There are so many CLUELESS posts on this thread it is hilarious. Sorry to impune on your perfect world, but these kids find many interesting ways to spend lots and lots of money on these f2p games.
Just the other day I was reading about a 10 year old who borrowed his grandmother's card and spent $1000 on a game. She could not pay her bills for the month.
Oh yeah, this f2p games are so great for kids....NOT.
Wake up and figure it out, dumping huge loads of cash in these games is not hard, nor difficult for an enterprising teen.
Perfect World has a $300 pet. Guess what, you see alot of them and it is the kids that are buying them.
If you are not making negative comments about RMT games, you should be.
There are so many CLUELESS posts on this thread it is hilarious. Sorry to impune on your perfect world, but these kids find many interesting ways to spend lots and lots of money on these f2p games. Just the other day I was reading about a 10 year old who borrowed his grandmother's card and spent $1000 on a game. She could not pay her bills for the month. Oh yeah, this f2p games are so great for kids....NOT. Wake up and figure it out, dumping huge loads of cash in these games is not hard, nor difficult for an enterprising teen. Perfect World has a $300 pet. Guess what, you see alot of them and it is the kids that are buying them. If you are not making negative comments about RMT games, you should be.
Really really intelligent.... Blame companies for kids stealing stuff. How about you point the blame where blame is due? Parents? Yeah you're right, you're pretty clueless too.
MMO developer are in it to make money, WHOA!!! you dont say! Shame on them, how could they???? If you as a parents, guardians and such are too dumb to control your own wallet, then how the heck can you control and raise a kid?
There are so many CLUELESS posts on this thread it is hilarious. Sorry to impune on your perfect world, but these kids find many interesting ways to spend lots and lots of money on these f2p games. Just the other day I was reading about a 10 year old who borrowed his grandmother's card and spent $1000 on a game. She could not pay her bills for the month. Oh yeah, this f2p games are so great for kids....NOT. Wake up and figure it out, dumping huge loads of cash in these games is not hard, nor difficult for an enterprising teen. Perfect World has a $300 pet. Guess what, you see alot of them and it is the kids that are buying them. If you are not making negative comments about RMT games, you should be.
Really really intelligent.... Blame companies for kids stealing stuff. How about you point the blame where blame is due? Parents? Yeah you're right, you're pretty clueless too.
MMO developer are in it to make money, WHOA!!! you dont say! Shame on them, how could they???? If you as a parents, guardians and such are too dumb to control your own wallet, then how the heck can you control and raise a kid?
You would be suprised how many parents fail in that task.
A perfect example is World of Warcraft.
It has all the parental tools a parent could wish for to cut down and keep control on their kids gaming time, so it stays within limits and not affecting the kids education, social education and that he so spends some time with friends outside too, catching some fresh air.
Problem is, that these days most parents don't give a jack about their kids and having them spending litterly 24/7 on a game like WoW is just exactly what they want.
It's safe (as he doesn't go outside and might harm himself or do something stupid) and the parents don't have to entertain him, so they can go their own bussiness, without having to worry about their kid(s).
Welcome to the parents of today.
(and ofcourse it's not all parents..... but a great lot of them are)
EDIT: And to the posters above. If you even bothered to actually read my post, then you would have read I wasn't bashing the game at all. Just explaining what F2P MMO's with Item Malls are.
If SOE can create a world environment compelling enough to make you want to buy virtual goods, then I say fair play to them, and I wish the well in this endeavor.
If turns out to be shit, then RMT or not, it won't matter to us.
The juicy question therfore is, can SOE make a game that compelling? They've had some good titles (EQ1, EQ2, SWG, Planetside) and regardless of how those compare to WoW today, SOE are still a major MMORPG force to be reckoned with.
In my personal opinion however, it seems like SOE are more interested in paying the bills by coming up with interesting ways to spend money, instead of interesting ways to make you want to buy their games. It seems like the accountants are the ones designing their games nowadays.
Still waiting for your Holy Grail MMORPG? Interesting...
