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World of Warcraft Considered the Free to Play MMO Model

But the model was not sustainable

By Andrei Dumitrescu, Games Editor

25th of June 2008, 06:41 GMT

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How do you feel about MMOs and having to pay a subscription each month to play them? Developers seem to know that there are some gamers out there that would like their online multiplayer experiences to be free

of subscription, supported through advertising, micro-transactions or a combination of the two. There are currently projects that would create such MMOs for the mainstream Western audience but, in a move which might surprise a few people, even the leader of the MMO industry, World of Warcraft, considered such a business model at some point.

During a question and answer session at the Game Developers Conference in Paris, one of Blizzard's senior vice presidents, Rob Pardo, stated that "When we were first going to make World of Warcraft, we wanted to make it free and advertising supported". The problem was that the business environment at the moment of the launch was not appropriate and "as we researched market conditions, we realized that wouldn't support us".

Pardo also revealed that the initial efforts of the team were conducted with a lot of naivety, because if more research had been conducted before the development began, "we might not have done it". Essentially, Blizzard wanted to improve the gameplay mechanics already present in games like Ultima or Everquest but they did not fully consider the challenges facing them and sheer enthusiasm was the reason why the project succeeded to such a degree.

In fall, World of Warcraft is set to receive its second expansion set, titled Wrath of the Lich King, which will open up new areas of the game world for exploration and combat while also introducing the first new class since launch, the Death Knight. More information regarding the expansion, as well as the chance to play it are expected as the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational in Paris kicks off on June 28. We are also expecting a firm release date.

TAGS:

World of Warcraft | Blizzard | MMO | Wrath of the Lich King | free to play

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