Are you getting Star Wars: The Old Republic?

[90sgamer]

It looks really good and I like RPGs, however, as I am a raging trekkie it would feel like some kind of sacrilege haha.

[WhenKittensATK]

2. F2P (Guild wars): Guild wars is free to play, anyone that buys the game get's the same game and can play without a subscription BUT you don't get content updates outside of expansions, if you told any of the millions of WoW subscribers that they weren't going to get any major content updates (patches) until the next expansion (1 year+) they would start a riot.

2a. Guild wars expansion turn-around was about 6-8 months and the expansion would cost you $40-$60, a guild wars expansion was about the same size as a major content patch in WoW (new raid, new zone etc), $60 is 4 months worth of WoW subscription cost and in that 4 months you would've had atleast 1 major content patch (possibly even 2) and several minor ones, you are getting more content in a shorter time frame for the same amount of money.

2b. Guild wars is classified as F2P but really it is a B2P expansion model, you have to pay for content and the content turn-around is far too long for real MMO-gamers, Unless they plan on releasing a new expansion every 2-3 months for GW2 it will never have as much content (or content updates as frequent) as Swtor or WoW and if they do release expansions that fast, it will actually cost you more per month to play GW2 than the other 2 that use the successful, traditional subscription model.

 

A subscription model provides better, more frequent and larger content updates, it provides better support (10-24 hours to get a GM ticket answered in WoW, over a week in AoC and WoW has far, far more subscribers and tickets to get through), the subscription model assures all players are on an even playing field, imbalances and bugs are more readily dealt with (more frequent minor content updates/patches) and all-round a subscription based MMO is of better quality.

 

Bullocks. Guild Wars 1 offered free content updates, War in Kryta being the most recent that I know of. Guild Wars 2 is getting content updates for free as well. GW2 may be expansion based, but there will be content in between. Arenanet has released a lot of stuff in Guild Wars 1 in the past few years in ramp up for Guild Wars 2. BTW a GW expansion is not equal to a WoW new raid patch. It's equal to a WoW expansion.

 

I have yet to notice the GM ticket system being any less fast or effective in F2P and B2P vs. Subscription based games.

 

Speak of the devil, the latest GW1 update was: Update - Thursday, September 15, 2011. For a game that came out in 2005 that still gets regular content, balance, and fixes updates, I think the Guild Wars business model works very well for Arenanet. Guild Wars 2 is much larger than Guild Wars 1. Based on the lore alone it has a lot of room for expansion.

Edited September 28, 2011 by Krazyxazn

[GaiusMaxwell]

Bullocks. Guild Wars 1 offered free content updates, War in Kryta being the most recent that I know of. Guild Wars 2 is getting content updates for free as well. GW2 may be expansion based, but there will be content in between. Arenanet has released a lot of stuff in Guild Wars 1 in the past few years in ramp up for Guild Wars 2.

 

I have yet to notice the GM ticket system being any less fast or effective in F2P and B2P vs. Subscription based games.

 

Speak of the devil, the latest GW1 update was: Update - Thursday, September 15, 2011. For a game that came out in 2005 that still gets regular content, balance, and fixes updates, I think the Guild Wars business model works very well for Arenanet. Guild Wars 2 is much larger than Guild Wars 1. Based on the lore alone it has a lot of room for expansion.

 

The "content" updates you are refering to for GW1 aren't what I was refering to, their biggest "content" update added a new system to get pets, extra stuff in their micro-transaction store and in their exact words "...new purpose and rewards to existing content".

 

When I say content I am refering to new end-game raids, instances, bosses etc, which are only added through expansions in GW1.

 

I also stumbled upon several posts about GW2 new F2P model:

http://onvideogames.net/1603/guild-wars-2-expansion-formula-released-release-date/

 

GW2 is now officially a micro-transaction MMO, you will have to pay for content updates with real money through an in-game store, so If you want to play the full game you are likely going to be paying just as much or even more than swtor and WoW which have a monthly subscription model.