My son plays Wizard 101, even with the restrictions because he hasn't talked his parents out of their credit card (whattaya know, some parents can say NO), and I think he'll probably like Free Realms too. To anyone who would know: Does it have an option for chat restrictions on younger kids? Just curious.
This info can be found on the Free Realms "For Parents" section, here is what they say:
Children under thirteen (13) are restricted to Quick Chat only. Parents cannot enable unregulated chat for players under the age of thirteen (13). However, parents of children age thirteen (13) and over can limit their child's interactions by switching Open Chat to Quick Chat on the Parental Controls page.
Quick Chat is a version of real-time text conversation that gives the user choices of pre-populated phrases and words. Players under the age of thirteen (13) are NOT able to insert or view any user-generated content and will only be able to select and view text from the list created by Sony Online Entertainment.
Basically it sounds just like Wizards101's option, which my family plays currently. After they saw the video for Free Realms though, they immediately wanted to switch to that. I have to admit that I'm eager to see this game comeout as well, it looks like a blast.
"If we don't attack them, they will attack us first. So we'd better retaliate before they have a chance to strike"
One of the reasons I don't think it will be heavy RMT is they want to compete with Rune Scape. They realize how large the market is for these type games and want a chunk. I personally hope its good, I want to give it a shot. RS was my first mmo and I'd like to see an updated version.
Sorry to point out yer obvious ignorance, but SOE has only recently added RMT for two of it's games. The items available are fluff items, (House pets, appearance armor with no stats). The LON cardcame is a completely optional and seperate facet of the game with fluff item rewards and nothing more. Any item from LON has a superior version in actual game loot aside from novelty. I'm tired of people joining the lets bash Company X bandwagon with no firsthand experience themselves. And if yer still butthurt about SWG; QQ some more and find a new game.
I agree .
SOE seems to be making a game similar to Wizard 101,but the fact that SOE is behind it,means a LOT more content.Kids nowadays are not stupid,many are very smart ,so no sense for games to hold back and make a cheap simplistic game,kids just like adults want content.I am VERY confident SOE will deliver and at the very least be on par with any other game in the genre.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
My God there are a Lot of Soe hateing trolls in the world.. And as a 30 year old man Im looking forward to trying it out Hay its free, cant go wrong with that
Its sad that so many people feel the need to hate SOE. Its like theres some sort of Sony hate club out there and people think its actually smart of them to be a part of it.
SOE is a great company within the Sony Corporation. They are willing to do what other developers are not and are honestly more true to their player base than any other mmo development company, They, unlike the others, have a large assortment of titles under their belt.
Now before someone blows a casket, you have to understand something about SOE. SOE was literally controlled by Sony's film studio. This means, producers, hollywood "big shots", and general hollywood businessmen were calling a lot of the shots, and/or hindering the company as a whole. The film industry is known for making stupid decisions all the time, the approach to success is much different, and thus they were unqualified to influence mmorpgs. Blame them for the titles that fell short under SOE. They treated it like a film production and failed.
The good news is, is that Sony has gone through a much needed re-structuring process. The current CEO of Sony is a westerner and he's been getting rid of the bad, while focusing on the good. Ken K. sabotaged the PS3, or tried to, because he didnt like this new CEO. The earlier problems with the PS3 can lead back to Ken K, who is no longer working for Sony much less on the PS3, thank god.
SOE has been moved over to Sony's game division, and are now in a position to get out from under the hand of foolish film producers and execs. Since then, games like Vanguard have been ressurected and quite well I might add. Its a great game, one that no one would have expected to be good. Other titles are coming out that are very smart and full of quality. The agency, DC Universe, Free Realms, HOME...ect Sony is leading the console market into the much needed online interactive world. No other console maker is doing that, in fact they lack innovation.
Anyways, SOE doesnt deserve any hate. Peeps need to get off this "soe hate bandwagon" and be happy that a company is pushing for more innovative and open to all online gaming, even if its not for you, its helping greatly the genre you love (or else you wouldnt be here.)
