And for that matter AAA titles going free to play. I just dont think it is a relevant question. It is just about quality of service provided in the end.
In games I'm looking for problems that have guaranteed solutions, well defined problems, and the ability to just change your mind.
EDIT: this of course means I could care very little about free to play or not. except to the extent that F2P lets me see if a game can prove itself or not, or in the case of a PvPer F2P game puts you in impossible situations(most F2P games are drifting away from such it seems).
THIS I agree with. I was a kid once (see nick for how long ago) and I am DONE with Elite style gameplay. Nowadays as an adult I will go "huh, 6 billion planets all nearly the same? Been there, done that" and I will move on.
Money I got coming out of my ears, along with more and more hair, it is time that is in short supply. I don't care if a game charges me 14,99 or 149,90, both prices are cheap compared with everything else. But I just don't have the time anymore to sit around for a day waiting for a rare spawn Everquest style.
Neither do I particularly need to have my identity confirmed by a game. I just want some entertainment, occasionally, and preferably one that doesn't require me to commit because not only have I got other demands on my time, those other things are more important to me as well.
So... I fire up GW2 on accsion, do a champ run in Queensdale and then log off after 1-2 rounds. I don't even bother with the rest of the game anymore including all the shop content. Not because I can't afford it but because I have no need for it. Special access to a crafting zone? If I don't have the time to walk between areas, I don't have the time to be a full time crafter. Or the intrest.
I want to smash somethings up, get the short effort-reward cycle that is a good game and then go on with the rest of my day.
In game I recently talked to someone who said it was easy to get gold as a casual player, he obtained X gold in just 4 hours...
Then I learned I wasn't even a casual player anymore, I am an incidental player. 1 hour MAX.
Either take my money or leave it. Because I can sure as hell leave your game.
If Free2Play were around that long, and had quality... then EQ, UO and Ashron's call never would've made it, nor started out with $15 subs.
And that FREE has always been available choice. Can't attend a Pro/college football game, then goto the high school one for less, or junior varsity for FREE.
Free is relegated to those who cannot afford to pay.
I'm sorry, but I have a problem with this post. Perhaps in some cases it could be true, but not everyone that plays a f2p game "cannot afford to pay". As I said above (and I know, you were not directing this post at me, but I still feel my input is valid) , for me, I really do not agree with paying for something I might not like. That being the case, several of the p2p games out there, I am unwilling to check out; not because they are p2p, but because I am not able to "try before I buy" so to speak. WoW, Rift (before they went f2p), Aion (also before they went f2p) and Tera (again, as previously stated) were easy for me to check out; they had a limited trial before I decided to buy them. Had I not liked one of those when I tried them, I would not have bought them. But at least I would have known BEFORE I bought them, not after.
F2p games can be viewed like that. You don't have to pay to play them, and if you don't like them you aren't out anything.
And I have to ask, what was the last (if there ever was) f2p game you played? Unless my standards in games is low, I think you might not have had a lot of experience with f2p gaming. There are some out there that are pretty good if not spectacular; but then again, it depends on what you are trying to compare them to, as well as your particular standards.
"Just because you can, that does not mean you should"
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Free to live, Free to play!
THIS I agree with. I was a kid once (see nick for how long ago) and I am DONE with Elite style gameplay. Nowadays as an adult I will go "huh, 6 billion planets all nearly the same? Been there, done that" and I will move on.
Money I got coming out of my ears, along with more and more hair, it is time that is in short supply. I don't care if a game charges me 14,99 or 149,90, both prices are cheap compared with everything else. But I just don't have the time anymore to sit around for a day waiting for a rare spawn Everquest style.
Neither do I particularly need to have my identity confirmed by a game. I just want some entertainment, occasionally, and preferably one that doesn't require me to commit because not only have I got other demands on my time, those other things are more important to me as well.
So... I fire up GW2 on accsion, do a champ run in Queensdale and then log off after 1-2 rounds. I don't even bother with the rest of the game anymore including all the shop content. Not because I can't afford it but because I have no need for it. Special access to a crafting zone? If I don't have the time to walk between areas, I don't have the time to be a full time crafter. Or the intrest.
I want to smash somethings up, get the short effort-reward cycle that is a good game and then go on with the rest of my day.
In game I recently talked to someone who said it was easy to get gold as a casual player, he obtained X gold in just 4 hours...
Then I learned I wasn't even a casual player anymore, I am an incidental player. 1 hour MAX.
Either take my money or leave it. Because I can sure as hell leave your game.
I am probably another "incidental player".
I don't think devs are insensitive to our needs. There are many MMOs that enable jump-in-quick-session type gaming. On top of that, many are free.
I'm sorry, but I have a problem with this post. Perhaps in some cases it could be true, but not everyone that plays a f2p game "cannot afford to pay". As I said above (and I know, you were not directing this post at me, but I still feel my input is valid) , for me, I really do not agree with paying for something I might not like. That being the case, several of the p2p games out there, I am unwilling to check out; not because they are p2p, but because I am not able to "try before I buy" so to speak. WoW, Rift (before they went f2p), Aion (also before they went f2p) and Tera (again, as previously stated) were easy for me to check out; they had a limited trial before I decided to buy them. Had I not liked one of those when I tried them, I would not have bought them. But at least I would have known BEFORE I bought them, not after.
F2p games can be viewed like that. You don't have to pay to play them, and if you don't like them you aren't out anything.
And I have to ask, what was the last (if there ever was) f2p game you played? Unless my standards in games is low, I think you might not have had a lot of experience with f2p gaming. There are some out there that are pretty good if not spectacular; but then again, it depends on what you are trying to compare them to, as well as your particular standards.
"Just because you can, that does not mean you should"