Ep 6. Freemium is Free
- TV-MA
- November 5, 2014
- 22 min
-
8.1 (2,527)
In South Park season 18 episode 6, titled "Freemium is Free," the residents of South Park are obsessed with a new mobile app game called Terrance and Phillip: Give Us Your Money. The game is free to download, but users are constantly bombarded with in-app purchases to advance their progress in the game.
As the boys play the game, they quickly realize that it's impossible to progress without spending real money on virtual items. Butters becomes obsessed with the game and spends all of his parents' money on in-app purchases, leading to a hilarious intervention from the other boys.
Meanwhile, Stan's dad, Randy, becomes a successful game developer and creates his own game called "Washington Redskin's Go F*** Yourself Holiday Special." The game is a huge hit, but Randy soon realizes that he's trapped in the same cycle of in-app purchases and addictive gameplay as the Terrance and Phillip game.
Throughout the episode, the show satirizes the mobile app gaming industry and its reliance on in-app purchases. The boys and their parents are all swept up in the frenzy of the games, spending exorbitant amounts of money on virtual items that have no real value.
The episode also tackles the issue of addiction, as Butters becomes completely consumed by the Terrance and Phillip game and Randy is unable to stop playing his own game, even when it begins to interfere with his real life.
Overall, "Freemium is Free" is a hilarious and biting commentary on the world of mobile app gaming and the ways in which it exploits users for profit. The episode is one of the strongest of the season and a must-watch for fans of the show.