14 DAY TRIAL // The free-to-play nature of the upcoming Dust 514 first-person shooter from CCP is in part linked to the success of titles like League of Legends and World of Tanks, which have created huge communities after making a lot of content available without a monthly subscription.
David Reid, the chief marketing officer at CCP, told Polygon that, “Things like League of Legends or World Of Tanks where you can play the game for free but paying does not necessarily give you an unfair advantage at time. Think of League of Legends – you can buy every champion, right? Doesn’t necessarily make you better at playing that champion.”
He added, “So DUST 514 has a similar idea to it. As you play through the game, you’re gonna pick certain skills, you’re gonna specialise, you’ll unlock certain weapons, certain dropsuits, certain vehicles that are more tailored to the game you’re playing at that time.”
Reid has made it clear that even those who have a lot of real-world money to drop on Aurum, the CCP virtual currency, will never be able to get a real competitive advantage over those who do not.
The game developer used terms like “customization” and “sidegrade” to describe how Dust 514 will treat paying customers.
CCP is trying to make sure that it offers options for all those interested in trying out Dust 514 and that game remains competitive for all those involved.
The developers have also made it clear that at no point will players be able to pay real-world money for ISK, the virtual currency that Dust 514 shares with EVE Online.
Dust 514 is due to be released on the PlayStation 3 at some point during the second quarter of the year.
The game will use the PlayStation Vita for a companion application that will allow for character management and comments from CCP have suggested that the handheld might also be used as a controller.