Do you ever get the feeling mmorpg.com has a vested intrest in the F2P market? Seems like every other story they put out here of late is about how great F2P is... while I have still yet to see a F2P game worth the price. (Ok, maybe DDO)
QFT. On both points.
I wouldn'y be against f2p games if they would just change the name from 'free to play' to 'free to pay' and stop pretending hehe. Also, if all the f2p games I have tried (a lot of them) didn't suck for the most part I wouldn't be so disposed to dislike f2p. Seriously, aside from a ceratin f2p game that I am in the beta for I think evrey f2p game I have ever tried I ended up quitting after a day or two of trying it out becuase I thought, "I wouldn't play this shit even IF it was totally free, which the f2p games never end up being 100% free. DDO might be good now as a f2p, but I only half liked it when it was a p2p game. There are other games which are p2p that I enjoy waaaaaay more. I won't go so far as to say the ENTIRE f2p genre sucks, just most if it hehe
I already mentioned this in the One of the mmorpg reporters articles on why we should embrace F2P (F2A). And as i said there pretty much what are the results F2A games make more money.... and thus cost more to play. So for all the people agrueing otherwise the datat doesn't support it. "Users spent an average of $28 a month buying virtual goods across 145 titles whose commerce system is run by Live Gamer." Almost double the cost of P2P. And still alot of those players do not have FULL ACCESS TO THE GAME. In other words, PAYING MORE FOR LESS. If your happy with your F2A game thats good, if your happy with anygame thats good, however, lets not ignore the truth.
"Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one ..." - Thomas Paine
I expect that 90% of the premium MMO's will be F2P within 2 years at most.
90% of premium MMO's don't add up to the subscriber numbers of first 9%. (leaving out the overgrown and mutated tumor that's sitting at #1).
if the bottom 90% of premium MMO's die, nobody'll notice.
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
The one "premium" game that I have doubts about with regard to F2P is EVE-Online, because their business model seems to have been highly successful for CCP, and changing it could have unpredictable results.
The truth is that in a F2P game u don't have ppl who play for over a 1 yr. Some will play over 1 year but u will nv have a player on it for 5+ years like on Main stream Sub's.15 times 5 yrs =$ 900.00 in a Year a F2P will nv get 900 dollars off any Player . They will get around 125 dollars in the 1st 4 months. So The Truth is that F2P = Fast Return and NO LONG TERM INCOME. F2P means a Fast buck for something that Failed. If u make your MMO a F2P your are auto Posted as a Failed game. Now League of Legends is a Good F2P. This is a Game where u can play Free with out spanding a dime of course like any other F2P the Fx is that of a 1993 3DO game. But u will have to pay if u want Toon's fast because you have to use the Store Pt's for Runes to keep u in the fight. The Rune's can't be bought with Real Money only in Game money.Which for a Game that Pay's u to be the Best it is only right that u don't get to pay a thousand dollars to try in win a 100 dollars. But to get into the Ranked fights before Months of Hardcore Play u will have to buy the Game at the store or On-Line because using in Game IP(money) u wouldn't be able to get runes and new Champs without putting 50+ Dollars into it. But like any F2P this will be a Game I will play ony during Rank Time.Being a Straight PvP game they do understand Rage and understand u are playing for Pride and money sometime. Yet u should be Kind to others for if u had a bad game u wouldn't want someone ripping off your head. But a heads up good to bring 4 other ppl with you so u all known each other and no when u rage u are just being u. But as for RoM, DDO, Allod, and many more there Fx and story is not near as good as a Dragon Warrior on the NES in the late 80's.
Wish u could edit your Post. the Big Wig at Blizzard has done said they will go to F2P as soon as they see there Sub's drop 25% or so. Giving ToR is coming out in 7 months along with DCU and theres another can't think off. I see WoW going F2P in a year or so. I know u have put 1800 Dollars in sub's into your 10 YO toon but face it WoW is a Dieing BEAST. That has been buying it's time for years. I left 3 years ago and nv looked back.
