a change in EVE Online's in-game New Eden Store on the Friday before Fanfest. The subject of concern is the the venerable currency known as PLEX. CCP has indicated the company has plans to change the system.

In 2008 CCP introduced an RMT token into EVE known as the Pilot's License Extension. An RMT token refers to a virtual item or currency in a game exchangeable for real-world money or vice versa. "RMT" stands for Real Money Trading, which involves transactions where players buy or sell in-game assets, accounts, or currency using actual money.

For example, in games like EVE Online, PLEX can be considered an RMT token because it allows players to legally trade in-game currency for real-world money value within the game's official system. However, unauthorized RMT activities outside the game's ecosystem are against the terms of service and can lead to penalties including account termination.

The original purpose of PLEX in EVE was to provide players with a way to pay for their game subscription using in-game currency. Players could purchase PLEX with real money and then sell it on the in-game market for ISK (Interstellar Kredits). The system allowed players to effectively fund their subscription through gameplay, creating a bridge between real-world money and the in-game economy. 

PLEX remained relatively unchanged until May 2017. The introduction of free-to-play gaming in the form of alpha accounts was introduced in Ascension release in November 2016.

However, the planned in-game cash shop currency, Aurum, was unpopular and ditched in favor of a revamped PLEX. On 9 May the following changes were implemented to PLEX.

1. PLEX Denomination Change: The shift from 1 PLEX to 500 PLEX was introduced to provide more flexibility for players. This change allowed smaller transactions and made PLEX more versatile for in-game purchases.

2. Aurum Removal: Aurum, the previous in-game currency, was phased out. Players with Aurum balances were compensated with PLEX, ensuring a smooth transition.

3. New Eden Store Updates: The New Eden Store was revamped to accommodate the new PLEX system, enhancing the shopping experience for players.

Despite some spikes, the price of PLEX remained relatively stable in the following 4 1/2 years, only rising by 8%, from 2,549,000 ISK on 9 May 2017 to 2,752,000 on 1 January 2022. 

The year 2022 was in some respects a watershed moment in the history of CCP Games. With revenue failing to keep up with costs, CCP made two decisions that impacted the PLEX market. First, as Friday's dev blog noted, CCP began introducing EVE Store products to the New Eden Store. According to the article, doing so allowed players to purchase them for PLEX and created a sort of parity between the stores. In other words, the company increased the uses, and thus the demand, for PLEX from those who purchased the currency with ISK.

Next, in May 2022 CCP raised prices. The monthly subscription cost for Omega accounts was raised for the first time since 2004. For example, the 1-month Omega subscription increased from $14.95 to $19.99. Discounts were offered for longer subscription tiers, such as 2-month and 24-month plans. The pricing and tiers for PLEX bundles were also restructured and the prices overall raised. In other words, higher real world PLEX prices resulted in an incentive to not purchase PLEX and cut down on the supply.

Rising demand plus lower supply usually means rising prices. And as I learned over lunch at a soup joint in Reykjavik at Fanfest in 2014, lower PLEX sales for CCP and game time code sellers as well. Apparently most people don't have a plan to spend $50 on EVE ISK and get as much as they can. Instead, players will figure out how much ISK they need and spend the minimum amount of real world currency to obtain the amount. Which means the higher the in-game ISK price of PLEX is, the less money CCP will reap from players buying ISK for dollars/euros/pounds/etc.

How bad was the inflation rate for PLEX? From the beginning of 2022 to the launch of the Equinox expansion 2 1/2 years later the average price of PLEX in The Forge rose 87.5% to 5,160,000 ISK. A commodity that had risen in price by 0.15%/month for 55 months was now rising in price an average of 2.9%/month. 

The blaring issue with the supply problems with PLEX makes the next feature introduced in Equinox rather puzzling. The SKINNR system, the system in which players can design custom SKINs for their ships, requires PLEX. For those who don't want to wait, more PLEX is required. And yet, I didn't see any effort to incentivize the purchase of PLEX to put on the market with real world money. But perhaps surprisingly the average price of PLEX in The Forge has only increased 18%, up to 6.1 million ISK, in the 10 months since the launch of the Equinox expansion.

According to Friday's dev blog, here are the steps CCP has undertaken to address the situation.

Here’s what we’ve done so far:

• AIR Daily Goals now include PLEX as a permanent reward, creating a steady stream of accessible PLEX for active players.
• Seasonal events increasingly feature PLEX in their seasonal reward tracks.
• Occasional PLEX gifts mark special milestones and in-game events.
• Mysterious GalNet Crates I and II, featured in Twitch Drops and tradeable on the in-game market, also offer a chance at PLEX.

These steps help, but we know they’re not enough.

We’re exploring additional tools and mechanics that can rebalance the flow of PLEX, making it feel less like a speculative asset and more like a practical, fluid currency that powers your in-game choices.

I have additional thoughts about what I read. I'm also sure CCP Games will provide more details in the Fanfest presentations next week. But for now I really do need to pack everything now that my laundry's done. Which reminds me, I really do need to check out the Laundromat Cafe once I get to Reyjavik.