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Final Fantasy XIV players get another free month of playtime
More than a month ago, Square-Enix announced that players of Final Fantasy XIV would be receiving an extension to the free trial period of the game, citing that the game was not as polished as originally hoped and it was only fair not to bill for a cycle. It was a gesture of goodwill without much precedent, but most players should be very pleasantly surprised that the free trial is being extended once again. Another 30 days of free time are being granted to all players, up to and including those who had planned to cancel their billing once the free period wore off. In addition to this announcement, the November version update is being given a tentative date of November 25th, just after the point when most free periods would have expired. This means that early adopters have received a grand total of 90 days of free playtime -- but any account with a character created through November 19th will receive the free trial extension as well. While the free time won't mollify ardent critics, Final Fantasy XIV's players can still enjoy the fact that they can play or not play the game for another month without worrying about subscriptions one way or the other.
GameStop details digital distribution storefront, XBLA games 'coming soon'
GameStop recently pulled away a bit more of the veil covering its "Store of the Future" initiative, releasing a whole mess of details on how its digital distribution storefront functions. A new page on the retailer's site explains the purchasing process for the site's downloadable PC games (of which there are currently over 2,000), as well as a handful of free trials and, in the near future, add-on content. The page also reveals that XBLA content will soon be sold through the website, which gives the purchaser an unlock code which they can input into the Xbox Live Marketplace to retrieve their content. It's pretty straightforward stuff, but we're still looking for the page that explains how we can trade our downloaded games in for store credit. If anyone comes across it, would you please let us know?
AT&T offering a free month of Zune to folks who buy a Windows Phone 7 handset this year (update: 3-month Zune Pass from MS, and free Xbox 360s in Austria!)
We already knew AT&T was giving away ilomilo and a free month of U-verse Mobile to folks who buy one of its glorious Windows Phone 7 phones. What else? Well, AT&T is tossing in a free month of Zune Pass for good measure. Now, Microsoft already offers 14 day free trials to the Zune-curious, and there's nothing stopping other carriers or Microsoft itself extending this deal to the rest of the world -- we think the "first one's free" method of addiction generation is particularly great for subscription music. Still, it's nice to know AT&T has such an offer sewn up. Now that the Xbox is getting a native Zune UI at long last, how about a free month of Zune for Xbox Live subscribers as well? Microsoft can afford it. [Thanks, Morgan G.] Update: We just heard that Austrian carrier A1's offering a free Xbox 360 4GB to everyone signing up for or extending a contract for a HTC Trophy on October 21st only, and there'll also be a Xbox 360 raffle for 360 lucky pre-orderers. If you so desire, A1 will also let you sign up for two contracts and take two Xboxes home as well. Our tipster added that the company isn't known for doing giveaways, so it's very likely that it's getting a little help from Microsoft. [Thanks, Ben M.] And speaking of which, another eagle-eyed reader spotted that Microsoft is giving away three-month Zune Passes to those signing up for the WP7 pre-order notification and actually buying a phone. Go get it while it's hot! [Thanks, Bryan]
Final Fantasy XIV grants players a month of freedom and revamped markets
Player opinions have been strongly mixed on Final Fantasy XIV, something that hardly needs to be reiterated. Even the game's supporters have occasionally been a touch leery about paying for their first month of the game with the current state of polish. Which means that it should be good news for players all around that Square-Enix is extending the normal "free month" to encompass an additional month, placing early adopters out of the realm of billing until November. Aimed primarily at purchasers of the collector's edition with its headstart, the extension will be credited to any and all accounts created before October 19th. Billing will be credited for another 30 days, giving a total of 60 days free time within the game world. The official announcement assured the community that the development team is listening to all the feedback received, and wishes to thank Final Fantasy XIV's players for their devotion to the game. Considering that the game has just seen its first pass of reorganization for the market system and a director dispatch on the game's future, it's a morning of good news for the game's players. [Thanks to Bartillo and FusionX for the tip!]
Breakfast Topic: Why won't they play?
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW.com. Gaming is a social activity ... Well, it always has been for me. I've always played games (from TCG to pen-and-paper RPGs, from the arcade to home consoles) with other people. Any game I enjoyed, I shared with my friends. So when I finally joined my boyfriend in World of Warcraft, I tried getting a few other friends into the game. It was a good way for all of us to stay connected while we were at different schools, as well as replace our D&D and Mutants and Mastermind campaigns until the summer. A few of my friends joined my boyfriend and me in Azeroth. Some stayed, some didn't -- but the majority didn't even want to give WoW a first or (for some) second chance on a trial account. When I asked them why, I was given these reasons: "I don't need four nights of raiding a week." "I don't need to play a game that's gonna act as a second job." "I don't like paying more than once to play a game." "It's too addictive." Though I think some of these are invalid excuses, I will let my friends be until the next game I get into. Do you have friends that just won't try even the trial account? What excuses do they give you?
