The Very Basics of Creating a Virtual Economy
Store In-depth Economic Information: When it comes to developing and maintaining a virtual economy, information is your best friend. Once you know you’re making an MMO, this should be your next step. When working on this, try to collect all the information you can to make identifying potential problems with the economy much easier.
Control Money Going Into the Economy: When developing your game’s economy, keep in mind that you have complete control over the “printing” of currency. It is much easier to control how currency is created as opposed to destroyed (see next bullet).
Remember, Money Going Out is Voluntary: Unlike money going in to the economy, you have very little control over if and when players will spend their money. Because of this factor, it makes little sense to manipulate your game’s economy solely by taking money out of circulation.
Create Incentives to Spend: Even though you can’t control if and when players will spend their money, you can make it REALLY tempting for them. Creating one time use items, like potions or bandages are a great way to take money out of the economy, because players who purchase these items are likely to come back for more.
Protect Your Economy: No matter how great your economy, if you don’t protect it, your players will exploit it. Defending your economy is of utmost importance, as drastic changes in the economy, such as steep inflation, could alter gameplay mechanics, driving a significant portion of your playerbase away.
