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Why all games should be free to play
alderdale
Member Posts: 301
Ive compiled a list of all the reasons that games should be free to play.
I have no money and cant afford to buy games and or pay a subscription fee
I'm rich and can afford to buy every item in the game BI WINNING
I dont really know what I want in a game therefore I have to play it to have any idea if I might like it
I just need another place to blow up in 1-9 chat
One game can no longer hold my attention like it used to I need to be able to jump around to a couple of different games per night F2P allows me this option
Providing a free product relieves the developers of any real expectations by their customers or the need to provide customer service they can just focus on making the next free to play game
Free to play gives dead or dying Pay to Play games a chance and when you discover you still dont like it as a Free to Play you can just toss it out with no real loss
That other game I played was free so so should this one
Because its okay to have 10% of the player base investing heavily so the rest can play for free. F2P devs are really just modern day Robin Hoods and that dude was freaking COOL!
Its a better model, just think how much more fun movies would be if the first part was free and you just payed for more parts and parts until you were happy with seeing enough of the movie.
it puts more developers to work that would otherwise be having to compete for jobs at triple AAA studios. More jobs equals WIN!
Because there is currently not enough killer pandas baby bugs and glowly butterfys to kill in other online games. Seriously is there ever really enough of em? No way!
The age of MMO players continues to go down we must imbrace the next generations expectations of free software
Ill just let the community finish this list Im going to bed.........
Comments
Because what ive understand on Free to play is it has an fine print says if you want to rule this game buy all items on the item shop.
Imo LoL did the best job of the F2p model
Free to Play is a concept that looks excellent on paper. If there is content you want, you pay for it. If there is something you do not care for then you can ignore it.
The problem is that this kind of business model will always end up costing much, much more than simply purchasing the full package from the store, paying a monthly sub or even a combination of both.
Personally I don't see anything wrong with a monthly sub. I don't play MMOs anymore, haven't played one in over a year, but when I did play MMOs, it was the cheapest hobby I ever had. 15 euros a month and that was it. I devoted all my time to that one MMO so I hardly bought any new games either.
so that players won't have a hard time paying before they can play.
good games that offer free play is a nice idea because for me the word "FREE" attracts more attention for most people. they think that if its free, they are free from the burden of paying regular basis subscription.
I personally hate the FTP concept when it comes to be buying tons of annoying potions for gain experience... removing debuffs...moving faster....getting weapons...etc so you can have a "normal" play experience...
Those in-game Stores just get on my nerves.....
If that is what you mean by FTP....i rather pay a monthly fee.
Only mode of FTP i would support is GUILD WARS Style, real FTP,no fees...and no punishment for no paying.
BTW: You said "Providing a free product relieves the developers of any real expectations by their customers or the need to provide customer service they can just focus on making the next free to play game"
LOL You must be kidding.... there is nothing good on that affirmation unless you don´t enjoy deep and good games... seems more like you enjoy a very casual and supperficial game style,i would suggest you to try the facebook mini games then.... I bet you´ll love them,and yes,they are free...
Cause its fun to play a game that is a constant commercial for itself.
In case you were serious with some of these comments are in red.
Well, All PC "Games" should all be free to play. Why? to determine if the game is, the game your looking for and especially to test it. Paying for the game? it should all go to the items use for longer play and better gaming experience for those who wanted that kind of game. THAT'S WHY FREE TO PLAY IS IMPORTANT.
trials, sure. unlimited trials like war, sure.
f2p ?? oh hell no. I dont like microtransactions already so no.
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My favourite MMO should cost $50 per month!
Most parents wouldn't pay that, so the annoying goldbegging brats would be gone. And the douchebags would reconsider, since getting banned would mean a lot of wasted money.
Result: a wonderful community!
a wonderful and RICH community because 50e x month is expensive as s****.
I Hope communities are not based on how much money you can /you want to spend on a game....
u must be kidding...........
Rich?
$50 is nothing. Here in Norway it's 1.5 packs of tobacco, or what lowest paid workers earns in 2 hours (before taxes).
In America, 50 bucks can get you a carton and a half of cigs and around 4 to 5 hours of work but we are in a recession and hitting an all time high in unemployment. So, $50 is a lot to us.
Choice is a good thing. I want to be able to choose a game with either P2P, F2P or B2P and if all games have the same model you rob me of that option.
And I am not so sure all games would earn money if everyone of them went F2P. Whne a few do it they get most of the people who want to spend money to buy stuff ingame. If all games have the same I think there will be a lot more leechers than there are in the F2P games right now.