The Daily Grind: Are free trials good for MMOs?
A couple days ago we chatted about the nature of open betas, and whether or not any testing goes on in these periods. The overwhelming majority of respondents seemed to favor the notion that stress testing is the primary reason for open beta from a developer's perspective, while free trials and sneak peaks were the primary motivators for consumers. When it comes to MMORPGs, trials are an interesting beast. Early in a game's life cycle, it seems to me that trials do more harm than good, as the goal of every developer is to move a lot of product and/or convert a lot of the tire-kickers into subscribers or cash shop patrons. Extensive trials actively work against these goals, especially when games are new, buggy, and light on content compared to how they usually look a couple years down the road. If stress testing really is the main reason for an open beta, and MMOs are almost always inferior products at launch, why then do developers not simply stress test in closed beta phases, selectively screening their applicants for actual testers instead of the folks who are only interested in getting a free look at the game? What do you think, Massively readers? Have free trials (or open betas) saved you from purchasing an MMORPG? Do you think game companies are shooting themselves in the foot with open betas and early trials?
Free Love for the holiday weekend
Those who lament that nothing innovative and interesting is being done in the field of MMOs are probably unfamiliar with LOVE, a project seeking to redefine pretty much any core assumptions about the genre. Players build and create, levels are based upon relationships with other players, and the entire world is a surrealistic masterpiece of a landscape. Oh, and the entire project is the work of one man, Eskil Steenberg. It's the sort of thing that would be well worth checking out, and during the holiday weekend, you can do precisely that. From 6 PM GMT on Friday until noon on Monday, LOVE will be having its first free weekend, giving players curious about the actual mechanics of the game a chance to log in and take a close look at how the game works. That runs the majority of the Labor Day weekend, a fine time to log in and get some serious construction going. Keep an eye on the official site or on GamingLove for more information on registration. [Thanks to bartillo for the tip!]
EverQuest II Extended sounds the call to soft launch [Updated]
It's weird to think that it was less than a month ago when we first heard that SOE was going to launch a free-to-play version of its popular EverQuest II. It's weirder still when you consider just how fast EverQuest II Extended progressed to the open beta launch stage, as the F2P experience became available to the public yesterday with Platinum membership arriving at the end of the month. This isn't the first time SOE has experimented with various plans to lure players into Norrath, including a 14-day free trial and the EQII Passport limited subscription. Unlike those previous plans, EverQuest II Extended is being treated as a wholly separate game on unique servers, and is offering free play without a time limit. SOE claims that this is a first for the industry: two versions of the same game operating in parallel in order to offer players a choice between payment plans. One interesting aspect of the Extended beta soft launch is that there will be no wipe -- on the contrary, any characters, progression and purchases made by players during this period will carry over to the live version. Extended offers a variety of payment options, from completely free to a full year's subscription, depending on your level of interest. Even if you're an EQII newbie, there's no reason to avoid checking out the game to see if it might tickle your fancy. [Update: SOE has contacted us to let us know that they're calling this a launch now, instead of an open beta, due to the fact that no character info is being wiped. The post has been updated to reflect the new terminology]
The Mog Log: Layers upon layers of questions
There's a lot coming down the pipeline for fans of both Final Fantasy XIV and Final Fantasy XI. And there are a lot of questions to be asked, even though not all of them quite mirror those of your beloved author. (Those questions are generally shouted at the sky, insinuating it can hear me and that it needs to give me a beta key.) But while I'm not busy staring at a harsh, uncaring sky, I can certainly offer you a fair number of answers. hatri1181 asks: "I scored really low on the benchmark, but my system beats the living hell out of the min specs. Does that make any sense to anyone else?" Yes. The benchmark isn't totally accurate, as many people were screaming as soon as it was released, and it features several odd points. Points such as being sponsored by one of two major GPU manufacturers, and highlighting the most congested areas of gameplay with no options to turn settings down, only up -- the sort of things that have resulted in people being fully capable of running the benchmark and having scores telling them they could not.