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
It won't happen. Keep expecting it but it won't happen. Trust me.
You obviously don't understand economics
Or do you actually believe that WoW will still be going strong 20 years from now ? I know it's hard to imagine a world without WoW, but that day will come. Trust me.
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
It won't happen. Keep expecting it but it won't happen. Trust me.
You obviously don't understand economics
Or do you actually believe that WoW will still be going strong 20 years from now ? I know it's hard to imagine a world without WoW, but that day will come. Trust me.
So since WOW, with a bizillion subs is going to go F2P in 2 years, does that mean there upcoming MMO will launch F2P as well? Dont get the idea im a fan because im not, but if half the players they have leave in the next two years they would still be foolish to go F2P.
WOW isnt great because it has 12 million players. WOW has 12 million players because its great.
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
It won't happen. Keep expecting it but it won't happen. Trust me.
You obviously don't understand economics
Or do you actually believe that WoW will still be going strong 20 years from now ? I know it's hard to imagine a world without WoW, but that day will come. Trust me.
So since WOW, with a bizillion subs is going to go F2P in 2 years, does that mean there upcoming MMO will launch F2P as well? Dont get the idea im a fan because im not, but if half the players they have leave in the next two years they would still be foolish to go F2P.
U miss understand there Statement. The Number isn't there Sub's. It is how many have Paid to play Which like me who put 6 yrs in. I'm not there no more but still part of that Number. Like I posted before . Blizzard already said they will take WoW F2P when they lose 25% of there Current Subs. No they will not bring there new MMO to F2P. They have made out great in the P2P Field.But like anything out a Dieing MMO goes F2P and WoW will also. As for Box Price income that only give's the Co. as Small Return on there Investment. MMO's these day's have Budgets bigger then Top Movies and on like Movies ppl don't go buy more Boxes like Tickets, Other then Gold Farmers they buy 3-6 boxes a day.
F2P is nothing more than a way for devs to cash in more money. It does nothing to enhance game play for players (unless ofcourse the devs use the said money to invest more into the game, which I doubt very much).
The MMOG market is now in the hands of the pure capitalists which are constantly trying to find new ways to make more money and F2P is just a result of that.
Commercial MMO's have always been about making money. It takes YEARS and millions upon millions (of other peoples) money to create the major titles. Most of these investor types do not really care about games, what they are interested in is ROI(Return On Investment). Since the rise of Blizzards World of Warcraft, the mystic phrase that makes investors eyes fill with dollar signs, and results in them throwing truck loads of money at you is; "Its just like World of Warcraft!".
F2P is just a different business model. Its main focus before now has been in Asia because of various factors. But many Dev's have seen how much money can be made in item shops. Look at WoW's silly looking My Little Pony mount as an example. Obviously there is a market for such, or Blizzard wouldn't have made so much money from it. How this eventually turns out is anyones guess at this point.
It's a business model based on coercion rather than than a clear product for cost transaction. WoW profits even if no one buys the my little pony or not. The F2P liars depend on people buying from the shop or the game closes down.
"Coercion"? I was quite unaware of any F2P game using intimidation or threats(like governments do) to get people to purchase items from their shops. From what I've seen its a matter of choice on the players part.
Even though I consider the My Little Pony mount to be silly, its obvious there was a market for it, or Blizzard wouldn't have made so much money on it. As I stated F2P is simply another business model. If you don't like it, don't play F2P games.
But I totally agree that if no one used the item shop, the game isn't going to profit, and thus will not last long. Which is why if I enjoy a F2P game that I always use the item shop. The Dev's should benefit from their hard work, and it helps to keep the game around.
Well everquest or Lord of the rings are old games that have a wave of new mmos comming out so im not suprised going them f2p cutting personnel and just leeching there öast scraps , same ddo .
Ddo popular game ? not in europe besides a popular game is by long shot not a good game .