I find it funny that the appeal so far for this game is quite widespread. I mean here we are talking about some casual aim at teens and younger game yet older folks are interested in it.
That tells us a lot about how well this game will be received.
I'm curious about the game as well. I have a 7 year old son that enjoys games. It would be nice to play a game with him (if only I could afford another computer to do it.
F2P is fine...But if its F2P you can't expect to have everything without paying for something. In all reality SOE could slap a 14.99 a month charge on it.... would they get subscribers.. some.. would it hit their key market. No..
As a father I can't justify paying monthly for my son to sit in front of the computer.. He needs to do homework and go outside and socialize... however, I'm not against getting him the cool looking thing-a-ma-gig for 4.99 every once in a while. Also he wouldn't know that he's not getting 40% of the content either...
Although I gave up on Wizard 101 because I'm not that into card-based games, what I did love about it while I tried it out was the mini-games. I've never played Puzzle Pirates (don't like the avatars), but I know that's the appeal of the game as well.
And that brings us to Free Realms, which is chockful of many, many mini games, most of which look like they're a lot of fun... for ANYONE. I'm 38, and my mom is in her 70s, and she loves Yahoo! Games, Pogo, etc. Free Realms is a MMORPG that even someone as far from "8 to 15" as she is, could actually get into and enjoy endlessly. And for me, I'm looking forward to Free Realms as a casual game that when I feel like taking a light break, play a few mini-games, knock around some monsters, and play dress up, it will be a quick and fun game to pop in, and enjoy without much stress or grief.
As for the paid options... if you compare it to the $15 monthly fee for most Western MMOs, if we do expect the average price to be $5 for each item (or whatever they charge for), you could basically budget for yourself three upgrades a month, and stay on par for what you pay for a game like WoW, LOTRO, DDO, WAR, etc. Or you could never pay... but I think the game will be so addictively fun that even the most casual players will want to indulge themselves every once in a while. And there's nothing wrong with that.
In a nutshell, Free Realms is a potential behemoth on its way to be "the next big thing."
P.S. Nice to see MMORPG finally added Free Realms to their site... why didn't they do that like 9 months ago ? : )
Suffice it to say that: anyone who can't understand the anti-SOE sentiment, or the SOE-skepticism hasnt been in MMO gaming for very long. And THAT is why SOE is targeting a younger generation of pee-wee gamers.
That aside: I'd never play FreeRealms becasue to me playing a game that is so directly focused on younger gamers is sort of like, some older guy hanging around the playground saying... "What?! I just like how the teeter-toter feels!.... no really....".
Creeeee-eee-eeeepy! I just couldn't bring myself to play it; not when there are so many other great alternatives for older gamers out there all ready.
All's I can say is that I really hope SOE is ready to instate very heavy in-game moderation for this product. In the past they have had extremely poor in game CS or rules enforcement. That is at least one thing that SOE will have to change if they are going to create a place online for large numbers of kids to gather. If they dont heavly moderate Free Realms then... well thats just irrespnsible.
Heh...people who have played Wizard101 understand...and aren't worried about the Pedophiles...The chat system works...it will frustrate some people because of limited dictionaries...or for the truely young who have to use predetermined chat phrases.
I'm looking forward to it...we liked Wizard101...and my girls love Webkinz...the Freerealms sounds cheaper than that model...and if SOE was smart they would market real world pets wtih Virtual Pets...
How ironic will it be if this MMO for kids ended up being the most enjoyable MMO in recent years?
I'm no kid, but will give it a shot. The Quick Chat is a great idea, I just wonder how they intend to enforce the age restriction. If they can keep the vast majority of kids in that safe zone, the community environment could be very nice for everyone.
As far as the micro-payment model, I've slowly surrendered many of my objections to the concept. To get good MMORPGs, there needs to be a strong business model to support the development costs. If the micro-payment model solidifies as a viable business model and this leads to better games down the road, I'm all for it.
The genre needs innovations. Maybe the freedom of designing to an audience with out the jaded expectations of the established MMORPG vets will be a good thing for the creative process.