Try Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer free for 10 days
The Age of Conan expansion Rise of the Godslayer has been out for a while now, and if you're a former player who hasn't tried it yet, Funcom is eager for you to take a look. Everyone likes free stuff, so how about 10 free days of Rise of the Godslayer? From now until July 15th, former Age of Conan subscribers are invited to download and play the expansion at no cost for ten days. Of course, Funcom hopes you'll enjoy it enough to buy it, and there is a little bonus if you do just that. If you purchase on or before July 15th, you'll receive the "Tortage Survival pack," a bundle of goodies that includes a pile of starter weapons and ten double-XP potions. The expansion's trial is available for download now, and newcomers to the game are always welcome to check out the trial of the full game, available on the Age of Conan site.
Aventurine offers 14-day Darkfall free trial
Aventurine has officially announced a 14-day free trial for their PvP-centric fantasy MMORPG known as Darkfall. Lead developer Tasos Flambouras brings us the good news via the game's forums. "After our experience with the 1 euro/dollar trial and after several further improvements we feel that we're ready to offer a free trial which won't disrupt the current user experience and will help with making the game available to a larger playerbase and getting new players into the game," he writes. He goes on to state that North American and European customers will receive priority handling in the event of overcrowding. You can check out the European trial client or the American trial client to get started. [Thanks to everyone who let us know!]
Star Trek Online offering veteran rewards and free trials
Star Trek Online players and former players got a little surprise in their inbox this morning -- the promise of rewards if you were still playing, and the chance to get back in if you stopped. Quite apart from the recent update to the game's first large content patch, Cryptic is rolling out three new features to players: Veteran Rewards, a demo, and an upcoming free trial weekend. The demo, not quite available yet but promised in the very near future, will work along the lines of the Champions Online demo: unlimited time, but gameplay itself limited to the first few missions and areas. For lapsed players or new players who prefer limited time and unlimited content, there's a free weekend coming up starting on May 7th. Again much like its sister game, there are no limitations on gameplay, just time: May 7th at 10 AM PST until May 10th 10 AM PST. Of course, if you're an extant player none of these options are terribly engaging to you -- but the newly-added veteran rewards most likely are. Rolling in each 100 days, the rewards allow another free respec each interval, special costume pieces, and a small skill point buff on low-level characters. Take a look at the full page for all the rewards, which are the latest in a large dose of good news for Star Trek Online fans.
The Daily Grind: What spurs you to try a game?
For most of us, MMOs can be loosely grouped into three categories. The first consists of games that you're playing or no longer wish to play, where you bought the box and dove in for better or worse. In the second category are games that you have zero interest in playing. But the third category is the most nebulous in some ways -- games that you want to try but haven't for whatever reason. Sometimes it's a lack of time, sometimes it's a feature or two you'd rather see implemented before you commit. Sometimes it's even just a matter of wanting to see if the game has a future, which can be a terribly self-fulfilling prophecy. But there's a hurdle there, even if it's just a small one. So what pushes you off the fence, so to speak, and gets you to try a new game? Is it an upcoming expansion? A free trial or a discounted upgrade? Friends enjoying the game, perhaps even gifting it to you? Or do you just wait a little on new games to see how they shake down, making a commitment only when you think it will be well-placed?
Warhammer Online streamlines trial transition
It's been a while since Warhammer Online moved to an unlimited free trial, allowing players to experience the Tier 1 game without any time restrictions. It seems to have been a pretty good move for the game, and they're obviously happy enough with how it's been going to sweeten the deal for trial players. Previously, players would have to purchase a full copy of the game to continue with their adventures; now, they just need to start up a monthly subscription. The first month will be billed and the player's account will immediately be unlocked for the entire game. Of course, it's not quite the same as buying an official copy -- you don't get the extra free month of gameplay, nor any of the actual peripherals in the box. But it's a good step to making Warhammer Online more accessible for players who enjoy the trial and want to jump right in. Considering that there's been recent positive talk about both the reaction to the unlimited trial and the possibilities of an expansion, here's hoping that the easier barrier to entry is a step toward revitalizing the game.
Global Agenda offering free trials
You're all our friends here on Massively, or at least we'd like to think so. That's why we're doing what friends who play Global Agenda do for their friends who are curious about the game but don't want to commit. We're sending you along to the link to sign up for a free trial to the game that lets you experience how the game runs for... well... as long as you'd like. Once you have the trial, you have it forever. You can see why Hi-Rez Studios is encouraging people to tell their friends not yet in the game to take a look. Of course, their are limitations -- specifically, there are a limited number of trials available, meaning that if you're interested you need to sign up by April 1st. There are also level and content restrictions, as detailed by the official disclaimer. But none of that should stop the people curious about how the game plays out from signing up in hopes of getting in for free. If there's one thing we've heard over in over in comments about Global Agenda's rapid-fire patches, it's the want for a trial -- and here it is. Isn't that friendly?
