Unlike its free-to-play peers, Heroes of the Storm avoided using virtual currency. When players went to the in-game store, they’d see the prices listed in dollars (or their local equivalent) rather than jewels, gems, or casino chips. To Blizzard veterans like executive producer Chris Sigaty, being clear and direct about their prices rather than obfuscating the real costs was an obvious part of taking a player-first approach to game design. But when business-minded people looked at the Heroes of the Storm shop, they were stupefied. Virtual money was a standard component of free-to-play games,
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