If by any chance in the future the whole Mmo industry goes F2P i stop playing at all i get a wife make some kids read news paper talk with my neighbor while taking out the garbage .. <.<
Itll be so long mmo hello rl im back... Hopefully itll never happen ^^
I am the punishment of God... If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you Genghis Khan
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
It won't happen. Keep expecting it but it won't happen. Trust me.
You obviously don't understand economics
Or do you actually believe that WoW will still be going strong 20 years from now ? I know it's hard to imagine a world without WoW, but that day will come. Trust me.
In the fullness of time no doubt. But how long has the original Everquest been running?... WoW is going to be around a good long while.
DDO is now one of the most popular MMO games ever.
Care to back that statement up? Yes it did have an amazing comeback, but from what? It was in the sh*tter before it went FTP.
A 400% gain from nothing is nothing.
At DDO's hight it had over 80,000 active subs, at 400% that translates to $4.8 Million a month at worst $2.4 Million. If you call that nothing, then you wrong. And I mean that in the most vile, obnoxious, and offensive ways.
Pardon any spelling errors
Konfess your cyns and some maybe forgiven Boy: Why can't I talk to Him? Mom: We don't talk to Priests. As if it could exist, without being payed for. F2P means you get what you paid for. Pay nothing, get nothing. Even telemarketers wouldn't think that. It costs money to play. Therefore P2W.
They can call it whatever they want, i dont see this as a shift, P2P will always remains the strongest games. I have no intention of ever playing a F2P game where your success in game depends on how much money you can spend in it.
At my Max level of play I had 6 Subs, I have reduced that to 1 Sub. If you have never payed for a Sub, then STFU. If some one else pays for your Subs, then STFU.
A F2P / Microtransaction game typically has a lower monthly cost than a P2P equivalent. Only casual players who buy Non-Combat Pets, and Non-Stat Cosmetic Gear (Bunny Rabit Costumes, and Wedding Dresses) pay more than P2P Subs.
Hardcore Gamers that wont pay for Storage, access to Raiding Instances, or PvP gear, the total of which is less than a P2P Sub, should STFU. If you are a hardcore gamer then you don't BS with Alts, so you don't pay for storage of gear for 9 other alts you haven''t leveled past 20. If you are a hardcore gamer and you have reached end game , then you no longer have to pay for an XP buff. If you are a hardcore gamer doing PvP in F2P gear and can't beat a casual non-gamer in P2W gear, maybe you NEVER were a hardcore gamer and should just STFU.
As for Blizzard, and their upcoming new MMO, I can imagine this happening. In the first month they sell 7 Million copies and make $280 Million. The new game key can be added to an active WoW sub at no extra cost. In one years time active Blizzard subs reach 20 Million world wide and they own 100% of the possible MMO subs market. The Bubble has burst and every other MMO now is F2P, and if they are lucky they can get 10,000 players a month to pay for you broke useless hardcore players to play your game for free. At a total cost to casul players of $80,000 per month compared to Blizzards $65 million per month even if it goes F2P.
Finally my prediction of Blizzards new MMO, I have two. First, WoW-2 drops the cartoon graphics for something as good as Crysis, with out the lag and playable on 98% of the rigs out there. Second, World of Starcraft a MMORPG / FPS wih High Def grafics to rival Gears and Halo. As a result the console FPS / TPS market dries up. Blizzard releases its games on every console and every operating system, and All Your Bases Are Belong To Us. (AYBABTU)
Pardon any spelling errors
Konfess your cyns and some maybe forgiven Boy: Why can't I talk to Him? Mom: We don't talk to Priests. As if it could exist, without being payed for. F2P means you get what you paid for. Pay nothing, get nothing. Even telemarketers wouldn't think that. It costs money to play. Therefore P2W.
At my Max level of play I had 6 Subs, I have reduced that to 1 Sub. If you have never payed for a Sub, then STFU. If some one else pays for your Subs, then STFU.
A F2P / Microtransaction game typically has a lower monthly cost than a P2P equivalent. Only casual players who buy Non-Combat Pets, and Non-Stat Cosmetic Gear (Bunny Rabit Costumes, and Wedding Dresses) pay more than P2P Subs.
