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  • ESO's sub model was a 'mutual decision' between Bethesda and ZeniMax

    by 
    Jef Reahard
    Jef Reahard
    04.01.2014

    Elder Scrolls Online's subscription model wasn't handed down from on high by parent company ZeniMax. It was instead a "mutual decision" between ZeniMax and Bethesda, according to company PR guru Pete Hines. "It wasn't like they decided it, and we didn't mandate it. There was a lot of conversation around it," he told Games.On.Net. Hines also explained that the future of ESO's business model will depend entirely on whether customers see the game as a fair value, and not on prevailing industry trends. "What's going to determine whether or not it succeeds or fails is not really tied to what anyone else has done, it's tied to 'do we make a strong enough argument for the value that you get for your fifteen dollars,'" Hines said. "If we're providing the kind of content people want to see where they're like 'this is awesome, I'm having a blast, this new stuff is totally worth it and I'm having fun,' then the subscription totally works."

  • The Firing Line: Why you should be playing Tribes: Ascend

    by 
    Jef Reahard
    Jef Reahard
    02.24.2012

    Skiing! Jetpacks! Pew pew! Yes, kids, Tribes: Ascend is officially in open beta, and that means you no longer have an excuse. Hi-Rez Studios threw open the doors this morning, and despite the fact that the game's closed beta exceeded all expectations and hosted over 300,000 players since its November kickoff, there's always room for more.

  • The Firing Line Extra: Tribes' Todd Harris on class customization and base gameplay

    by 
    Jef Reahard
    Jef Reahard
    02.02.2012

    Today's a big day for fans of Tribes: Ascend, and it's also a big day for Hi-Rez Studios, the Atlanta-based indie firm behind the upcoming online shooter. You see, today is patch day, and while that's not terribly unusual (Hi-Rez has updated the Tribes beta client early and often since the start of closed testing last November), the latest tweak is a bit of fan service that will likely bring smiles to the faces of franchise die-hards waiting in the wings to see what becomes of their baby.