There have been a lot of discussions in the Game Forum lately about the price of points. Not the price of points to purchase from the points store, but the price of points for in-game cash. There are a number of explanations that can be given for how point prices are affected by what is happening in-game at the current time.
Firstly, some players fail to understand where the ‘recent value’ on the points screen comes from. I’ve seen players question why BSF2000 is lowering the price of points. However, this value on the points screen is a representation of the recent value per point that players have sold points for in escrow. This value ignores any points that are exchanged for casinos or given to a player for nothing.
For the most part the price of points comes down to simple economics: supply and demand. What affects supply and demand? Well, a long period of no new points being purchased or verified. People obviously use points and the amount in-game will drop. This is especially the case when large shootings take place. In order to cover bullets, often points are converted into bullets, this taking out a large chunk of points. When this happens, players will sometimes seize the chance to jack up their point prices.
Bootleggers has its own artificial economy and things like crew wipes or shooting sprees will have a knock on effect. But it isn’t always about events happening in-game. Sometimes a player can start advertising their points for more than the suggested cost per point. If one person does it, then another might copy, and then another. Just the same as real life with things like house prices. However, like in real life, if people stop buying then prices will drop.
There are also panic buyers. Point prices begin to increase and players panic that where they could now buy 1,000 points, in a week’s time they might only be able to afford 750 points. The price of points has a lot to do with the amount of cash in-game. When players die, crews get wiped, crews get dropped, and cash is always lost.
Recent point prices show that the economy within Bootleggers is likely to rise and fall. For a long period of time points prices were fixed at $3,000 per point. But after a spate of shootings, the wipe of The Untouchables and Boston Mob, prices shot up over a few days to $5,000 per point. Now though (Thursday 11th May @ 9:00AM Bootleggers time) point prices have fallen to $4,300 per point.
Obviously those who panicked and bought them for $5,000 per point will feel that they have lost money. However, a fall in price is only temporary, and eventually prices will increase again. It takes time for point prices to grow, as the price of bullets increases, as the average cash per player increases.
The golden rule to remember when buying points, or buying anything in fact, is that: things are only worth what someone is willing to pay for them. You might want to jack up your point price to make a bit extra, but ultimately if no one is willing to pay that price, then they will not get sold. Sometimes players have to sell points because they need cash, if this happens a lot and the value of points comes down, then players are forced to follow the trend, or simply hold onto their points until a later date.
