SWTOR Free to Play ?

[summourn]

Yea i think that would be good, the clothes, legacy perks quick unlock, unique saber crystals etc would bring them in a fair bit of money

Honestly lol the more I think about how the Legacy system is set up, the more it occurs to me that it would already work really great with a cash shop system. Most of the prices for simple unlocks are outrageous, especially since many of the new ones are per character only. With ridiculous Legacy prices for unlocks, you could already have the system of: "You can purchase these things in game for a few million credits, or you can unlock them for ten bucks on our shop."

It would keep the fairness that anything can be earned with in-game time and effort, but that it would be easier and quicker to just spend a few dollars and get it an alternative way.

[pfbe]

Lets face it, wow is inferior to these new mmo's in a lot of ways, but people don't want to give up their years of playing, for many reasons...including nostalgia. Reminds me of something I saw on tv recently...a old man doesn't want to give up his records even though his son bought him cd's which had superior quality...which is like wow...even though its inferior people don't want to give it up because of their history in it.

Wow, inferior to these new mmo's? Nope. The only thing these new mmo's have tried to do better to differentiate themselves from wow is graphics, and they've all failed to create graphics that are at the same time high quality/polished, and easy to identify, select and tell apart from one another. I much prefer flashier colors and boxier models than ultra-slim "I can't even tell what the hell that is at a distance".

but then again, I've always been more into arcade-style stuff than the simulation/realistic crap that has plagued the gaming market for the past decade or so.

For the sake of making my perspective clear, I've played AoC, Warhammer, lotro, aion, dc:u and tabula rasa when it was around. WoW is still more fun than any of them ever was.

[mishal]

That didn't take long.

[Deleted]

Just as expected.

[summourn]

That, to me, is why F2P is bad. Plus, like most people on here seem to think as well. Once a game goes F2P they are basically admitting the game wasn't making enough money monthly to be worthwhile, so before we shut it down, we're giving it one last chance to succeed. Anyone who doesn't think that's what a developer is saying when a game goes F2P is fooling themselves, because while you always have people who like to spend extra money, if a very, very large majority of the F2P player-base never bought a single thing, you definitely cannot sustain yourself on the people who do.

Yeah. That's why it was shocking to me when I heard they were considering it. I mentioned in my previous post's edit that it does sadden me, since I sincerely love this game, and that this is, in a way, admitting defeat and just trying to milk what they can from the remainder. I wish this game was doing better, I wish people enjoyed it more, I wish the development team had been quicker to fix some of the unfortunately glaring issues that drove a good portion of its player base away and caused an unusual amount of animosity towards it.

It seems, though, that those are wishes and nothing more. The current state of the game is, sadly, in trouble, and this new public hint (and testing the waters) of F2P in the future kind of suggests that. It's only 6 or so months into the game and this is already happening. I'm amazed at how quickly it did. The game, to me, just isn't bad enough to sincerely warrant such a thing. I'm not even certain where it all went wrong. I'll keep playing it though, myself, until it's either shut down, I eventually get burnt out, or they potentially make the cash shop exclusive quests/content/necessity items, etc.

[Argroth]

Yeah if this game goes free to play they really are just giving up.

They wanted to get out before they add a real expansion so they will never have to pay this game much attention ever again. They want to move on to other Bioware projects.

I like this game so I hope they don't kill it by making it Free to play.

[Deleted]

Developers need to realise that WoW is the only game out there that can successfully get away with charging a monthly fee nowadays... purely because it built up a large following that way. (This coming from someone who can't even stand it when someone mentions the game any more).

Saying that, f2p games(with cash shops) can actually make more per user than a sub fee would rake in, so I don't see why everyone keeps pushing towards the monthly sub option.
I'll have to say though, I am not surprised swtor turned out this way, it has been the biggest flop in the history of the gaming industry.
It makes me happy to see it dieing this way, especially after I paid £60 for the digital deluxe edition via origin(fucking EA... how do you "run out" of the regular digital edition, ________________________).

Please avoid such language ~ Dakia

[Dakia]

People, can we stop with the death of the game crap? MMOs going F2P has shown numerous times to be quite the opposite of the death of the game.

Personally, I do not like the F2P model. I prefer the monthly sub model, but that is only a personal preference. I just don't like being nickle and dimed to death for pointless items. I prefer to know that $15 a month is coming out of my account and that I'm not going to be prompted to pay $X to get additional content, etc.

Even though I do not like the F2P model, I can see and have seen that it can lead to further success and a growing game because it is the popular model among the gamers out there. Look at LotRO, Aion and soon Vanguard. All have switched or are switching to the F2P model and received an incredible amount of new interest in the game.

. . . . . EA... how do you "run out" of the regular digital edition. . . . .

They didn't run out of the digital edition as you say. GW2 has actually done this exact same thing. It is just a way to limit access for a short period of time.

