0
\$\begingroup\$

As it says in the title, can I give a player that completes my game (which might be hard to complete) money?

\$\endgroup\$
2
  • \$\begingroup\$ Is this a question about law? If yes, it is probably best asked here: law.stackexchange.com \$\endgroup\$ Commented May 1, 2018 at 6:35
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ if the player has to spend money to play the game (to purchase a copy/subscription, or microtransactions to get ahead) to have a shot at the prize, then gambling laws may apply. These vary from one jurisdiction to another and can influence what mechanics you can use, how you can promote it, who is allowed to participate in the contest, etc. \$\endgroup\$ Commented May 1, 2018 at 16:29

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
2
\$\begingroup\$

Yes you can; nothing is stopping you from giving other people your money. The question is do you want to?

This reminds me of the "aardwolf" secret in Wolfenstein 3D. The game was released with a secret message, "Call Apogee and say Aardwolf". This was planned as a contest; the first player to follow those instructions would win a prize. However Apogee (the publisher) backed out after realising that with the release of cheat programs and game editors, the prize would probably be won via illegitimate means.

That was 1991; now with the Internet, free game guides, Let's Plays, anyone can easily finish any game if they had the slightest motivation. This would defeat the purpose of offering a cash prize, which is presumably to encourage people to complete your game via actually playing it.

Instead, consider offering a token that has no monetary cost to you, like an achievement.

\$\endgroup\$
1
  • \$\begingroup\$ To add to that, maybe OP can offer money to the first 5 that finish the game, motivating people to start playing it, and once it becomes well known enough to have guides and cheats, there would be no price anymore. \$\endgroup\$ Commented May 1, 2018 at 8:28

You must log in to answer this question.