Have everybody get something like 2-5x cert gain, but everybody is required to subscribe after a 30 day free trial? I've basically been F2P for the over 2 year span I've played this game. Last year they did this 2x XP month and I was having the time of my life in PS2. I mean it might have made sense long ago when this game was new to get tons of players for those "epic size fights", but there's like only a few thousand people of a more dedicated fanbase online anymore it seems and I can't imagine how they're making money from that with a F2P system. I definitely love the game enough to justify subscribing, but because humans like me are cheap I'm just not going to because I already have a lot of the stuff I feel I need unlocked. Everything I need to unlock at this point is the stuff I rarely use. But I definitely would subscribe to this game if it was required.
Well, since we haven't introduced charity to the topic yet, what about subscribing just for the good of the game?
Nah, I've been subscribed off and on since release. If this was a subscription only game, I likely never would have come back. Currently have a subscription and will probably renew it.
I disagree. It forces developers to make compromises that can make the game less enjoyable because they need to make ends meet. I would cite things like the implant system.
F2P, but pay for customization or convenience is actually a very good business model. The games decline in player base is more an issue than the F2P model. But that is a separate issue. For every couple of players that are freeloaders you have whales to make up for it. These are players that just devour all the high end specialty items like golden weapons or one of a kind limited release items, some people are just really avid collectors. Then there's the average in between user that spends money to customize, they don't spend crazy money like whales but they buy a few things to differentiate themselves from the rest of crowd. Then there are gamers who have more money than time so buying boosts or items you could earn in game makes more sense. If something takes 12 hours of game time to earn and they can only play for an hour a week, or buy it for $8. If they really want it, it might make more sense to spend some disposable income on it. There's more than enough really successful F2P games to warrant the continued use of the F2P model. DBG, if money really is an issue (it's hard to say, the game is 4 yrs old, how much do they actually need to keep from turning the lights off? It's not like developing a brand new game) just needs to figure out how to attract and then retain more players.
