Curse

EternalTempest · Dec 06, 2006, 02:20 PM // 14:20

Noticed how "Arch Lord" by code masters is becoming free to play (have to buy, no more monthly fee). GW hasn't anything to worry about this game... based on the numerous bad reviews.

I'm curious if you think GW was/will be able to start a trend, or at least a trend where 1 game from a company that offers several monthly fee based games has at least one free one in the mix. Anet fits this description with NCSoft other paid titles.

I do apologize if this is in the wrong thread, off topic didn't seem right to post this in.

Gun Pierson · Dec 06, 2006, 02:38 PM // 14:38

Well in a way, I hope so yes. Why? because Anet has a monopoly now on the market when it comes to free coop-rpg's and that's never good for us customers. Would be nice if we see other games come out like GW with beautiful graphics, a good storyline and gameplay. So we have a choice, because to me, WoW is not a competitor at all. I don't like the graphics and the concept of monthly fees. I prefer to buy 4 chapters a year sorta speak.

Giga Strike · Dec 06, 2006, 04:09 PM // 16:09

GW is a really good game but its limiting compared to the other games. but along te lines of having competitors, GW will continue to prosper.

btw, whats a MMORPH?

EternalTempest · Dec 06, 2006, 05:57 PM // 17:57

Didn't mean to give guildwars the mmorpg tag in title, wasn't thinking.

*Darcy* · Dec 06, 2006, 07:08 PM // 19:08

To be competition for GW, another game would not only need to be no-subscription, but put out by a company that shows the same attention to the game as ANet.

Just taking a game and hoping to gain sales by making it free-to-play won't work in the long run. Prophecies is less than 6 months away from its 2nd birthday and still selling, although two newer chapters are available.

The player sample on these forums show the intense interest (complaints, ideas, praise, problem-solving) the players have in the game. And ANet's constant changes and tweaks, whether welcome or not, show their interest.

Regretfully, I think we will see a lot of poor imitations before another company invests the money in a true GW competitor.

Malice Black · Dec 07, 2006, 01:33 AM // 01:33

I expected this. Just waiting for one of the "big" names to join in.

Addone_Abaddon · Dec 07, 2006, 07:53 AM // 07:53

Nothing will ever beat guild wars' interface... NEVER!

LifeInfusion · Dec 12, 2006, 01:22 AM // 01:22

Um Guild Wars' business model is nothing new. Just about every console game is pay once (up until Xbox Live but Microsoft sucks like that). PS3 games and Wii games are no monthly also.

The real reason why Guild Wars has had success is the idea of appealing to the masses by providing both casual and expert level of playing, lack of intricacies of server maintainence and setup, and the streaming updates. That is why it is not surprising that accoridng to NPR 50 year olds play Guild Wars. (See: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...toryId=6589941)

Also, the playability factor is another thing. Guild Wars has consistently gotten high ratings, despite all the naysayers.

Superdarth · Dec 13, 2006, 10:18 AM // 10:18

Well this is not the first MMORGP thats free to play, well its not realy a MMORPG but its MMORPG enough to count i suppose.:P

Other MMORPG's however tend to be completely free and run on donations, and those are of considerable lower quality then Guild Wars.

Guild Wars isnt the first, its just the first to do it right.

Silvergun Superman · Dec 26, 2006, 02:25 AM // 02:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Superdarth

Well this is not the first MMORGP thats free to play, well its not realy a MMORPG but its MMORPG enough to count i suppose.:P

Other MMORPG's however tend to be completely free and run on donations, and those are of considerable lower quality then Guild Wars.

Guild Wars isnt the first, its just the first to do it right.

Guild Wars is not a MMORPG. It is a CORPG (Cooperative/Competitive Online Role Playing Game). I know this because I work for a company that involves everything there is about the MMORPG industry.

It's true that there are other MMORPGs that are almost completely free lol that run on donations, virtual items, and in-game advertisements like 9Dragons, Hero Online, Tantra Online, SilkRoad, and so on. The only reason why these other free MMORPGs are of lower quality than Guild Wars is because they do not have a big publisher like NCsoft to back them up with a lot of funding to create a game. Also, for these free MMORPGs, you only have to download the client, register an account, and play. In Guild Wars, you have to pay $50 USD for a serial key, then play.

Yeah, it's also true that Guild Wars isn't the first free online game but the only reason why they did it right is because ArenaNet has a staff of veterans from the gaming industry. They know the nooks and crannies for creating a successful title and what not. Also, with the funding of a big corporation; NCsoft, the formula for creating a successful game.

Fallen Hunter · Dec 26, 2006, 07:58 AM // 07:58

I think that other companies will try to copy guild wars' business model. After all, 3 million sales is no mean feat. However, I think that most of the games produced will probably be by smaller companies. The really large companies will probably stick with the mothly fees, as they are capable of producing high enough quality games to justify the monthly fee. It is inevitable that other large companies will follow in nc-soft's footsteps, however.

Malice Black · Dec 26, 2006, 06:39 PM // 18:39

Actually from thinking about this I'm not sure if the no subscription thing will catch on..WoW has 7million EQ1&2 has around 14million (I think)...hardcore gamers will always choose to pay I think just because subscription based games offer far more options.

lacasner · Dec 26, 2006, 08:55 PM // 20:55

Finally, someone sees the light lol. GJ admin.

Winterclaw · Dec 28, 2006, 01:14 AM // 01:14

Last I heard, archlord stank badly.

There are some other games that are "free" to play, like Flyff or the upcoming 9dragons, but the former has an ingame store that you spend real money on items and the latter will have ingame advertising if you don't pay a monthly fee.

The only other game I can think of that's free to play is SB and the original AO.