Hardcore Gamers that wont pay for Storage, access to Raiding Instances, or PvP gear, the total of which is less than a P2P Sub, should STFU. If you are a hardcore gamer then you don't BS with Alts, so you don't pay for storage of gear for 9 other alts you haven''t leveled past 20. If you are a hardcore gamer and you have reached end game , then you no longer have to pay for an XP buff. If you are a hardcore gamer doing PvP in F2P gear and can't beat a casual non-gamer in P2W gear, maybe you NEVER were a hardcore gamer and should just STFU.
As for Blizzard, and their upcoming new MMO, I can imagine this happening. In the first month they sell 7 Million copies and make $280 Million. The new game key can be added to an active WoW sub at no extra cost. In one years time active Blizzard subs reach 20 Million world wide and they own 100% of the possible MMO subs market. The Bubble has burst and every other MMO now is F2P, and if they are lucky they can get 10,000 players a month to pay for you broke useless hardcore players to play your game for free. At a total cost to casul players of $80,000 per month compared to Blizzards $65 million per month even if it goes F2P.
Finally my prediction of Blizzards new MMO, I have two. First, WoW-2 drops the cartoon graphics for something as good as Crysis, with out the lag and playable on 98% of the rigs out there. Second, World of Starcraft a MMORPG / FPS wih High Def grafics to rival Gears and Halo. As a result the console FPS / TPS market dries up. Blizzard releases its games on every console and every operating system, and All Your Bases Are Belong To Us. (AYBABTU)
Now that is a Huge Fanboy statement. That would be Like me saying with ToR coming out in March 2011 all other MMO will go F2P in March. :-P Which with the Hardcore SW fan's it is going to live Long and with Boiware behind it ,it is going to be a Great Game. But it isn't going to kill all other MMO's. But WoW going Pink or Kiddie is why I lft 3 years ago after 5 years of my Life went into it. There not going to break no new ground with there new MMO,There going to do what they know will get them Big Money and that is making it Kiddie friendly.
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
I got a message that someone accessed my wow account. So my account is probably hacked and gone, yey free from the Blizzard slavery at last. I didn't react to the message because I'd probably get sucked back into the addiction anyway.
There is one MMO that is living longer than any other. Yes you know it, it's called Runescape. Although they have made the mistake of changing too much (like PVP) and got freaking greedy aswell (used to be 5$ for a month). I liked the game more when it used the gamemechanics of RS-classic, now people are calling it ruinedscape (lol).
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
I got a message that someone accessed my wow account. So my account is probably hacked and gone, yey free from the Blizzard slavery at last. I didn't react to the message because I'd probably get sucked back into the addiction anyway.
There is one MMO that is living longer than any other. Yes you know it, it's called Runescape. Although they have made the mistake of changing too much (like PVP) and got freaking greedy aswell (used to be 5$ for a month). I liked the game more when it used the gamemechanics of RS-classic, now people are calling it ruinedscape (lol).
There are LOTs of bogus emails like that making the rounds. Its best not to click any embeded links.
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
Not trying to be a 'snob' here. but wouldnt all the reasons just stated actually mean the F2P model is not suitable for you.. i've yet to see any F2P that wasnt a huge time sink, or didnt require massive numbers of micro transactions to compensate for the lack of avaialable time.. i would be very interested to know which game your playing that somehow avoids these issues? i've played quite a few myself, and i've yet to find one that really fits the category you seem to be describing.
Simple, it's not the amount of time to progress that concerns me. It's the paying 15$ a month for something I might play for 2-4 hours per week max. Some months I might not get to play at all and then I would have just thrown 15 bucks out the window. The only other model that would fit me that no company is doing right now would be a tiered subscription model. Say 5$ a month for 10-15 hours rather than unlimited would work great. Like I said, no company is doing that model.
For fecks sake some of the inane babble in these posts drives me to distraction!