It is fine that some games are F2P but don't force me to use it as the only option if I want to continue play MMOs.
Besides, B2P can earn a lot of money as well, GW has been doing great.
If you want a game, you will need the best of both worlds....Yeah! Lets call them Hybrids as a joke...
I prefer a subscription fee of $5 - $10 with player packages. If a game has a cash shop there should be no items to give players weapon advantages...I do like the entire EXP Potions and usually the skill potions....and the design exists to allow people who can play for short periods of time to spend less time to reach the character level of those who play constantly.
Time is money right? Playing 8 - 12 hours a day is unhealthy and in such time one could work for 8 hours in some good job and get some skill in the real world, play a game for four hours with EXP Potions/Skill Potions and accomplish more doing that...than players who will spend all their time playing.
I like character slots, exp potions , skill potions etc..... in cash shops.
A lot of adults play MMORPGs and in order to keep up they prefer to be smart enough to know when and where to use a specific item. As long as the game does not depend on those items to reach the end, it works fine, but many F2P games make those items dependent when you pass a certain point which is why customers are cheated and fall into traps.
I prefer a subscription based model that isnt that expensive and also has the cash shops but offer no direct weapons, armor or item enhancers. Its a pain in the butt when players spend $100+ a month to maximize most of their armor and weapons and buy an advantage...forcing others to do the same. Just seeing this should give you a clue to avoid that PvP experience since the one with the most money will win.
I also believe that the entire formula should be rewritten for MMORPGs. There shouldn't be heavy grinding and it should be an immersive experience. It shouldn't take 1000+ hours to raise a character...It should take far less and the concentration should be on playing the game and not always raising the character. This is why MMORPGs are like work. One enters a job being a lowbie or newbie...slaves away for years hoping to become something...then gloat at achievements and accomplishments. So long they are all growth accomplishments, it will feel like working in real life and having a second job.
I don't play games to be treated like a job, I play them to have fun with characters and take my mind off things....
I think that both the customer base and industry should embrace F2P more, because not many games can survive on a subscription alone these days.
On the other hand, if your game is hype'd to all hell and you are sure that you won't sell a million copies only to end up retaining 15% of the original population - there is no reason to *not* go subscription.
There will always be blockbuster games and the smaller ones, the former doesn't have to get creative with it's financials until it *has to*.
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Now Playing: Skyrim, Wurm Online, Tropico 4
Waiting On: GW2, TSW, Archeage, The Rapture
Ironically, if the game is high budget and F2P it usually ends up with strong microtransactions which in the end result in the same thing, it'll just feel more like the real life social piramid.
And I am not considering Guild Wars 2 since it's not F2P but B2P instead (which is the model I have more hope for, I'll gladly take one-time payments instead of a strong microtransaction shop full of advantages or hidden monthly fees for sale or monthly payments for game access).
Well.... why some of them are not 100% free.
Why all games should be free to play: Because many who want this seem to be clueless how much effort/work it takes to create a game or MMORPG.
Overall lmao and thanks for that OP and most of your points are pretty spot on
I don't think free to play will every become the norm, cash shops in games might, but free to play never will.
Also they had a 50 bucks a month sub game, it was called EQ legends. It was all on stormhammer server and people shelled out 50 a month to chill on it.
Please provide even one piece of data that supports that. Plenty of publishers and developers in all areas of the industry have provided data that says 80%-90% of the players never pay anything. If you have data to the contrary, please include that in your post.
Hopefully that takes care of 'always' so let's tackle that 'ends up costing much, much more' part:
Of the players that pay, the average number is greatly skewed by extreme purchases at the high end, but even then it still remains at about 30-35 USD per month for that 10% or so of the player population. But, really, how much more is that than the person that bought a box and paid a sub for three months?
The difference in money spent becomes even more insane when you consider how your first month of every F2P game you try is FREE and for the vast majority of subscription games that first month is going to cost you $40 or more... but you get your first month free with that $40 purchase... or something.
EDIT: That being said, a F2P component to every game doesn't seem like a bad idea at all. I like hybrid options like DDO and LOTRO. In North America, it's the most popular model the leisure and entertainment industry offers. MMOs are no different than cable TV, exclusive winery lists, internet access or any other entertainment club or service.
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
I like the B2P model. Purchase the game and then it's on the developers to produce expansions with a lot of content so that you will buy it to keep the game alive. Don't really mind cash shops with cosmetic only items.
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