This is Free Realms. Free to download and play and supported by ad-revenue, a subscription of $4.99 a month to remove ads and open up 40% more options, $9.99 for a family subscription and micro-transactions for “fluff” items. Free to choose how you play as all aspects of the game are valid career choices.
Okay, sounds like a rip off. If you release a game and cal it "F2P" then all content shud be free and options to.
This is Free Realms. Free to download and play and supported by ad-revenue, a subscription of $4.99 a month to remove ads and open up 40% more options, $9.99 for a family subscription and micro-transactions for “fluff” items. Free to choose how you play as all aspects of the game are valid career choices.
Okay, sounds like a rip off. If you release a game and cal it "F2P" then all content shud be free and options to.
This will be the face of Soe and RMT >[]<
I agree that all "content" (levels, areas, quests, etc...) should be free in order to qualify a game as F2P. A good F2P model is one where the player can play the entire game from start to finish, through all levels and quests, but has the option to buy goodies (preferably convenience or cosmetic items only - nothing that gives an undue game play advantage to those who purchase items over those who play for free), remove advertisements, etc... The cash shop items should be designed and market in such a way that players really, really want them (incentive to purchase), but are never required to do so.
If that's what you mean, I agree. If you're stating that "everything" should be free, then I disagree. Game companies are business, not charities.
So after reading all these insightful comments I loaded the game, created an acct and spent the past 2 hours playing.
It didn't take long at all to get the game up and running. The graphics were decent as was the game play. I have never played an MMO before that had only one profession. At least they had it broken into "subclasses."
I found the game to be pretty enjoyable. I didn't even mind the sandbox-ness of the game. Thanks to everyone for the comments. I only saw 2 advanced avitars. Lets see if I stick around past the 14 days.
Still looking forward to Free Realms. Even though the video advertizement I found online feels like I'm watching the World Of Warcraft commercials. I kept waiting to see William Shatner or Mr. T.
It's called free realms yet It's 5$ a month for all acsess. I could understand if they put a cash shop with fluff items but charging a monthly fee? Come on now... They should call it p2p realms
It's called free realms yet It's 5$ a month for all acsess. I could understand if they put a cash shop with fluff items but charging a monthly fee? Come on now... They should call it p2p realms
It's called Free Realms because of the freedom you have within the game, not the revenue model. That being said, I think limiting content (zones, levels, quests, etc...) for free players means it's not really F2P. Granted, there appears to be more free content than in FusionFall or Wizard101, but both of those games are P2P games with unlimited free trials. Free Realms is being promoted as F2P, but with limited content.
Regardless, it looks like fun and I'm really interested in trying it out.
Comments
There are so many CLUELESS posts on this thread it is hilarious. Sorry to impune on your perfect world, but these kids find many interesting ways to spend lots and lots of money on these f2p games.
Just the other day I was reading about a 10 year old who borrowed his grandmother's card and spent $1000 on a game. She could not pay her bills for the month.
Oh yeah, this f2p games are so great for kids....NOT.
Wake up and figure it out, dumping huge loads of cash in these games is not hard, nor difficult for an enterprising teen.
Perfect World has a $300 pet. Guess what, you see alot of them and it is the kids that are buying them.
If you are not making negative comments about RMT games, you should be.
Really really intelligent.... Blame companies for kids stealing stuff. How about you point the blame where blame is due? Parents? Yeah you're right, you're pretty clueless too.
MMO developer are in it to make money, WHOA!!! you dont say! Shame on them, how could they???? If you as a parents, guardians and such are too dumb to control your own wallet, then how the heck can you control and raise a kid?
Really really intelligent.... Blame companies for kids stealing stuff. How about you point the blame where blame is due? Parents? Yeah you're right, you're pretty clueless too.
MMO developer are in it to make money, WHOA!!! you dont say! Shame on them, how could they???? If you as a parents, guardians and such are too dumb to control your own wallet, then how the heck can you control and raise a kid?
You would be suprised how many parents fail in that task.
