Is Lost Ark Pay to Win?

Lost Ark, an MMORPG developed by Korean company Smilegate RPG, has been available to play in South Korea since 2019. It’s releasing in the United States and Europe this week, though, on Friday, February 11th, thanks to a publishing deal by Amazon Games. Lost Ark has a good reputation on most critical aggregates, so it’s not especially surprising that many are already chomping at the bit to give it a go on this side of the world, especially since the game is free to play. However, ahead of the release, some potential users have an important question: is Lost Ark pay to win?

As more games, and especially MMOs, adopt freemium game economies, it’s completely fair to be concerned about whether or not those who have piles of disposable income sitting around could gain a major unfair advantage over those who just play the game normally. If you’re on the fence about starting Lost Ark until you have a concrete answer to this concern, we have an answer, though it’s a bit of a complicated one.

Is Lost Ark Pay to Win?

In the broadest terms, the answer is yes, Lost Ark is pay to win. However, it isn’t any more pay to win than any typical MMORPG. Lost Ark’s in-game monetization is roughly equivalent to the meta-economies present in games like World of Warcraft. 

There are four currency types, each with different means of acquisition and different applications.

1. Silver: The base currency, earned from simply playing the game, clearing quests, and whatnot. Used for buying basic items from in-game merchants like materials and consumables, as well as fast travel and gear repair.
2. Gold: The rare currency, earned from clearing special quests and raids, or by exchanging Royal Crystals. Used for obtaining end-game level items, gear, and consumables.
3. Crystals: The rarest currency, earned by unlocking achievements and clearing certain quests, or by exchanging Royal Crystals or Gold. Used for buying limited items from the in-game cash shop.
4. Royal Crystals: The real-world money equivalent, can only be obtained through purchase. Used to buy bundles of regular Crystals, as well as cosmetics and extremely limited items.

So, yes, obviously someone with an unreasonable amount of money in their pocket and nothing better to do with it could get some very beneficial items from the cash shop, but in general, that’s not how the game is balanced. Silver and Gold are the primary currencies for buying most practical items, so it is entirely possible to stay free to play and not be dwarfed by paying players, at least not to an overwhelming degree.