Disposable vs. Durable: The Depth of a Video Game Economy

One thing that Destiny players continue to ask for is the ability to trade items in game, or really any sort of player economy. Since launch, the only economic interactions players have is with NPCs. This doe snot feel like the open and immersive world Destiny promises, as the real world has a deep economy. Unfortunately, Destiny cannot shift to any sort of exchange without a complete overhaul of the items and equipment in game. The reason comes down to the features these items have as goods.

A big thing to notice about the items in Destiny is most are durable goods. The weapons never wear out and the armor never breaks forcing you to replace it. In addition, the majority of the rest of the items are for upgrading weapons and armor. While there are a few disposable item, like those that increase the glimmer (in game currency) drops or ammo refills, they are not that important in the grand scheme of things. It is this fact that leads Destiny to be unsuitable for player trade in its current state.

Because all items are durable, there is little need to acquire more once you have the best gear. It is true that while progressing to the highest level, a player replaces weapons. But this is because the higher tier weapons are strictly better than lower tier weapons. And even among the highest tier gear, there are a few "right" choices. Hence the only objective of a player in the economy is to assemble these "right" choices. Once a player has them, there is no reason to acquire more. At this point, the player would have shifted from a buyer and seller in the economy, to strictly a seller, if Destiny had a player marketplace. Given enough time, every player will be in this position and trade would cease. Granted, new content releasing higher tiers of gear would add some activity to the market as players assembled the new optimal set. Unfortunately, this does not lead to a deep, player-driven market, as designers must constantly be breathing new life into it.

This is in contract to an economy like EVE: Online where every item is disposable. In EVE, one of the first pieces of advice new players are given is "Don't fly what you can't afford to lose." The expectation is that your ship will get blown up at some point and you will have to replace it. Even the most expensive capital ships and starbases are destructible in EVE. This constant destruction means that every player will have to be in constant interaction with the market, replacing their latest loss. Because every item is disposable, EVE would have a functioning and vibrant market without the developers adding new things to it.

EVE does have more supporting the market than just ever ship simply being an explosion waiting to happen, like massive production chains for many items; but the disposable-durable difference is the most important reason why trade would not benefit Destiny. In particular, you would see something like the problems of the Diablo III auction house. Here players were able to buy the best gear for their level, trivializing the grind and destroying the Skinner Box that is core engagement of Diablo. Hence Bungie is making the correct decision in not allowing player trade in Destiny, because to do so would either break the game or require a complete overhaul in how items work.