A perfect example is World of Warcraft.
It has all the parental tools a parent could wish for to cut down and keep control on their kids gaming time, so it stays within limits and not affecting the kids education, social education and that he so spends some time with friends outside too, catching some fresh air.
Problem is, that these days most parents don't give a jack about their kids and having them spending litterly 24/7 on a game like WoW is just exactly what they want.
It's safe (as he doesn't go outside and might harm himself or do something stupid) and the parents don't have to entertain him, so they can go their own bussiness, without having to worry about their kid(s).
Welcome to the parents of today.
(and ofcourse it's not all parents..... but a great lot of them are)
EDIT: And to the posters above. If you even bothered to actually read my post, then you would have read I wasn't bashing the game at all. Just explaining what F2P MMO's with Item Malls are.
If SOE can create a world environment compelling enough to make you want to buy virtual goods, then I say fair play to them, and I wish the well in this endeavor.
If turns out to be shit, then RMT or not, it won't matter to us.
The juicy question therfore is, can SOE make a game that compelling? They've had some good titles (EQ1, EQ2, SWG, Planetside) and regardless of how those compare to WoW today, SOE are still a major MMORPG force to be reckoned with.
In my personal opinion however, it seems like SOE are more interested in paying the bills by coming up with interesting ways to spend money, instead of interesting ways to make you want to buy their games. It seems like the accountants are the ones designing their games nowadays.
Still waiting for your Holy Grail MMORPG? Interesting...
This info can be found on the Free Realms "For Parents" section, here is what they say:
Children under thirteen (13) are restricted to Quick Chat only. Parents cannot enable unregulated chat for players under the age of thirteen (13). However, parents of children age thirteen (13) and over can limit their child's interactions by switching Open Chat to Quick Chat on the Parental Controls page.
Quick Chat is a version of real-time text conversation that gives the user choices of pre-populated phrases and words. Players under the age of thirteen (13) are NOT able to insert or view any user-generated content and will only be able to select and view text from the list created by Sony Online Entertainment.
Basically it sounds just like Wizards101's option, which my family plays currently. After they saw the video for Free Realms though, they immediately wanted to switch to that. I have to admit that I'm eager to see this game comeout as well, it looks like a blast.
"If we don't attack them, they will attack us first. So we'd better retaliate before they have a chance to strike"
One of the reasons I don't think it will be heavy RMT is they want to compete with Rune Scape. They realize how large the market is for these type games and want a chunk. I personally hope its good, I want to give it a shot. RS was my first mmo and I'd like to see an updated version.
-Almerel
Hello my old friend.
I agree
.
SOE seems to be making a game similar to Wizard 101,but the fact that SOE is behind it,means a LOT more content.Kids nowadays are not stupid,many are very smart ,so no sense for games to hold back and make a cheap simplistic game,kids just like adults want content.I am VERY confident SOE will deliver and at the very least be on par with any other game in the genre.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
Its sad that so many people feel the need to hate SOE. Its like theres some sort of Sony hate club out there and people think its actually smart of them to be a part of it.
SOE is a great company within the Sony Corporation. They are willing to do what other developers are not and are honestly more true to their player base than any other mmo development company, They, unlike the others, have a large assortment of titles under their belt.
Now before someone blows a casket, you have to understand something about SOE. SOE was literally controlled by Sony's film studio. This means, producers, hollywood "big shots", and general hollywood businessmen were calling a lot of the shots, and/or hindering the company as a whole. The film industry is known for making stupid decisions all the time, the approach to success is much different, and thus they were unqualified to influence mmorpgs. Blame them for the titles that fell short under SOE. They treated it like a film production and failed.
The good news is, is that Sony has gone through a much needed re-structuring process. The current CEO of Sony is a westerner and he's been getting rid of the bad, while focusing on the good. Ken K. sabotaged the PS3, or tried to, because he didnt like this new CEO. The earlier problems with the PS3 can lead back to Ken K, who is no longer working for Sony much less on the PS3, thank god.