[WhenKittensATK]

Look here:

 

Guild Wars isn't F2P or Micro-transaction based like other F2P games.

 

You pay $50-60 for the game and that's it. Yes they do have a in-game store. Storyline Content and etc are free. Costumes, Heroes, Storage slots, and etc are for a fee. You aren't required to spend a dime in the store, unless you really want to, unlike other games that have micro-transaction. There is no less grind time by buying things in the store (except for the skill unlocks, which aren't hard to get in-game on your own).

 

War in Kryta added new missions and etc. Winds of Change the most recent one also added more. These are equal to raid patches, GW1 isn't setup like WoW. They don't build content the same way.

 

Guild Wars 2 however is another story. It's huge in comparison to Guild Wars 1.

 

========

 

Guild Wars money spent in store: $10

WoW moeny spent on subs: $200+

Edited September 28, 2011 by Krazyxazn

[HarryTaco]

F2p sucks for me. I have yet found a F2p game that holds my interest the way a monthy pay game does. They both succeed and fail. Neither are perfect. If i can play an MMO for a year, or more, or something even close to that, I consider it a success and a worthwhile adventure for me. I dont mind migrating to newer games when they come out. The adventure is fresh that way. The MMORPG has never really been about a social outlet for my friends and family, at least in my mind. I find the adventure of struggle and leverling up in new places along with some PVP the most rewarding part. Marching in lock-step with 40 other people to kill some bosses in a dungeon has never had much appeal for me. I dont like the structure or time involved, being a little cog in a wheel and perhaps get lucky and get something worthwhile out of it or not.

The worst things in any game for me are Bots, Hackers, and Spammers. I absolutely hate games that allow for vendors to sit and open up a shop in some towns and cities. Its gets so clogged and laggy and you search for ever to find a good deal. Better a central trade Auction with satelites in different areas. At least to my liking. The stronger the GMs are at policing a community the better, imo.

I have to believe that there are alot of other players who have a similar opinion to me.

Yes I am playing. For how long? Who knows really. Have to wait and see.

[VaporX]

Point 2, Your preferred F2P style:

The problem with this style was explained in my last post, content updates are provided solely through expansions and these expansions are not frequent or large enough to occupy and satisfy most serious MMO gamers - Even WoW casuals are completing new content at a decent rate which sees them without much to do before the new patch, and these patches are 2-3 times more frequent than guild wars expansions and are quite often larger.

 

I will not argue concerning the Guild Wars model, that was just a passing thought not a firm position.

 

Point 3, Type of player:

I wasn't trying to say that anyone who wants to play for free is going to be undesirable but the fact of the matter is F2P opens up an MMO (or any online game for that matter) to a wider audience of undesirables.

1. Botters, gold farmers and RMT - It is far easier for RMT (gold selling etc) to run rampant in a F2P environment, there is no penalty for getting banned because they simply open a new account.

2. Hackers - What have they got to lose? they didn't pay anything for the account so why not throw on a speed hack and ruin a BG, or spam the server so much that it crashes, I played on the same TF2 server for over 2 years and I never once saw a single aimbotter or hacker, since going F2P I've had to fraps 28 speed hackers and aimbotters on the very same server I have played on for years.

3. Spammers (Harrasment) - People who just want to ruin the game because they like another one better, people who just think its funny to spam, troll and clog up chat channels etc

 

I will not dispute the fact that these types exist but they exist in every game. In fact I would go further and say they exist more in many of the subscription based models. The solution for this is one I have seen CCP do as well as Cryptic and that is take various game items such as experience boosts in the case of Cryptic or even play time, in the case of CCP and offer them for in game currency after buying them with out of game money.

 

In F2P models I have seen and played I can also tell you gold miners are meaningless. The model makes it easy enough for people to get what they want from the game.

 

Sorry to hear about your hackers in your play experience but I honestly in playing MMOs for years yet to see even one hacker other than people hacking accounts to steal them, which BTW was always in a subscription based game.

