the general consensus around here is absolutely not free to play
and if you were advocating unlimited time trial accounts, what would be the point? there are so many trial restrictions in place i dont know how anyone could stand to play a trial longer than 2 weeks anyway
Access to the game anytime and people coming back after they took their break, enticing them to re-subscribe to the game they once loved 
No thanks. If the game goes F2P it means you pay more in the long run because all the new stuff that gets added is 'premium content' and has a charge.
I prefer my $11/mo (annual subscription) to being micro-transactioned to death.
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its not exactly hard to just get a new trial account, and since all the toons max at lvl 14 with only 50k inf, your not really losing anything
plus the fact that trials can only speak in local and team chat (no tells) and they cannot join global channels all but cuts them off of the rest of the game population anyway
im not saying extended trial accounts are necessarilly a bad thing, but they are so limiting that the person using it would prolly just quit rather than get a full account if they are so against paying for it unless they were ONLY using the trial as a way to play with the costume creator
This game has been around long enough now that it'll only go F2P once there's not enough people still willing to pay the monthly subscriptions. I realize there are other examples of games out there that are doing well enough under a F2P model. But as long as this game is still making reasonable profits why would our Devs be motivated to change things?
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Not being able to communicate on a broader channel does make things kinda unfun....
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Originally Posted by Kismet Angel
Free accounts being basically a trial account with no "expiration" date. What do you guys think of the pros as well as the cons IF they were to implement this new trial system?
The pros I'm seeing are, besides the free part, that there will be a lot more people trying the game, old friends/past subscribers coming back and there will be pretty much a near unlimited teaming on the lower levels across all the servers (for those taking a break from level 50 contents). The cons, pretty much that lapsed accounts will have the restrictions of a trial account and not being able to access alts that are level (not sure if trial accounts goes past level 14) 15s and up, and that influence/infamy/information beyond 50k will be halted. If for example a lowbie character has already more than 50k of inf. on them, and the account goes into the "free" phase, they won't lose anything, just wont be able to earn more. So yay or nay for free* accounts? |
You may or may not be aware of this but our trial accounts were being horribly abused by RMT sites. It was so bad that the devs were forced to impose the drastic limitations they currently have.
I can't speak for everyone but personally I have no desire to go back to those days where I was constantly being harrassed by RMTer's.
Please don't be offended by anyone who disagrees with this idea. Some of us can be very emotional about our dislike for what it was like when the RMTer's had free reign.
Our disagreement isn't personal, and I know I look forward to any of your future ideas.
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No thanks. If the game goes F2P it means you pay more in the long run because all the new stuff that gets added is 'premium content' and has a charge. I prefer my $11/mo (annual subscription) to being micro-transactioned to death. |
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Originally Posted by Lothic
This game has been around long enough now that it'll only go F2P once there's not enough people still willing to pay the monthly subscriptions. I realize there are other examples of games out there that are doing well enough under a F2P model. But as long as this game is still making reasonable profits why would our Devs be motivated to change things?
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Again with this suggestion? No, thanks. Fine as is.
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Mine is!|
Originally Posted by Forbin_Project
Our disagreement isn't personal
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You #&*#&^!!!
That said, no, I don't agree with it - and actually see the "Limited trial-like access to your old account" as more of a *dis*incentive to come back. ("What do you mean I can't play my 50/use the market/use my SG/etc?!")
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if they were past subscribers they would have to reactivate their account if it was a full account|
Originally Posted by Kismet Angel
I'm suggesting a restricted free account, not for the game to go fully free to play. I just like the thought of old friends and past subscribers being able to get online at anytime =(
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extended or non-time-limited trial accounts are a different type of account due to the restrictions, the moment they upgraded to a full account they would have to pay for it and when they reactivated they woul have to continute paying for it, ect
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There's nothing fundamentally wrong with that desire.|
Originally Posted by Kismet Angel
I just like the thought of old friends and past subscribers being able to get online at anytime =(
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I'm just not sure it's as "workable" as it might first appear.
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Nuuu, guess it's safe to say that the nays won. Can't say I've tried to help boost teaming outside of the level 50 only content either |
Originally Posted by Lothic
There's nothing fundamentally wrong with that desire.
I'm just not sure it's as "workable" as it might first appear. |
It will happen eventually.
But not for now.
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At the risk of getting mod-smacked, Champions Online tried this exact thing, and it didn't do anything for them. Since I've never seen player density as a compelling argument (I tend to only respect paying subscriber numbers), I have to say that this does not sound like something I'd like to see.
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Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.
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A tiny number of games have moved to F2P from a monthly scheme and had some success with it. Other games start out as F2P and do what they do from the start. But more often than not when a long time monthly subscription game shifts to F2P it's a sure sign that the game is dying. CoH has been a successful monthly game for so long that moving to F2P now (for any reason) could only be taken as a -bad- sign.|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
At the risk of getting mod-smacked, Champions Online tried this exact thing, and it didn't do anything for them. Since I've never seen player density as a compelling argument (I tend to only respect paying subscriber numbers), I have to say that this does not sound like something I'd like to see.
