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Free Realms changing its business model
ArcAngel3
Member Posts: 2,931
I just read the following article at another MMO site. I'm posting it here as an fyi to gamers that may wonder what Free Realms is all about. What ever it has been about, it appears that this is all changing:
“Free Realms is Free. You can make a character and choose from any of a wide variety of jobs and swap between them at any time. If you pay a little, you get even COOLER jobs. I was pretty excited about the game when it launched, but the gameplay just got kinda repetitive and I found I was only leveling my final class — the wizard — in order to get more Hogwart’s-style wizard outfits. That wasn’t worth buying a card at Best Buy to play after awhile.
Now it seems I don’t have to worry about playing all, any more, because Free Realms is no longer free. The Teal Terrapin noticed in a Massively story that SOE is adopting a Wizard101-style “free-mium” model, where your first four levels are free, but after that, you must pay.
Creative Director Laralyn McWilliams insists this was a change players asked for.
Players have asked to try out all of the jobs, and we listened. So as of early November, free player characters that are newly created will be able to play any job (Ninja, Chef, Postman, Kart Driver, Demo Derby Driver, Brawler, Miner, Soccer Star, Archer, Wizard, Medic, Blacksmith, Warrior) in Free Realms up to level five for free. When level four is completed, the job becomes Members Only.
… so we’re given to believe.
Was there really a great outcry from Free Realms players to make the game not be free any more?
In Wizard101, you can either subscribe or pay to unlock new areas as you come to them. Once you unlock an area, it is unlocked forever, and for all your current or future characters. Letting your Free Realms membership expire means you won’t be able to play any job that has leveled past level 5. This isn’t unusual for a subscription game, but it is rather odd for a free to play game, that usually try to encourage people to spend time online.
But then, Free Realms is no longer a F2P game.”
Found here: westkarana.com/index.php/category/mmos/free-realms
Comments
This is great news. F2P games are the same as players buying their characters off of EBay.
Actually, they are completly different. One costs money and one doesn't. Once is usuall against EULA, one is not.
Actually, they are completly different. One costs money and one doesn't. Once is usuall against EULA, one is not.
Talking about feats of gameplay, not ethics. Players who "earn" their gear through gameplay rather than buy it, legally or not.
Actually, they are completly different. One costs money and one doesn't. Once is usuall against EULA, one is not.
Talking about feats of gameplay, not ethics. Players who "earn" their gear through gameplay rather than buy it, legally or not.
??? I have never put any money into a F2P game, but most only sell cosmetic gear, nothing with stats.
So, again, they are completly different.
The original business model did have free to play professions, but the RMT items were more than cosmetic. For example, I believe you could play a pet trainer for free, but an actual pet would cost you money at the item shop.
Now, it seems that all professions will be free only on a trial basis, up to the end of level 4. Then all jobs will be members only = a fee. This seems like a real change in direction for the game.
One thing that stood out to me as I read the post I quoted was this comment: "Creative Director Laralyn McWilliams insists this was a change players asked for."
Players really asked to start paying for a F2P game? I find that hard to believe. Sounds like marketting spin to me. SOE seems to have this habit of making unwelcome changes to their games, and then claiming that they're merely giving players what they asked for.
At least current characters will be able to maintain their current professions for free. That's something I suppose.
Looks like they're going to have to change the name of the game then. Now that they can't call it "Free Realms" anymore...
Main characters:
Jinn Gone Quiet (Guild Wars)
Princess Pudding (Guild Wars)
Why do developers always make the claim that things like this were in response to players requests? I wish they would just be honest and say their original revenue model sucked.
I don't see how this is going to be a good move for the game. They can't get people to play for free, so forcing a fee will somehow entice more to play?
What's even more bizarre is when game companies continue to insist they were doing what players wanted, even after most of them have cancelled.
I think the idea with Free Realms was to get people into the game for free and then entice them to spend more money in the item shop than they might on subscriptions. The fact that this game targets kids with this model was never a very popular idea for me. I didn't really want my kids begging me for virtual items from the Sony online store; especially when Sony reserves the right to devalue or delete those items any time they see fit, whether the kids like it or not.
I'd guess that too many people saw through the original business model, and avoided the RMT money pit. Good for them, I say. It appears that Sony's response is to simply begin charging everyone a subscription fee after all, as well as still trying to lure them into RMT.
My guess is that most people will continue to avoid the RMT temptation and that the additional fees will inhibit population growth. I wouldn't be surprised if the population actually declines as a result of this significant change to a live game. SOE seems to be famous for that.
Haha, another flop by SOE and some retards at SteelWarrior called this yet another tired "WoW killer" YEA RIGHT< how clueless can you be. Of course SOE pulled the bait and switch, did you expect less from the most evil company out there?
It really does smell like a bait and switch.
Great move on Sony's part, F2P games are trash All of them, yes ROM too. Sony's smart to separate themselfs from the bottom feeders of the MMO market.
They also attract a crowd I dont find particullarly fun to be around, F2P communities are generally horrid.
Haha this is funny, I'm sure your personal beef with f2p games was the furthest thing from the minds of SOE who ironically have a bit of a reputation problem themselves which is magnified by the companies standing in just about every other division of the company.
but yeah, to call this game Fantastic is like calling Twilight the Godfather of vampire movies....
if true it means only one thing
they are doing really bad and need to raise cash immediately. So much for all the hype of having this many million or that many million users - looks like only an its bits tiny tiny percentage wants to actually pay for it -
and what about the name? if it is not free to play, is it still going to be called Free Realms?
This is completely bait & switch, and when you take into account this was marketed as a kids game & they are making such a massive change to a kids game it's pretty despicable, still, SoE have form at despicable game changes.
Why not just tell the truth instead of this bullshit spin-doctoring?
Of course players wanted the opportunity to play the "premium" classes, on the proviso it was going to mean the rest of the game that they enjoyed for free was left well enough alone, to say players wanted to pay a sub once they passed level 5 is bollox I don't see 5 million kids asking "please Mr Smedley, can you make it so I have to pay for all classes past 5 instead of having just a few classes pay-only so that I can try all of them?" it's bullshit & all can see right through it.
They would have gained a modicum of respect if they had said, "our current business model is unsustainable, too few are investing in the game to keep it viable, i.e. profitable, so in order for it to be worth our time running it we must change it from Free Realms to Free up to level 5 Realms, we apologise to all those kids that had enjoyed the game in it's prior incarnation"
Either way, their 5 million subs will evaporate like spit in a desert now.
Freemium Realms, love it. Hmmm, actually I don't.
The never had that money subs. Just registered users. I'm 4 of those 5 million, I played...maybe...2 hours tops. Never spent a cent.
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Wow and i was actually going to give it a try as how i saw a video of the ninja class and it peaked my interst, guess i'll just stick with Aion and CO for now untill allods online goes into open beta 80(