Almost a year ago, we debated the generally accepted wisdom that free-to-play players provide some sort of value to a game. Either they’re seat-fillers, or they’re “the content,” or they’re free word of mouth, or maybe someday they will actually put some money into the game if we just keep them logging in — or so the mobile industry seems to show.
Daybreak’s shift back toward the subscription model might be a herald that at least smaller MMORPG developers don’t really believe that the mobile model works here in this genre. Daybreak Community Manager Mepps even dropped a bomb in the comments to that effect back in January:
“It might come as a surprise, but players who will never pay and support the game are not super interesting to us.”
Drama ensued, of course, but does it come as a surprise? Delete mobile games from the equation for a moment: What exactly do F2P players offer a F2P MMORPG? Why should Daybreak find non-paying players interesting?
(With thanks to Balsbigbrother.)
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