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Like Zombie Man said it might eventually come to that here. But I would hope that's still years away at this point.
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I fully support CoH going fully F2P. I think it would be fantastic.
I like to make a game of coming up with restrictions for F2P accounts. Like:
- Level cap at 30
- No EATs
- Each AT has only 3 primaries and secondaries available
- Fitness not inherent, have to take the pool
- Maximum of 2 power pools
- Can't use the invention system
- Inf cap of 50 million.
- Can't use the email system
- 3 slots per server (but you can still buy up to 36
)
- No Day Job or Accolade Powers
It's fun! See what you can come up with!
Personally I think going f2p would be okay if all the microtransactions were just to buy things that you get with a subscription, which would of course still be an option.
Issue 16 made me feel like this.
Warning: This poster likes to play Devil's Advocate.
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No thanks. This has been brought up many times before, and I /unsign it every time. In my experiences with F2P games, they typically suffer from:
1. Annoying gates: I don't like being nickled and dimed for every possible method of progression. I've seen Vanden's little "see how we can stick them" game in action, and it's irritating in the extreme. Even though it's a relatively small amount of money, it feels like extortion in practice.
2. RMT'ers: They are -everywhere- in F2P games like rampant cancer.
3. Griefers: "Hey, if they ban me, no big deal. It's not like I paid for this or anythinglololol"
So, no. I'd rather not expand the trial accounts here. As mentioned earlier, they -constricted- them, and for good reason. I know you want to bring more people to CoH, and I think that's awesome (keep it up), but this is really, really, REALLY not the way to do it.
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This is my main gripe with F2P models. There's practically no incentive whatsoever to remain a decent member of society. It's totally free, I can just make another account, so I think I'll just run around and act like a jerk to everybody I see!|
Originally Posted by Valerika
3. Griefers: "Hey, if they ban me, no big deal. It's not like I paid for this or anythinglololol"
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No thanks. We are fine as-is. $15 a month is hardly expensive for a game like this.
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Arc ID: 373341 - To Save a Hero
Got Inf?
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They could go the DDO route, and have subscribers get all content free while F2P people have limited content with the option to bay ala cart.|
Originally Posted by Kinrad
No thanks. If the game goes F2P it means you pay more in the long run because all the new stuff that gets added is 'premium content' and has a charge.
I prefer my $11/mo (annual subscription) to being micro-transactioned to death. |
Not that I want it to go F2P, just sayin they could do it so subscribers arent screwed.
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Seems kind of pointless to me because honestly the trial version of this would probably lose it's entertainment value after only a couple weeks anyway. Even less time if somebody were to play it every day.
On the other hand it amuses me how many people posted an emphatic NO to the suggestion and went on to rant about how bad free to play is. They obviously didn't even read the suggestion but only responded to the title of the thread.
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Because F2P always brings the same things, particularly bad players, even if it's severely restricted. The buying content part isn't part of the suggestion, but regardless, even a restricted F2P model brings bad things with it on a game like this.
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Originally Posted by Mandu
On the other hand it amuses me how many people posted an emphatic NO to the suggestion and went on to rant about how bad free to play is. They obviously didn't even read the suggestion but only responded to the title of the thread.
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Arc ID: 348998 - Becoming a villain
Arc ID: 373341 - To Save a Hero
Got Inf?
Quote:
It's because people are afraid of the boogeyman* and close minded. They have already decided F2P is evil(though the suggestion wasn't for turning CoH into F2P), and nothing you can possibly say would make them consider otherwise.|
Originally Posted by Mandu
Seems kind of pointless to me because honestly the trial version of this would probably lose it's entertainment value after only a couple weeks anyway. Even less time if somebody were to play it every day.
On the other hand it amuses me how many people posted an emphatic NO to the suggestion and went on to rant about how bad free to play is. They obviously didn't even read the suggestion but only responded to the title of the thread. |
*The boogeyman represents anything people don't understand or fear.
Free accounts being basically a trial account with no "expiration" date. What do you guys think of the pros as well as the cons IF they were to implement this new trial system?
The pros I'm seeing are, besides the free part, that there will be a lot more people trying the game, old friends/past subscribers coming back and there will be pretty much a near unlimited teaming on the lower levels across all the servers (for those taking a break from level 50 contents).
The cons, pretty much that lapsed accounts will have the restrictions of a trial account and not being able to access alts that are level (not sure if trial accounts goes past level 14) 15s and up, and that influence/infamy/information beyond 50k will be halted. If for example a lowbie character has already more than 50k of inf. on them, and the account goes into the "free" phase, they won't lose anything, just wont be able to earn more.
So yay or nay for free* accounts?