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EA COO maintains confidence in BioWare
Some gamers claim that EA has lost confidence in BioWare, citing the studio's difficult year that included the less-than-hoped-for performance of Star Wars: The Old Republic and that the move to free-to-play later this fall is a sign of failure. EA COO Peter Moore, however, directly refutes that, saying, "They're doing great." Moore gave EA's take on why SWTOR didn't do as well as expected, explaining that the world of gaming changed between the time that project started and now, making a shift from subscription-based to F2P. He pointed out that changing business models was directly related to the desires of the playerbase, stating, "We do exit interviews. When people say I'm churning out, I'm going to step away for a while, we ask them why. Forty percent of people said, I just don't want to pay $15 a month. I love the game, but I'm just not into the subscription business." EA President Frank Gibeau first revealed the 40% sub-related departure rate in a previous investor call.
F2P Vanguard made official with trailer and more details
Vanguard soft-launched its free-to-play model last week, but now it's super extra real: Everyone's favorite Saga of Heroes is now officially F2P. All games now have access to the game itself, six character races, seven character classes, and four character slots. Players who join the game for free have certain other limitations, like a coin limit of two platinum, a quest count of 15, and no access to housing. Gold members paying the $14.99/month membership fee will receive 500 Station Cash per month along with full access to character races and levels, more character slots, guild-creation privileges, lower in-game fees, and a few other perks. Premium customers will also receive full customer support and no in-game pop-up advertising. Anyone with an ongoing Vanguard subscription will be converted to gold status until that subscription runs out. Anyone with a past or present Vanguard subscription will be able to access and play all of his or her characters, even if playing on a free account that normally would not have access to a specific race or class, as well as have 12 character slots available. Skip below the cut for a new trailer celebrating Vanguard's F2P conversion.
EverQuest's massive 13th anniversary and free-to-play celebration events revealed
In two days, EverQuest will not only be celebrating its 13th (!) anniversary and adding a sizable update to the game, but also will be making the jump to a free-to-play hybrid model. Since this is no small potatoes, SOE has planned a huge array of events to celebrate the occasion. The fun begins on the Plane of Knowledge, where players can enjoy 13 special quests that harken back to the greatest hits of EverQuest's history. There's also a new raid and the return of 40 events from previous anniversaries to keep everyone busy. The update has a new feature called the Hero's Journey, which is a guidebook that will lead players through a path in EverQuest. To make things even more user-friendly, EverQuest's map system will see a major overhaul that includes the ability to show you paths to your destination. Finally, SOE has an absolutely gigantic F2P conversion FAQ that covers nearly every conceivable question about the transition, including payment options and previous status in the game. EverQuest will go F2P starting at 3:01 am EDT on Friday, March 16th.
Aion Europe going F2P on February 28th
We told you earlier this week about Aion's incoming North American free-to-play transition (not to mention a little ditty called Ascension/3.0), but today we've got word that Gameforge AG has released the official date for Aion's European payment plan switcheroo as well. The change-over will occur simultaneously on February 28th for the English-, German-, and French-language versions of Aion's EU client, and you can download said client right now at the game's official website. Gameforge also says that the Ascension patch will hit Europe "in the spring," but there are no more specifics. We'll bring you more definitive info from the world of Atreia as soon as we have it. [Source: Gameforge press release]
Massively hosts Star Trek Online free-to-play launch event
On Tuesday, January 17th, Star Trek Online will be officially free-to-play! In celebration of the launch, Massively will be joining Cryptic Studios in welcoming all new and veteran captains. The team is hosting several fun events ranging from costume and trivia events to livestreamed character creation tutorials and dance parties! Please join me, Massively's humble STO columnist, as I pair up with STO's Community Manager Brandon Felczer to stream our way through all the fun. You could win up to 5000 STO Promotional Points! All livestreamed events can be viewed during and after the event on Massively's Twitch channel, and all other communications can be monitored on the "F2PLaunchParty" chat channel in-game. The fun begins at 1:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, so check out the official schedule of events after the break.