[Shadylol]

Yeah. That's why it was shocking to me when I heard they were considering it. I mentioned in my previous post's edit that it does sadden me, since I sincerely love this game, and that this is, in a way, admitting defeat and just trying to milk what they can from the remainder. I wish this game was doing better, I wish people enjoyed it more, I wish the development team had been quicker to fix some of the unfortunately glaring issues that drove a good portion of its player base away and caused an unusual amount of animosity towards it.

It seems, though, that those are wishes and nothing more. The current state of the game is, sadly, in trouble, and this new public hint (and testing the waters) of F2P in the future kind of suggests that. It's only 6 or so months into the game and this is already happening. I'm amazed at how quickly it did. The game, to me, just isn't bad enough to sincerely warrant such a thing. I'm not even certain where it all went wrong. I'll keep playing it though, myself, until it's either shut down, I eventually get burnt out, or they potentially make the cash shop exclusive quests/content/necessity items, etc.

This post made me feel weird

On one hand, I believe that BioWare needs to face the consequences of their actions, but at the same time, I'm sad for those of you who actually like SWTOR (to each his own), and I don't want to see you guys lose something that you care about. Unfortunately, I think that free to play is inevitable at this point, because it's more financially viable than keeping the sub model with the remainder of players. What's left just isn't enough to really get EA excited, even if BioWare would be content with it

For what it's worth, I was very vocal, over a year before release including during beta testing. I begged BioWare to change a lot of stuff, and I wasn't the only one. There were a lot of us who really tried to help change SWTOR into something that could be a long term game. Unfortunately, we were met with a generally un receptive BioWare who thought they knew best, and much of the Community just said "go back to WoW!" to every bit of constructive criticism

---------- Post added 2012-06-15 at 11:45 AM ----------

People, can we stop with the death of the game crap? MMOs going F2P has shown numerous times to be quite the opposite of the death of the game.

Personally, I do not like the F2P model. I prefer the monthly sub model, but that is only a personal preference. I just don't like being nickle and dimed to death for pointless items. I prefer to know that $15 a month is coming out of my account and that I'm not going to be prompted to pay $X to get additional content, etc.

Even though I do not like the F2P model, I can see and have seen that it can lead to further success and a growing game because it is the popular model among the gamers out there. Look at LotRO, Aion and soon Vanguard. All have switched or are switching to the F2P model and received an incredible amount of new interest in the game.

I think what they mean is really the death of BioWare's dream, and EA/BioWare's goals for the game. Of course the game can survive on a free to play model, but it's basically admitting defeat, and that they weren't able to keep up in the market. Seeing as how they wanted to compete with WoW (http://www.vg247.com/2008/10/24/wow-...asarts-and-ea/), the free to play transition feels like they're just giving up on that idea, and trying to make whatever money they can

[voidillusion]

People, can we stop with the death of the game crap?

We can, but do you seriously think that for a profit oriented company like EA, making this game F2P will be nothing short of killing him (slowly)?

That's how i see it tbh. And smelling this far way and i won't cash in more money to their pocker untill i see some certainty on the horizon.

[Crispin]

I fail to see how it's a positive sign, that it might go F2P.

It only shows that they have got an issue with their active subs, if they prefered F2P it would have launched as one.


Personally I wouldnt care if it went F2P, the game isnt worth a sub nor my time, WAR was a great game compared to swtor, the only thing it got going for it is the IP, but it doesnt even feel like a star wars game.

[Argroth]

We can, but do you seriously think that for a profit oriented company like EA, making this game F2P will be nothing short of killing him (slowly)?

That's how i see it tbh. And smelling this far way and i won't cash in more money to their pocker untill i see some certainty on the horizon.

It's true. Anyone who can't see going F2P means death/giving up needs to open their eyes. I'm a fan of SWTOR but if the game goes F2P and especially if it gets a cash shop It's dead to me. So much so that it might even make Blizzard look more appealing, but I don't think I'm going crawling back to them.

If SWTOR goes F2P I think that is the end of my MMO days because it seems the whole system is broken because of WoWs insane monopoly and greedy/terrible ways and for companies like Bioware just giving up because they couldn't think.

[Dakia]

We can, but do you seriously think that for a profit oriented company like EA, making this game F2P will be nothing short of killing him (slowly)?

F2P has, under numerous occasions, shown to be more profitable. Cash shops bring in more cash than a subscription fee. Whether that is because people like the game more, or simply want the items, I'm not certain.

My own personal thought is that the F2P model brings in more money because of the instant gratification factor and people not keeping track of their expenditures. Awesome robe or outfit? Sweet, I'll drop $4.99 on that. Lightsaber to go with it and a really cool pet? There is another $4.99, and so on. Say all of this happens in a span of days. You are already two thirds of the way to a monthly fee in a comparably short period of time.

[Shadylol]

F2P has, under numerous occasions, shown to be more profitable. Cash shops bring in more cash than a subscription fee. Whether that is because people like the game more, or simply want the items, I'm not certain.