SOE has been moved over to Sony's game division, and are now in a position to get out from under the hand of foolish film producers and execs. Since then, games like Vanguard have been ressurected and quite well I might add. Its a great game, one that no one would have expected to be good. Other titles are coming out that are very smart and full of quality. The agency, DC Universe, Free Realms, HOME...ect Sony is leading the console market into the much needed online interactive world. No other console maker is doing that, in fact they lack innovation.
Anyways, SOE doesnt deserve any hate. Peeps need to get off this "soe hate bandwagon" and be happy that a company is pushing for more innovative and open to all online gaming, even if its not for you, its helping greatly the genre you love (or else you wouldnt be here.)
@BaronJuJu -- Thanks! That's just what I wanted to know.
...
This is where I draw the line: __________________.
I find it funny that the appeal so far for this game is quite widespread. I mean here we are talking about some casual aim at teens and younger game yet older folks are interested in it.
That tells us a lot about how well this game will be received.
star wars galaxies!!!!!!!
Games i'm playing right now...
"In short, I thought NGE was a very bad idea" - Raph Koster talking about NGE on his blog at raphkoster.com
I'm curious about the game as well. I have a 7 year old son that enjoys games. It would be nice to play a game with him (if only I could afford another computer to do it.
F2P is fine...But if its F2P you can't expect to have everything without paying for something. In all reality SOE could slap a 14.99 a month charge on it.... would they get subscribers.. some.. would it hit their key market. No..
As a father I can't justify paying monthly for my son to sit in front of the computer.. He needs to do homework and go outside and socialize... however, I'm not against getting him the cool looking thing-a-ma-gig for 4.99 every once in a while. Also he wouldn't know that he's not getting 40% of the content either...
https://www.youtube.com/user/NemsGaming
Although I gave up on Wizard 101 because I'm not that into card-based games, what I did love about it while I tried it out was the mini-games. I've never played Puzzle Pirates (don't like the avatars), but I know that's the appeal of the game as well.
And that brings us to Free Realms, which is chockful of many, many mini games, most of which look like they're a lot of fun... for ANYONE. I'm 38, and my mom is in her 70s, and she loves Yahoo! Games, Pogo, etc. Free Realms is a MMORPG that even someone as far from "8 to 15" as she is, could actually get into and enjoy endlessly. And for me, I'm looking forward to Free Realms as a casual game that when I feel like taking a light break, play a few mini-games, knock around some monsters, and play dress up, it will be a quick and fun game to pop in, and enjoy without much stress or grief.
As for the paid options... if you compare it to the $15 monthly fee for most Western MMOs, if we do expect the average price to be $5 for each item (or whatever they charge for), you could basically budget for yourself three upgrades a month, and stay on par for what you pay for a game like WoW, LOTRO, DDO, WAR, etc. Or you could never pay... but I think the game will be so addictively fun that even the most casual players will want to indulge themselves every once in a while. And there's nothing wrong with that.
In a nutshell, Free Realms is a potential behemoth on its way to be "the next big thing."
P.S. Nice to see MMORPG finally added Free Realms to their site... why didn't they do that like 9 months ago ? : )
Suffice it to say that: anyone who can't understand the anti-SOE sentiment, or the SOE-skepticism hasnt been in MMO gaming for very long. And THAT is why SOE is targeting a younger generation of pee-wee gamers.
That aside: I'd never play FreeRealms becasue to me playing a game that is so directly focused on younger gamers is sort of like, some older guy hanging around the playground saying... "What?! I just like how the teeter-toter feels!.... no really....".
Creeeee-eee-eeeepy! I just couldn't bring myself to play it; not when there are so many other great alternatives for older gamers out there all ready.
All's I can say is that I really hope SOE is ready to instate very heavy in-game moderation for this product. In the past they have had extremely poor in game CS or rules enforcement. That is at least one thing that SOE will have to change if they are going to create a place online for large numbers of kids to gather. If they dont heavly moderate Free Realms then... well thats just irrespnsible.