It's simple if you don't like F2P don't play it, if you like P2P then play it. Some of you guys must have too much time on your hands to whinge over something so bloody minor. It is down to personal choice in the end it reall is as easy as that.
I play a game coz I like it; if I have to pay a sub I will, if its a good game and its F2P then bonus and I'll play that. If some of you guys want to bitch try moaning about something world changing like poverty, equality, war or famine. Its a game make a choice you are an individual.
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
I love these posts, they always give me a laugh. Folks if you're that busy with your "real lives", should you really be wasting your time with video games let alone those of a genre known to be big time investments? Better question would be: should you even be on an internet forum calling other people "elite-ist snobs"? Do you not have more important things to tend to?
Just a heads up; you are not unique among the average adult gamer. Most of us have "real lives", some of us have even busier schedules than you. It sounds like you have difficulty with managing your time, but that's another issue altogether.
"Mr. Rothstein, your people never will understand... the way it works out here. You're all just our guests. But you act like you're at home. Let me tell you something, partner. You ain't home. But that's where we're gonna send you if it harelips the governor." - Pat Webb
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
I see you took internet's superhighway of cool and decided to insult and label people who don't agree with you.
and this, ladies and gentlemen, is the F2P community.
I wasn't the first, read through the plethura of posts above from subscription players labling free2play people as whining kiddies whose mommies won't give them money for their subscriptions. That, ladies and gentlemen, is your P2P community.
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
I love these posts, they always give me a laugh. Folks if you're that busy with your "real lives", should you really be wasting your time with video games let alone those of a genre known to be big time investments? Better question would be: should you even be on an internet forum calling other people "elite-ist snobs"? Do you not have more important things to tend to?
Just a heads up; you are not unique among the average adult gamer. Most of us have "real lives", some of us have even busier schedules than you. It sounds like you have difficulty with managing your time, but that's another issue altogether.
Most of the comments regarding this article have been entirely negative regarding the F2P model and the players who choose that model. I would venture to guess that a majority of the P2P players are single working adults or kids who's parents pay for their subscriptions or have after school jobs that do that. No married working adult with two or more kids could possibly devote more than 8hrs per week max to a video game and that's pretty much using all of your extra time to play the game. Of course, that's taking into account that you aren't ignoring your kids an playing the game while they are still awake.
Comments
QFT. On both points.
I wouldn'y be against f2p games if they would just change the name from 'free to play' to 'free to pay' and stop pretending hehe. Also, if all the f2p games I have tried (a lot of them) didn't suck for the most part I wouldn't be so disposed to dislike f2p. Seriously, aside from a ceratin f2p game that I am in the beta for I think evrey f2p game I have ever tried I ended up quitting after a day or two of trying it out becuase I thought, "I wouldn't play this shit even IF it was totally free, which the f2p games never end up being 100% free. DDO might be good now as a f2p, but I only half liked it when it was a p2p game. There are other games which are p2p that I enjoy waaaaaay more. I won't go so far as to say the ENTIRE f2p genre sucks, just most if it hehe
I already mentioned this in the One of the mmorpg reporters articles on why we should embrace F2P (F2A). And as i said there pretty much what are the results F2A games make more money.... and thus cost more to play. So for all the people agrueing otherwise the datat doesn't support it. "Users spent an average of $28 a month buying virtual goods across 145 titles whose commerce system is run by Live Gamer." Almost double the cost of P2P. And still alot of those players do not have FULL ACCESS TO THE GAME. In other words, PAYING MORE FOR LESS. If your happy with your F2A game thats good, if your happy with anygame thats good, however, lets not ignore the truth.
"Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one ..." - Thomas Paine
Oh, I fully expect WoW to go F2P as well within the next 2 years. Blizzard are working on their next MMO, and they'll try to take as many of their current subs to the new game as possible. No MMO lasts for ever.
The one "premium" game that I have doubts about with regard to F2P is EVE-Online, because their business model seems to have been highly successful for CCP, and changing it could have unpredictable results.
