Online fantasy football game Quick Hit today announced that it would be adding virtual goods and virtual currency. Players would be able to use the game’s new virtual currency to purchase NFL greats from years past and add them to their teams. The virtual currency will be called Coaching Points and can be earned through gameplay or purchased directly with real money.
“Adding players of the type of legends that we’ve got makes your team instantly recognizable,” said Quick Hit CEO Jeffrey Anderson to Xconomy. “A lot of these people are Hall of Fame, Pro-Bowl players who have had famous careers in the NFL. We believe we’re the first product in the world to offer the ability to use virtual currency to acquire players.”
Currently Quick Hit players can develop their own custom characters, called Joes, or add virtual versions of NFL pros to their teams (called, appropriately enough, Pros). Previously players could only use a handful of Pros, but the new microtransaction system will allow players to purchase up to 130 different virtual NFL greats to add to their team.
The new range of Pros are available in three different ability classes: Elite, Premium, and Classic. Versions of classic players with higher abilities are more expensive than those with lower stats. The different stat tiers are part of a “salary cap” scheme to help make sure the microtransaction Pros don’t unbalance the game. Players will not be able to add Pros who are dramatically more powerful than the rest of their team, even if they purchase them with real money.
The microtransaction Pros are part of an overall upgrade to Quick Hit’s game mechanics, designed to let players micromanage their teams more carefully. The virtual goods revenue will supplement Quick Hit’s prior source of revenue, advertising. Quick Hit has been officially launched for about three months, with its players logging about 8 million minutes of game time per month.
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