FINBAR
-------------------------------------------
A Michael Jackson paradise!
looks good though
Guild Wars Closed Alpha Tester
Lineage 2 Closed Beta Tester
Everquest 2 Closed Beta Tester
Risk Your Life Closed Beta Tester
Heh...people who have played Wizard101 understand...and aren't worried about the Pedophiles...The chat system works...it will frustrate some people because of limited dictionaries...or for the truely young who have to use predetermined chat phrases.
I'm looking forward to it...we liked Wizard101...and my girls love Webkinz...the Freerealms sounds cheaper than that model...and if SOE was smart they would market real world pets wtih Virtual Pets...
www.houseofdexter.com
How ironic will it be if this MMO for kids ended up being the most enjoyable MMO in recent years?
I'm no kid, but will give it a shot. The Quick Chat is a great idea, I just wonder how they intend to enforce the age restriction. If they can keep the vast majority of kids in that safe zone, the community environment could be very nice for everyone.
As far as the micro-payment model, I've slowly surrendered many of my objections to the concept. To get good MMORPGs, there needs to be a strong business model to support the development costs. If the micro-payment model solidifies as a viable business model and this leads to better games down the road, I'm all for it.
The genre needs innovations. Maybe the freedom of designing to an audience with out the jaded expectations of the established MMORPG vets will be a good thing for the creative process.
Want to know more about GW2 and why there is so much buzz? Start here: Guild Wars 2 Mass Info for the Uninitiated
This is Free Realms. Free to download and play and supported by ad-revenue, a subscription of $4.99 a month to remove ads and open up 40% more options, $9.99 for a family subscription and micro-transactions for “fluff” items. Free to choose how you play as all aspects of the game are valid career choices.
Okay, sounds like a rip off. If you release a game and cal it "F2P" then all content shud be free and options to.
This will be the face of Soe and RMT >[
]<
Lots of great comments on the F2P business model.
But it's five bucks.
I agree that all "content" (levels, areas, quests, etc...) should be free in order to qualify a game as F2P. A good F2P model is one where the player can play the entire game from start to finish, through all levels and quests, but has the option to buy goodies (preferably convenience or cosmetic items only - nothing that gives an undue game play advantage to those who purchase items over those who play for free), remove advertisements, etc... The cash shop items should be designed and market in such a way that players really, really want them (incentive to purchase), but are never required to do so.
If that's what you mean, I agree. If you're stating that "everything" should be free, then I disagree. Game companies are business, not charities.
~Ripper
So after reading all these insightful comments I loaded the game, created an acct and spent the past 2 hours playing.
It didn't take long at all to get the game up and running. The graphics were decent as was the game play. I have never played an MMO before that had only one profession. At least they had it broken into "subclasses."
I found the game to be pretty enjoyable. I didn't even mind the sandbox-ness of the game. Thanks to everyone for the comments. I only saw 2 advanced avitars. Lets see if I stick around past the 14 days.
Still looking forward to Free Realms. Even though the video advertizement I found online feels like I'm watching the World Of Warcraft commercials. I kept waiting to see William Shatner or Mr. T.
the game is still in closed beta
Free Realms will be going open beta in April
EQ2 fan sites
Again, when you put restrictions on the free account that limit the gameplay beyond special items, then the game is NOT free to play.
Free Realms is a misnomer, it is NOT free to play, but offers a free trial instead. You have to pay to play to access all areas of the game.
So this game most definite does not fit in the free to play category.
It's called free realms yet It's 5$ a month for all acsess. I could understand if they put a cash shop with fluff items but charging a monthly fee? Come on now... They should call it p2p realms
It's called Free Realms because of the freedom you have within the game, not the revenue model. That being said, I think limiting content (zones, levels, quests, etc...) for free players means it's not really F2P. Granted, there appears to be more free content than in FusionFall or Wizard101, but both of those games are P2P games with unlimited free trials. Free Realms is being promoted as F2P, but with limited content.
Regardless, it looks like fun and I'm really interested in trying it out.
~Ripper