 

Seriously you want to talk about harassment players and say F2P is worse when you have EVE as a subscription model? Harassment is everywhere but to say it is more prevalent in F2P is not right. Does F2P make it easier for everyone, the undesirables and the good gamers to get in, sure it does. However easier to get in does not mean worth getting in. People wanting to ruin others fun find it harder I think in F2P because losing a bit in a free to game is no big deal there is a more casual approach. Now create havoc in a subscription game and people come unglued, the years and money they invested being stolen, or worse is a much bigger deal.

 

They are the really bad ones but there are also plenty of other groups, people who don't belong in an MMO, people who don't really want to play the game etc etc.

 

Bottom line is a subscription based MMO is a far better environment for everyone who actually wants to play an MMO (In ALL respects).

 

AHHH and now we come to the crux of your argument the one I see all to often, the elitist gamer mentality. Some people just should not play our games, they bring down our games. news flash, it is a GAME.

 

To give an example, I play Champions Online right now, and yes I see people that could drive me nuts. The ones that lack imagination and clone comic book heroes, the ones that are power leveling. Yet they do not effect my game play because I choose to just play with my friends. You want a game where other people ruin your game play, try EVE. A subscription based game that actively promotes griefing.

 

To me the advantages of an F2P model are as follows.

 

1) No regular cost required for the game. I, like MOST people have an income that is not nearly as good as it used to be, so dropping a regular amount of money on a GAME is not something I think worth budgeting. (Okay maybe if the game is exceptional)

 

2) Do not feel like you HAVE to play. One of the biggest gripes I here from old MMO players is that it has become work instead of fun. They have to be on for RAIDS and such, they have the schedule their life around the game a little. the reason is they do not want to waste the money they are investing. I know a lot of gamers that have been forced due to work issues to take off two or three months of play. It is not becuase they cannot play at all during that time but their play time would be limited and so they do not want to pay for something they could only play 4 or 5 days in a month. F2P eliminates that compulsion.

 

3) You put in what you want out. Think about it, you buy a game you really want to play but you end up paying for a whole slew of features you may not want. These are exaggerate examples I am about to use so consider that in any reply. For example in DnD style play I HATE elves, if I could get a game for less money that did not have elves as a player character but I could always buy for a small fee if I changed my mind later then i would. F2P lets you get a game and see if it is worth your time and money and then only spend what you need. Again using Champions, the game is fully playable through with the exception of three special mission packs without ever spending a dime. Those three packs BTW are not needed in any way and the new system makes those kinds of expansions in the future free.

 

4) Easy entry, yes I know you listed this as a fault but in truth it is a asset. F2P makes it easier to convince your buddies to try the game, gives you more of a chance to enjoy it with your friends. Even if they do not like the looks of the game from reviews, trying it for a friend does not hurt because, well it cost nothing. I am not talking those wimpy trials that allow for like 10 days of play. I am talking about as much play time as they want. Oh and there is no expiration date. Which means if they did not like it the first time they tried it, they can come back later and try again where they left off.

 

Look at the end of the day if you want to spend money on a game, then more power to you. I will admit I am looking at one game very hard that I could very well pay money for. But that does not mean F2P is some kind of poor step child to be slapped around. F2P is a growing model in the gaming world and even outside of MMOs. I mean when Microsoft takes one of their cornerstone games like Age of Empires and offers it in an F2P form that hardly sounds like a failed game trying to survive. What about Civilization coming in F2P form to Facebook or even Bioware doing it with Dragon Age, these are hardly failed titles. Even WoW, the bastion of MMO gaming is looking at this model and has begun taking steps in that direction. These are not minor titles that where having issues these are major titles that could easily make money in more traditional ways on their name alone.

 

So you go ahead and enjoy putting out your money and I will save mine for other uses and we will both enjoy our games, but do NOT come in here calling anyones gaming choice wrong for everyone.

[WhenKittensATK]

I thought this Guild Wars 2 post would interest the disbelievers