On March 22, Apex Legends fans received a bit of a gift from the game's skin dev team on Twitter, but it came with a catch. The team agreed to include Loba's swimsuit skin as part of Apex's Sun Squad event, but only if the announcement tweet got 10,000 likes.They hit the goal in ten minutes.And, as the skin dev team replied in a subsequent Tweet, they really should have asked for a higher number just to up the excitement a little. Still, the quick success got me thinking: Why aren't more games doing stuff like this?
Live service gamers absolutely love cosmetics. People spend upwards of $70 for gun skin bundles in Valorant. League of Legends skin lines are launched every few weeks, some earnable via events and some meant to be purchased directly or unlocked via their Hextech chest system. Even Overwatch just changed some of its currency policies to make earning that Legendary skin just a little more viable (though they still have quite a ways to go before it'll be even close to reasonable.) Skins are simply a great way for any live service game to make a ton of cash.
Sure, when crowdsourcing skin ideas, there's always the potential for an IP issue. It's feasible that taking fans' concepts could leave companies open to lawsuits or scandals, especially if they borrow major identifiable designs from the community directly. But really, that excuse feels like a bit of a cop-out considering all the different ways that skins can be executed. The core thing is not relying on free labor or fan creation to put a skin line together — that's definitely pushing things too far. A general concept, though, (like Loba receiving a swimsuit skin) is exactly the sort of thing Apex devs can and should be asking their player base about.
The truth is, crowdsourcing skin ideas kind of seems like a no-brainer. It turns skins into a collaboration. It gets fans directly involved in their inception; then, the cosmetics team can do what it does best. The team can make sure everything is executed properly, and there's much less room for a disappointed player base that feels directly involved in the creative process — plus, the less people have to be persuaded that they like something, the more likely they are to throw their money at it.
Some things are harder to accommodate than others, of course. In the wake of the Overwatch x One Punch Man collab, fans have begun compiling lists of crossovers they'd like to see, but arranging a collaboration like that takes time and cooperation. Other things are easier — League players have been begging for some of the Wild Rift exclusive skins to get ported, especially because they keep giving the same champs-exclusive skins over and over again, so why not start there?
It seems like that idea, at least, is finally starting to happen. Star Guardian Orianna, Senna, and Seraphine will be coming to League proper very soon, and Star Guardian fans couldn't be more excited. This isn't the first time League has polled its fans, either; in the past, the game's cosmetics team has had great success by asking players who they think needs the next visual update and which skin lines they'd like to see return.
Whatever the outcome, I'd like to see way more player involvement when it comes to creating skins — and not just because it means I might get Zyra skins a little more frequently. It seems like the perfect symbiotic relationship for everyone.