free trial
Latest
Kieron Gillen on TR, betas, and free trials
Kieron Gillen of Rock, Paper, Shotgun has a great retrospective up about Tabula Rasa, its launch, and where Destination Games should go from here.Kieron talks about how he actually likes TR, but how the game has been damaged -- maybe ruined -- by an ill-advised Beta test. Which is spot on, really. Loads of serious MMO fans played the Beta at one time or another, and it was missing so many features that made it into the final game it's not even funny -- in fact, it's still missing some even now, hence the rush for patches and new content. The solution? Kieron recommends TR gets a free trial. Not the refer a friend scheme going around at present -- a real free trial so Beta testers can reevaluate the game as it stands.The quality of a Beta influences how successfully a game sells much more than publishers seem to believe, and similarly, free trials. It's always struck me as foolish that every MMOG doesn't have a free trial to begin with. Whilst retail sales is something publishers will always hate to lose, surely if subscriptions are increased in the long-term it's a wise investment?
Auran foists ten day Fury trial
For those simply too curious to stay away - Auran has announced a new ten day free trial for their recently-released PvP-centric MMO, Fury. All you have to do is follow the link, enter your email address in the given prompt, and you'll be well on your way to "unleashing your fury."Normally we would balk at leading you down so dark a road, but we're confident that you won't even have to play the demo for terribly long before you figure out what a buggy black hole of fun it is. You don't have to take our word for it, all you have to do is take a look around the community and you'll find that this game was almost universally panned.If anything, we're doing you a service by helping you jump on the demo -- this way you won't ever be tempted to make an impulse purchase when you see it on store shelves!
Bring an old guildmate back to life
Blizzard is now offering a new twist on the Recruit-A-Friend program. They want you to send out invitations to your friends who used to play WoW, but have canceled more than 90 days ago. The offer is for a 10 day free trial of the Burning Crusade. If they accept and become a paid subscriber, you get a free month of Warcraft.You can have up to 5 invitations out at once and each person has up to a month to reply before the invitation expires and that slot opens up to you to send out another.This is pretty smart, IMHO. We've all known guildmates who have disappeared since the summer began. If they've been thinking of coming back, at least you can get a month free subscription out of it. Check out the FAQ for full details.
Free Trials: Wonderful, or source of annoyance?
Let me preface this by saying that I'm absolutely notorious for giving out free trial codes. You want to check out WoW and see if you like it? Sure! Let me get you a code -- and get myself 30 days free in the process if you sign up. You think your cousin might dig the game since he plays EverQuest, but you're not sure? Here, let me email you a code to forward to them. For you see, I am every inch the devoted WoW fangirl, and I say that without any shame. As such, it is my mission to share the fun! Now, with that said, I think I've easily managed to score four or five months of free time from people converting trial accounts to paid accounts. And as WoW gains even more ground, even hardcore devotees to other MMOs are starting to be curious about what all the noise is about. (Well, okay, maybe that's just my older brother who has been staunchly refusing all my free codes and continuing to play City of Heroes/Villains... But I sense his will starting to falter now that he's hit endgame there. Mwahaha!) Of course, if you listen to Terrorantula on the (European) WoW General forums, trial accounts are everything that is bad with the game. They bring in gold spam mails! They let those advertisers come on and harass us! Now personally, while I'm all for Blizzard writing in some kind of process that immediately bans any account who sends certain gold-selling domain names in chat or mail (and they know who they are) I don't know that I would back the total removal of all free trial accounts.
Lord of the Rings Online free until April 24
For the next 17 days feel free to go on a Lord of the Rings: Shadows of Angmar bender. Turbine is opening up the floodgates and letting anyone who wants to experience the game play for free until the official launch April 24. The MMORPG's developer knows who they are up against and told Joystiq previously that they put a lot of work into the game. They're launching the title polished like no other MMORPG has been before to contend in the market. Players will be able to advance to level 15 and transfer that character if they decide to pre-order the game. LotRO also allows those that know they are going to like the game during this free trial to spend $199 for a lifetime subscription, otherwise there is a $9.99/month charge. So, if you're into MMORPGs at all or just want to check out LotRO, go ahead -- it's free.
