14 DAY TRIAL // The subscription based MMO is not yet disappearing but the success of the free-to-play model has forced developers to offer players options when it comes to their favorite online experiences, according to a representative of developer Turbine.
Speaking to Eurogamer Adam Mersky, who is the leading executive at Turbine when it comes to digital communications, stated, “It’s probably not right to say the subscription MMO is dying, it’s probably more right to say the idea of forcing a player to only have one option for having to consume your content – that’s probably dying.”
He added, “I would say the mistake that’s going on out there is that people are thinking that free-to-play is something you do a few years after you do the subscription. If we were going to release another MMO, we would not come out and – from my perception – launch it as a subscription game. The right choice would be to make it a player-choice of subscription or free-to-play.”
The recession and the bigger than ever number of games that are competing for players have meant that each of them is now eager to get as much control as possible, with each dollar or Euro that it uses on entertainment clearly accounted for.
The Lord of the Rings Online has been one of the first MMOs to convert to the free-to-play model and since then Turbine has constantly reported that both the number of players and the revenue derived from their gaming time has gone up.
The game is set to get a big expansion during 2012, called Riders of Rohan, which will allow players to experience mounted combat for the first time while also rising the level cap and adding new skills and items.
Recently a number of players have complained that recently added items, which can be bought for real world money, are unbalancing the game experience but Turbine has clarified that neither of them can be used in Player versus Player battles.