lifetime-membership
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Breakfast Topic: How much would you pay for a lifetime membership to WoW?
Do you suppose we'll ever get the option to purchase a lifetime subscription to World of Warcraft? What about even a lifetime Blizzard game pass? The advantages are many. Obviously, you'd save money once you played past the regular subscription value of the lifetime option. You'd be free from worries about billing and payments. It's likely you'd enjoy perks reserved for lifetime members, as well -- perhaps a special mount or title. Me, I'd like knowing as a lifetime member that I'd made an investment in the game and the company that created it. It's a way to ensure not only that the WoW content keeps coming but that Blizzard itself remains healthy. A lifetime membership would cement my emotional attachment to the game while at the same time relieving the stress I sometimes feel to log on "just to get my money's worth." During times when I'm especially busy or even disinterested in the current content, as a lifetime member, I'd feel less pressured to log in simply to avoid wasting my regular subscription fee. Of course, this late in the game's life cycle, there's always a risk that you might fall out of love with WoW or fall in love with another game after you'd already paid for a lifetime membership. What if all your friends and guildmates left? Heck, what if WoW became free-to-play, leaving you with adjusted perks you didn't particularly appreciate? Would you take advantage of a lifetime membership to WoW if it were ever offered? What benefits would capture your interest? And how much would you be willing to pay for a lifetime subscription to World of Warcraft?
The Secret World officially abolishes subscriptions [Updated]
Joel Bylos' first End of Days video log hinted at it (if you call busting into a conference room hinting!), and now it is official: The Secret World is permanently removing subscriptions from the equation. Some of you are undoubtedly exclaiming, "I knew it!" but all of you may be wondering what that means for you. Here's the scoop. Funcom's new payment model for TSW is buy-to-play with three membership tiers: free, member, and grand master. After purchasing the game itself, folks can play indefinitely without any additional fees, or they can opt to purchase monthly memberships that provide special bonuses. Players who already have or purchase the grandmaster package maintain their lifetime membership and receive additional bonuses. Gamers will be glad to know that the conversion will not introduce any restrictions to the game's current content; free players will have full access to every aspect of issues #1 - 4, including weapons, dungeons, and missions. But what of future content? TSW will continue to receive regular patches of free content, just not at the volume of previous issues. More content will be also available periodically through downloadable content packs (DLCs) in the in-game store. Issue #5 DLC, coming soon, will be free to all accounts registered as of the end of December. Players opting to maintain a membership will get an XP bonus item, 1,200 bonus points monthly, a special monthly gift, and a 10% discount in the in-game store. Grand masters will receive all that plus another 10% off store purchases. Both members and grand masters can use their free monthly bonus points to purchase DLC. Folks who purchased the initiate pack previously will be reimbursed 1800 bonus points, and all remaining subscription time will be converted to membership time. For more information, you can check out the official FAQ. And catch the new trailer after the break! [Updated with Pay Once, Play Forever trailer] [Source: Funcom press release]
Win a trip to Turbine by making a LotRO fifth anniversary fan video
With the fifth anniversary of Lord of the Rings Online a little over a week away, Turbine has sprung a most excellent contest to reward the hardiest Hobbits and most fanatical Fellowshippers in the community. By creating and submitting a fan video, one lucky player will win a trip to visit Turbine's studio in Boston, Massachusetts. Entering the Who is the Biggest LotRO Fan Contest is pretty simple. To do so, you'll need to head over to the contest site, download a package of assets, and then create your own fan video celebrating the game's big milestone. Each player can submit one entry, due by May 4th, which is then judged on creativity, composition, and appropriateness to theme. While there will be 500 TP daily winners in the contest, the big grand prize is a trip for two to Boston, a three-day stay in a hotel, a tour of Turbine's offices, a lifetime membership to LotRO, and 1,000 TP.
LotRO dares you to photograph the White Hand of Saruman
Rise of Isengard launches next week for Lord of the Rings Online, and Turbine is trumpeting the expansion the best way it knows how: by encouraging players to dip their hands in white paint and slap everything in the world around them. OK, maybe not that extreme, but close enough! With the studio's White Hand of Saruman contest, LotRO players are tasked with photographing people, objects or environments plastered with the iconic sigil of Isengard's key bad guy. Turbine's not encouraging players to flirt with the wrong side of the law, as it adds the disclaimer "Permanently defacing property or committing illegal acts is not permitted" to the contest rules. Players can download the white hand template from the contest website, set up an interesting picture, and then submit it for a chance at one of several prizes. These prizes include a custom-built Alienware PC, lifetime memberships to LotRO, and in-game Turbine Points. The contest will end on November 15th, after which the winners will be declared.