My own personal thought is that the F2P model brings in more money because of the instant gratification factor and people not keeping track of their expenditures. Awesome robe or outfit? Sweet, I'll drop $4.99 on that. Lightsaber to go with it and a really cool pet? There is another $4.99, and so on. Say all of this happens in a span of days. You are already two thirds of the way to a monthly fee in a comparably short period of time.

Free to play has proven to be more profitable, when a game implemented it, which was doing very poorly in subscriber count. A popular MMO, like WoW, generates far more money from it's massive amount of subscriptions, than it would from free to play. The thing with subscriptions is that you need to reach a critical mass, for it to be a more profitable avenue, than free to play + cash shop

So while it may be the best option for SWTOR at this point, and it will likely boost SWTOR's financial viability, it's still not as profitable as if SWTOR was able to get 5+ million subscribers (which is a low end number of their pre-release goals for taking down WoW)

[Argroth]

F2P has, under numerous occasions, shown to be more profitable. Cash shops bring in more cash than a subscription fee. Whether that is because people like the game more, or simply want the items, I'm not certain.

My own personal thought is that the F2P model brings in more money because of the instant gratification factor and people not keeping track of their expenditures. Awesome robe or outfit? Sweet, I'll drop $4.99 on that. Lightsaber to go with it and a really cool pet? There is another $4.99, and so on. Say all of this happens in a span of days. You are already two thirds of the way to a monthly fee in a comparably short period of time.

Problem is that is a very small community that wastes any significant amount of money (Of their daddies money I can only guess since noone would be so foolish to spend their own money on that crap) on that junk.

Very wishful thinking that a game that is just holding on will be saved by not charging any set fee and relying on the kids who pay ridiculous amounts of money for individual items.

They might get some people coming back to check it because it's free but if those people wern't planning on paying $13 to play for an entire month of free stuff they are not gonna pay $10 for that reskin hat that is in red instead of the typical blue.

[SirRobin]

As I understand it, TOR isn't really going F2P though. Its more like a permanent demo or trial, since you can't pass level fifteen. You get a few hours of content and then get stuck unless you start paying. If TOR actually went F2P like one of the many hybrids out now, I could definitely see playing again. But this? I don't see it helping very much because as soon as the new people run out of content they are just going to leave again. More like F2D than F2P.

For a game as short and linear as TOR, I just don't see this helping for very long.

[voidillusion]

F2P has, under numerous occasions, shown to be more profitable.

When? Honest ignorance here from my part. But when was that shown? In wich games?

[Mister K]

F2P or B2P model would be ideal for SWTOR. I like the game but I don't think it is worth the subscription model it has right now, the story is Brilliant but apart from that the end game is rather appalling.

It's good news imho.

2nd poster, define "dead"

Dead: Adjective:
No longer alive.

[ptwonline]

F2P has, under numerous occasions, shown to be more profitable. Cash shops bring in more cash than a subscription fee. Whether that is because people like the game more, or simply want the items, I'm not certain.

My own personal thought is that the F2P model brings in more money because of the instant gratification factor and people not keeping track of their expenditures. Awesome robe or outfit? Sweet, I'll drop $4.99 on that. Lightsaber to go with it and a really cool pet? There is another $4.99, and so on. Say all of this happens in a span of days. You are already two thirds of the way to a monthly fee in a comparably short period of time.

I think there definitely needs to be a link between paying for something and then getting something out of it. If you're getting a fairly satisfactory stream of new content that keeps you busy, you're probbaly not concerned about paying a sub fee. if you're not, then you're going to ask why you're paying. With in-game items at least you know you're actually getting something for the money you pay out.

For example, City of Heroes. Freemium model. Get more features and points towards buying stuff if you sub. Or play for free and pay specifically for certain stuff. For example, I paid a few bucks for a new powerset. I didn't mind--I thought it was neat, and since I only wanted to play a short time it was cheaper for me. If I had to pay a sub fee I probably wouldn't have gone back for that month or two. Better for them to make $5 off me than $0.

[Argroth]

As I understand it, TOR isn't really going F2P though. Its more like a permanent demo or trial, since you can't pass level fifteen. You get a few hours of content and then get stuck unless you start paying. If TOR actually went F2P like one of the many hybrids out now, I could definitely see playing again. I don't see it helping very much because as soon as the new people run out of content they are just going to leave again. More like F2D than F2P.

Yeah that is the current plan and I have no problem with the vfree till 15 stuff. That might hook some people into subs to finish thier stories at least.

The problem is that the devs seem to have just opened the door to the possibility of the entire game going F2P. Which would mean stuff like cash shops, no actual expansions just new inventory and maybe a few levels to making that inventory more mandatory to buy for ridiculous prices. Like Many F2P they will make some flashy items and sell them for an ungodly amount of money and the rest will be reskins with better stats that are still way overpriced.