What is Pay 2 Win (P2W)?
P2W means different things for different people. For some, a game that prioritizes skill over purchasing power is NOT P2W. For others, cosmetics are the end game, so even having paid cosmetics means a game IS P2W.
All of these criteria are valid in their own right.
The amazing Josh Strife Hayes has a great video deep-diving into the P2W definition. This site is not affiliated in any way with Mr. Hayes.
Regardless of the stance, it helps everyone to keep the discussion civil, open, and ongoing — especially in a continuously evolving industry.
We don't want to force our views upon people. That is why we grade games from 0 to 5 based on a set of objective and quantifiable parameters.
A grade of 0 means you pay for the game and get the full game — no DLCs, no cosmetics, no nothing. A grade of 5 is… well… an out-of-season April Fools' joke.
Ultimately, we do not consider P2W to be a bad thing per se. If a game survives and thrives, great. But we do believe extremes hurt the industry.
This is why we created this site — to help people know what they are getting into before purchasing a game or gifting one to someone.
The parameters
Competitive advantage
Can you buy yourself into victory?
Grades how much spending affects gameplay outcomes — from zero purchasable power to unlimited, game-breaking advantages unavailable to free players, covering convenience skips, grinding shortcuts, and time-gated mechanics along the way.
Cosmetics
Can you buy yourself into fashion?
Grades the extent of purchasable cosmetics — from nothing beyond the base purchase to high-end gambling-tier items costing $100+, including special editions, DLC bundles, and battle passes with FOMO mechanics.
Predatoriness
Are you going to be psychologically probed?
Grades how aggressively the game monetizes psychologically — from a simple permanent store to real-money player marketplaces where the developer takes a cut, covering premium currencies, loot boxes, and gacha mechanics.
Untrustworthiness
How much can you trust the game's future?
Grades how untrustworthy the game's future looks — from a stable or improving track record to abandoned features and pump-and-dump schemes, including post-release monetization escalation and DLC that should have been in the base game.