Behind the Mask: I want to be with this game forever and ever
One of the saddest days for me was Tuesday -- the day Champions Online launched its Free for All expansion and went free-to-play. I was mostly sad because I didn't get to log in; people have been telling me about 15+ instances of Millennium City and having a blast teaming up with all the new faces. I even got to talk to Poz on the Massively Speaking podcast about how in the first few hours of F2P, the feedback was overwhelmingly positive and the launch went off with only a minor hiccup when the servers had some minor maintenance a few hours in. While I waited for Cryptic's CS department to look at my account issues, I got to thinking about how much it would suck to lose access to my free-form characters, to which until now I've had unlimited access for as long as the game continues to live. My lifetime account for CO sure is cool. There are a lot of criticisms about CO's F2P model and even more about lifetime accounts. Way back when they were first being offered, there were a lot of arguments that CO wouldn't last the 13 months or so it would take to pay it off. Now people are claiming that Cryptic is trying to steal more money by offering lifetime subs again. Why is a lifetime account worth it? Hit the jump and let's find out.
Sony Online Entertainment brings Domo to Free Realms
Sony Online Entertainment is bringing a familiar face to Free Realms: Domo. SOE has worked out a deal with Virtual Greats and Big Tent Entertainment to bring Domo pets into the game, and they're sure to be as excruciatingly cute as the marshmallow pets from earlier this summer. SOE didn't stop with pets, however. Just like in the real world, the Domo figure will adorn all sorts of merchandise: hats, backpacks, slippers, and even housing blocks. Domo isn't the only thing that will interest Free Realms fans. The discounted lifetime membership promotion has been extended for a few more days, so if you were on the fence you have until August 16th at noon PDT to get in on it. Check out the Free Realms site for all the details.
The Daily Grind: Do you buy lifetime memberships?
On Monday we told you Cryptic had announced a lifetime membership for Champions Online. For $199 you get access to the Star Trek Online closed beta, special costumes not available to anyone else and other juicy perks. Cool huh? Now while lifetime memberships are not new (LotRO springs to mind), it's a lot of money to try a must-play game but, in a way, it also binds you to said MMO. You're buying before you try, in effect, and promising to invest a large amount of time in a particular game based on screen shots, lore or the IP.The problem is, it's hard to tell whether a game will be hit and miss and if it ultimately goes the way of Tabula Rasa and The Matrix Online. At the same time, the really popular MMOs like WoW never seem to offer lifetime subs, as if they know they will be so popular that subscriptions will keep the game going well into the next decade. I'm wondering, constant readers, do you buy lifetime memberships and did you do it because it would work out cheaper or because you genuinely love that MMO?
Free Realms announces free virtual items and Station Cash for all players
"Well that didn't take long" was the gist of what the Massively team had to say about today's Free Realms announcement of over one million players signed up in the first eighteen days. Are these players all shelling out for Station Cash? Doubtful. And it's way too soon to judge how many of those players will stick with the game, but it's still a pretty big deal. Sony Online Entertainment seems to think so as well, and have announced they'll be giving out virtual gifts to all one million Free Realms players. 999,999 players will receive an in-game T-shirt with a matching shirt for their pet, in addition to 200 Station Cash. The one-millionth player will get a sweeter deal -- a lifetime membership to Free Realms, an astronaut suit (the only one in the game), and 10,000 Station Cash. Want to know more about Free Realms? SOE's new whimsical free-to-play MMO is already being called a refreshing change of pace for kids and adults alike, and we have just the coverage you need!
LotRO's anniversary pricing to end soon
If you haven't taken advantage of the anniversary pricing special from Lord of the Rings Online yet, we're worried about your sanity. Yes it's still going on, but you only have less than two weeks left until the prices go back up. This special pricing deal started way back on April 24th of this year and was extended until June 30th. Not to make this sound too much like a commercial, but this really is the greatest deal in town for a game as involved and deep as LotRO. Even at a 3-month subscription, you're only paying $9.99 a month, but for the first time since launch, they're offering the lifetime subscription for $199. After the 30th, it will go up to $299. So consider this your friendly reminder from your pals at Massively: don't let this lifetime membership deal pass you by!
Turbine announces Lord of the Rings Online anniversary events
All day we've been celebrating the release of Book 13, and the one year anniversary of Lord of the Rings Online's launch. In honor of those events, Turbine has announced a month of celebrations! If it's been a while since you trod upon the rich loam of Tolkien's world, you're going to be welcomed back with open arms. Starting on May 8th lapsed players will be able to return for a five day trial period, to get to know the game all over again. If you decide you like Middle-earth and want to jump back in, you're going to have a couple of pricing options. They've reopened the lifetime membership gates for $199. If that's too steep for you, reupping your account this month will lock you into a $9.99 pricing scheme ... just like back when the game first launched.It's not all just fun and games out here, though. For those of you on the inside of the gameworld looking out, there's plenty to celebrate. During the Lord of the Rings Online anniversary celebration, monsters throughout the land will drop 'rare items' when they're slain. Players can exchange these rare items for special gift boxes containing anniversary loot. These will apparently be one-of-kind items intended to 'aid [you in your] adventures in Middle-earth.'Sounds like it's a great month to jump back into the game. Good luck with the orcs!%Gallery-21063%