The Daily Grind: Would you pay for a trial?
The developers of Darkfall introduced a new trial offer yesterday: 7 days for one dollar, or one euro, depending on where you are located. News of the offer sparked quite a response from our readers, with most of them expressing pretty strong feelings one way or the other. Valid points were given on both sides of the argument. On one hand, nearly every game that offers a trial period offers it completely free, with no strings or costs attached, so it's a bit startling when a game suddenly requests credit card information. Not to mention that credit card information isn't something that people throw out lightly these days. On the other hand -- as many of our readers pointed out -- adding the $1 fee will deter a fair amount of people who have too much time and not enough parental supervision, and are only interested in joining the game to make it unpleasant for others. So what do you think? Dollar, or no dollar?
Free trials ahoy for Lineage II
Has it been a while since you stepped into Aden? Or perhaps you were never formally introduced to the world of Lineage II but always wanted to give it a shot? Well thanks to NCsoft's newest trial program, you now have a chance. Lineage II's new 14-day free trial program is welcoming both new users and returning players back to experience the newest free expansion to the game, Gracia Epilogue. While returning players won't be able to use their old accounts, they can use the trial keys to create a brand new account that will let them play up to level 40 with three characters for the 14 days. So if you've been looking for a game to fill your need to spill blood and siege castles, this might be a good time to try out Lineage II to see if it's for you.
The Daily Grind: Are unlimited trials more tempting?
Free trials can be... stressful. We recently even had a piece about trying to make the most of the limited time in them, if the point must be stressed. That's no doubt the reason why several companies have begun moving away from unlimited access for a brief time, and started to spread their trials out for as long as the player wishes. Warhammer Online, Champions Online, Free Realms, and Alganon all allow players a chance to try a limited portion of the game for as long as they want. And for someone without a lot of time, it's a perfect way to expand your window of playtime. Of course, if you've got plenty of time to devote to the trial, it's a bit obnoxious to hit a hard limit before having really gotten to explore the meat of the game at all. For some players, the fact that they're giving away the starting area or first few levels tends to imply they're not good enough to pay for in the first place. Do you find unlimited free trials more tempting or less than the traditional model? Or do you see it as a sign that the game is in trouble or otherwise undesirable?
Champions Online launches new demo program
So you're interested in Champions Online, but you lack a friend playing the game who could give you a trial code. You've missed out on the free weekends the game has offered, and you're not quite adventurous enough to drop the full price of the retail box sight unseen. What's to be done? Well, as of now, the proper answer is to give the brand-new demo program a try. Following in the vein of Warhammer Online, those interested in Millenium City's superheroic population can now create two different characters and enjoy romping about in an unlimited free trial of the starting area. The opening area, in which players defend the city from an alien invasion, introduces most of the game's core mechanical concepts and allows the player to start brushing shoulders with the big names in the game's lore. The only real limitations are the number of characters, and the hard limit of level 15, which itself takes quite a bit of work to reach in the starter zone. While it's not quite the rush of the various free-to-play weekend within the game, it keeps things nice and accessible, and should certainly help anyone curious about the gameplay get a firmer handle on Champions Online. The fact that it's on Steam as well is just icing on the cake. [ Thanks to Edward R. for the tip! ]
Making the most of the free trial period
The whole point of a free trial is to get you to buy the game. This is a fact of the genre, and we all know it. Correspondingly, we don't usually sign up for the free trial unless we're relatively certain we'd like to try the game in the first place. But all too often, we try the game for one session, and then we miss the rest of the free trial period and never really form a cohesive opinion about the game. So the company doesn't get your money, you don't get to try the game, and your characters languish forever in the waiting room. Needless to say, this isn't ideal for anyone. You want to make the absolute most out of your free time in the game, whether you signed up for a free 12-hour trial or you've got a game with an endless free trial a la Warhammer Online. Doing so is something that takes a little extra work, before and after playing, but the upshot is that you get to more completely enjoy the game you're playing and decide if you really want to spend money on it every month. Read on for how to keep yourself in the game, engaged, and aware of whether or not the game deserves your subscription.