The truth is that in a F2P game u don't have ppl who play for over a 1 yr. Some will play over 1 year but u will nv have a player on it for 5+ years like on Main stream Sub's.15 times 5 yrs =$ 900.00 in a Year a F2P will nv get 900 dollars off any Player . They will get around 125 dollars in the 1st 4 months. So The Truth is that F2P = Fast Return and NO LONG TERM INCOME. F2P means a Fast buck for something that Failed. If u make your MMO a F2P your are auto Posted as a Failed game. Now League of Legends is a Good F2P. This is a Game where u can play Free with out spanding a dime of course like any other F2P the Fx is that of a 1993 3DO game. But u will have to pay if u want Toon's fast because you have to use the Store Pt's for Runes to keep u in the fight. The Rune's can't be bought with Real Money only in Game money.Which for a Game that Pay's u to be the Best it is only right that u don't get to pay a thousand dollars to try in win a 100 dollars. But to get into the Ranked fights before Months of Hardcore Play u will have to buy the Game at the store or On-Line because using in Game IP(money) u wouldn't be able to get runes and new Champs without putting 50+ Dollars into it. But like any F2P this will be a Game I will play ony during Rank Time.Being a Straight PvP game they do understand Rage and understand u are playing for Pride and money sometime. Yet u should be Kind to others for if u had a bad game u wouldn't want someone ripping off your head. But a heads up good to bring 4 other ppl with you so u all known each other and no when u rage u are just being u. But as for RoM, DDO, Allod, and many more there Fx and story is not near as good as a Dragon Warrior on the NES in the late 80's.
Wish u could edit your Post. the Big Wig at Blizzard has done said they will go to F2P as soon as they see there Sub's drop 25% or so. Giving ToR is coming out in 7 months along with DCU and theres another can't think off. I see WoW going F2P in a year or so. I know u have put 1800 Dollars in sub's into your 10 YO toon but face it WoW is a Dieing BEAST. That has been buying it's time for years. I left 3 years ago and nv looked back.
You obviously don't understand economics
Or do you actually believe that WoW will still be going strong 20 years from now ? I know it's hard to imagine a world without WoW, but that day will come. Trust me.
So since WOW, with a bizillion subs is going to go F2P in 2 years, does that mean there upcoming MMO will launch F2P as well? Dont get the idea im a fan because im not, but if half the players they have leave in the next two years they would still be foolish to go F2P.
WOW isnt great because it has 12 million players. WOW has 12 million players because its great.
U miss understand there Statement. The Number isn't there Sub's. It is how many have Paid to play Which like me who put 6 yrs in. I'm not there no more but still part of that Number. Like I posted before . Blizzard already said they will take WoW F2P when they lose 25% of there Current Subs. No they will not bring there new MMO to F2P. They have made out great in the P2P Field.But like anything out a Dieing MMO goes F2P and WoW will also. As for Box Price income that only give's the Co. as Small Return on there Investment. MMO's these day's have Budgets bigger then Top Movies and on like Movies ppl don't go buy more Boxes like Tickets, Other then Gold Farmers they buy 3-6 boxes a day.
"Coercion"? I was quite unaware of any F2P game using intimidation or threats(like governments do) to get people to purchase items from their shops. From what I've seen its a matter of choice on the players part.
Even though I consider the My Little Pony mount to be silly, its obvious there was a market for it, or Blizzard wouldn't have made so much money on it. As I stated F2P is simply another business model. If you don't like it, don't play F2P games.
But I totally agree that if no one used the item shop, the game isn't going to profit, and thus will not last long. Which is why if I enjoy a F2P game that I always use the item shop. The Dev's should benefit from their hard work, and it helps to keep the game around.
Well everquest or Lord of the rings are old games that have a wave of new mmos comming out so im not suprised going them f2p cutting personnel and just leeching there öast scraps , same ddo .
Ddo popular game ? not in europe besides a popular game is by long shot not a good game .
If by any chance in the future the whole Mmo industry goes F2P i stop playing at all
i get a wife make some kids read news paper talk with my neighbor while taking out the garbage .. <.<
Itll be so long mmo hello rl im back... Hopefully itll never happen ^^
I am the punishment of God...
If you had not committed great sins,
God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you
Genghis Khan
In the fullness of time no doubt. But how long has the original Everquest been running?... WoW is going to be around a good long while.
At DDO's hight it had over 80,000 active subs, at 400% that translates to $4.8 Million a month at worst $2.4 Million. If you call that nothing, then you wrong. And I mean that in the most vile, obnoxious, and offensive ways.
Boy: Why can't I talk to Him?
Mom: We don't talk to Priests.
As if it could exist, without being payed for.
F2P means you get what you paid for. Pay nothing, get nothing.
Even telemarketers wouldn't think that.
It costs money to play. Therefore P2W.
They can call it whatever they want, i dont see this as a shift, P2P will always remains the strongest games. I have no intention of ever playing a F2P game where your success in game depends on how much money you can spend in it.
At my Max level of play I had 6 Subs, I have reduced that to 1 Sub. If you have never payed for a Sub, then STFU. If some one else pays for your Subs, then STFU.
A F2P / Microtransaction game typically has a lower monthly cost than a P2P equivalent. Only casual players who buy Non-Combat Pets, and Non-Stat Cosmetic Gear (Bunny Rabit Costumes, and Wedding Dresses) pay more than P2P Subs.
Hardcore Gamers that wont pay for Storage, access to Raiding Instances, or PvP gear, the total of which is less than a P2P Sub, should STFU. If you are a hardcore gamer then you don't BS with Alts, so you don't pay for storage of gear for 9 other alts you haven''t leveled past 20. If you are a hardcore gamer and you have reached end game , then you no longer have to pay for an XP buff. If you are a hardcore gamer doing PvP in F2P gear and can't beat a casual non-gamer in P2W gear, maybe you NEVER were a hardcore gamer and should just STFU.
As for Blizzard, and their upcoming new MMO, I can imagine this happening. In the first month they sell 7 Million copies and make $280 Million. The new game key can be added to an active WoW sub at no extra cost. In one years time active Blizzard subs reach 20 Million world wide and they own 100% of the possible MMO subs market. The Bubble has burst and every other MMO now is F2P, and if they are lucky they can get 10,000 players a month to pay for you broke useless hardcore players to play your game for free. At a total cost to casul players of $80,000 per month compared to Blizzards $65 million per month even if it goes F2P.
Finally my prediction of Blizzards new MMO, I have two. First, WoW-2 drops the cartoon graphics for something as good as Crysis, with out the lag and playable on 98% of the rigs out there. Second, World of Starcraft a MMORPG / FPS wih High Def grafics to rival Gears and Halo. As a result the console FPS / TPS market dries up. Blizzard releases its games on every console and every operating system, and All Your Bases Are Belong To Us. (AYBABTU)
Boy: Why can't I talk to Him?
Mom: We don't talk to Priests.
As if it could exist, without being payed for.
F2P means you get what you paid for. Pay nothing, get nothing.
Even telemarketers wouldn't think that.
It costs money to play. Therefore P2W.
Now that is a Huge Fanboy statement. That would be Like me saying with ToR coming out in March 2011 all other MMO will go F2P in March. :-P Which with the Hardcore SW fan's it is going to live Long and with Boiware behind it ,it is going to be a Great Game. But it isn't going to kill all other MMO's. But WoW going Pink or Kiddie is why I lft 3 years ago after 5 years of my Life went into it. There not going to break no new ground with there new MMO,There going to do what they know will get them Big Money and that is making it Kiddie friendly.
How nice for the WSJ.
I am still not going to play the "not" free to play garbage, because a sub fee is not enough for a bunch of greedy game company executives.
Screw 'em
I got a message that someone accessed my wow account. So my account is probably hacked and gone, yey free from the Blizzard slavery at last. I didn't react to the message because I'd probably get sucked back into the addiction anyway.
There is one MMO that is living longer than any other. Yes you know it, it's called Runescape. Although they have made the mistake of changing too much (like PVP) and got freaking greedy aswell (used to be 5$ for a month). I liked the game more when it used the gamemechanics of RS-classic, now people are calling it ruinedscape (lol).
There are LOTs of bogus emails like that making the rounds. Its best not to click any embeded links.
It seems there are a lot of F2P naysayers commenting here. I need to throw out a nod in the direction of being for the F2P model. I'm a husband and a father of two kids, that takes up time. I have a full time job, sometimes 60 hours per week, that takes up time. I have a home mortgage, two car payments, and miscellaneous other bills and I'm going back to school. That leaves me with maybe a 2-4 hours per week to play some games in the evening. How in the world do you propose that a 15$ per month subscription is worth it to me? F2P fits me because I can have fun playing my favorite MMO games and maybe spend a few dollars here and there. Someone up above said that all these players playing F2P are most likely kids and I would venture to guess that's not the case. It's probably more likely people like me who don't play enough to warrant shelling out 15 bucks a month to play a game. It's about priorities. So all of you elite-ist snobs please keep your comments to yourself and go ahead and continue to shell out your monthly subscription fees. Let the rest of us who have real lives keep our models that work for us.
Not trying to be a 'snob' here. but wouldnt all the reasons just stated actually mean the F2P model is not suitable for you.. i've yet to see any F2P that wasnt a huge time sink, or didnt require massive numbers of micro transactions to compensate for the lack of avaialable time.. i would be very interested to know which game your playing that somehow avoids these issues? i've played quite a few myself, and i've yet to find one that really fits the category you seem to be describing.
Simple, it's not the amount of time to progress that concerns me. It's the paying 15$ a month for something I might play for 2-4 hours per week max. Some months I might not get to play at all and then I would have just thrown 15 bucks out the window. The only other model that would fit me that no company is doing right now would be a tiered subscription model. Say 5$ a month for 10-15 hours rather than unlimited would work great. Like I said, no company is doing that model.
For fecks sake some of the inane babble in these posts drives me to distraction!
It's simple if you don't like F2P don't play it, if you like P2P then play it. Some of you guys must have too much time on your hands to whinge over something so bloody minor. It is down to personal choice in the end it reall is as easy as that.
I play a game coz I like it; if I have to pay a sub I will, if its a good game and its F2P then bonus and I'll play that. If some of you guys want to bitch try moaning about something world changing like poverty, equality, war or famine. Its a game make a choice you are an individual.
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The angel of death has been abroad throughout the land; you may almost hear the beating of his wings.
House of Commons, 23 Feb. 1855
I love these posts, they always give me a laugh. Folks if you're that busy with your "real lives", should you really be wasting your time with video games let alone those of a genre known to be big time investments? Better question would be: should you even be on an internet forum calling other people "elite-ist snobs"? Do you not have more important things to tend to?
Just a heads up; you are not unique among the average adult gamer. Most of us have "real lives", some of us have even busier schedules than you. It sounds like you have difficulty with managing your time, but that's another issue altogether.
"Mr. Rothstein, your people never will understand... the way it works out here. You're all just our guests. But you act like you're at home. Let me tell you something, partner. You ain't home. But that's where we're gonna send you if it harelips the governor." - Pat Webb
I wasn't the first, read through the plethura of posts above from subscription players labling free2play people as whining kiddies whose mommies won't give them money for their subscriptions. That, ladies and gentlemen, is your P2P community.
Most of the comments regarding this article have been entirely negative regarding the F2P model and the players who choose that model. I would venture to guess that a majority of the P2P players are single working adults or kids who's parents pay for their subscriptions or have after school jobs that do that. No married working adult with two or more kids could possibly devote more than 8hrs per week max to a video game and that's pretty much using all of your extra time to play the game. Of course, that's taking into account that you aren't ignoring your kids an playing the game while they are still awake.