Independent Free-to-Play Service comes to EQ2
Where there’s smoke, sometimes there really is a fire.
During a Stratics E3 interview in June, Dave “SmokeJumper” Georgeson, then-new Senior Producer for EverQuest II was asked point blank: Will EverQuest II would be transitioning to a F2P setup as Lord of the Rings Online did in June? His response has been thoroughly dissected and analyzed:
The current subscription model isn’t going to change. The people that are playing the game as it stands right now really like the way it is. They don’t want us to sell items for power in the marketplace. They want to be able to earn their way through and achieve things on their own. They don’t really want people to be able to get ahead with their wallet. So the existing business that we have right now is not going to change. If we were to do something outside of it, it would be completely separate.
Most pundits in the MMO industry interpreted this as a flat denial, but not EQ2Wire!
At first glance, this seemed to shut the door on F2P in EverQuest II in the future. However, careful consideration of the words “current subscription model“, “existing business…is not going to change” and “do something outside of it…would be completely separate” seemed to leave a crack open for the possibility of completely isolated servers being established for F2P on the same model as Bazaar and Vox.
Today we’ve learned that SOE will, in fact, be introducing a standalone EverQuest II Free-to-Play service.
Today’s Announcement
There is a lot of information to digest in today’s announcement, but if you take nothing else from today’s news, remember these two key points:
NO CHANGES are being made to EverQuest II Subscription servers or services.
The NEW EverQuest II Free-to-Play Server(s) are a completely independent service which will have their own Forums, Support site, Launcher, and Marketplace.
Tags: free-to-play
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Comments (20)
Starseeker
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While I don’t mind f2p, I am concerned that this will draw new players into this eq2x, and the current servers may see even more stagnation. Really hope thats not the case.
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jasonmicron
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http://everquest2.com/_themes/default/images/extended/membershipMatrix.jpg
According to that matrix, there IS a change to the current model, unless it is a typo.
Look at the available starting races. FOUR, with remaining purchasable, for ALL tiers of subscriptions. This of course means that if you want to start with a race other than Human, Erudite, Barbarian & Half-Elf you get to pay extra no matter the subscription model.
I guess they forgot to mention that? Because that is a pretty major middle finger to people that are alt. happy.
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jasonmicron
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AAAAAAAAAAAND if you look at that same matrix under player character levels, the recurring monthly model ($14.99 / month) has a cap of 80 with an increase up to 90 that is purchasable. I’m guessing that is a Sentinel’s Fate expansion purchase, which I already have, but it is rather ambiguous.
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Starseeker
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That is the matrix for the EQ2 Extended. Not the current EQ2 Live servers. That subscription model is for F2P servers only.
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jasonmicron
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Gotcha. I wasn’t separating my services.
Well nevermind, carry on.
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Blockhead
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Smartest move this game has ever made. Grats!
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starseeker
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Well, I’m not sure it is, perhaps for the game and company yes…for us vetrans on subscription servers, probably not. The new players will be funneled into the new servers, while the old ones will probably slowly die and get merged.
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jasonmicron
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It is basically screwing over people that will continue to follow the old model. It funnels new players into the new model and doesn’t allow transfers into the LIVE servers, however the LIVE servers can transfer into the extended servers – for a fee. It basically stops any new players from going to the old world servers.
Over time more and more people will go to the extended servers and the standard model will eventually disappear. At least, that is how I see it if I am Sony. Smart business move, however it is shunning their hardcore fan base in favor of new money.
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Blockhead
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starseeker, i would have preferred to just stay on my server.
The problem with eq2 is they are too politically correct sometimes, nah sorry all the time. If you are going to do something just F*in DO IT. No, they dance around trying not to hurt anyone’s feelings because most of the player base are a bunch of suckybabies, ya like me. lol
In the end this is such a breath new life into the game, its good thing, so many people are going to start vacating to the free, all new blood free, and you’re probably right, merge the dieing servers.
So even though they prolly know this will happen, RIGHT AT THIS MINUTE they didn’t hurt any subscribers feeling.
/Where’s my soother.
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starseeker
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I would have loved f2p coming to live servers, I am not interested, but I know it could be good for the game. However the current implementation, basically having 2 instances of the game, where they are pushing the new f2p model, will isolate the current subscription servers. Eventually, the population will grow stagnant. We needed the new blood in servers like oasis, permafrost, guk. Not entirely new servers. It’s not f2p that is bad, it is the way soe has implemented it.
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jamanji
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If they brought it to live servers it would have destroyed the game and caused a worse effect on the server population than the way they are doing it. I could see them eventually merging the services if the new one gets a lot of players, but I am happy with the way they decided to do things. It is more of an endless trial since subbing to the new service is basically pointless. It saves you what 30$ from having to buy the game, which you probably spend elsewhere unlocking basic features.
It is a neat idea to increase the playerbase and I support it, lets just hope the new players have half a brain and realize they could just get the full game cheaper.
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adolf102
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Agree. F2P idea is good. Bringing new live good. SOE implmentation … bad.
Why not to drive those new F2P players into live servers? Which will also motivate them to up to subscription model.
It looks like push toward F2B and silent back stab to live servers. Pitty.
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mic
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This is straight up garbage the normal servers are gonna go down the friggen toilet cause people are gonna go to these f2p to power out their toons by paying cash GREAT JOB SONY kill ur own game
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Grugg
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I was still right, Feldon. They’re not changing EQ2. They’ve created EQ2X. Completely separate. 🙂
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Zerigo
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You can play eq2 for free, or play it for $40 + $15/monthly. Hard choice. It going to hurt the old server populations in the long run if they keep this model. However, its going to keep a few developers employed for a while, and that is a win for everyone who plays.
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AlienShine
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So this is where all the dev time goes… Bring us more content to play !
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Spanky
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This is absolutely amazing. Wish there was more involved with the F2P servers but I know I have at least 3 friends coming back as they didn’t want to pay the monthly sub!
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jamanji
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Is it just me that realizes how pointless subscribing to the gold service would be? This will not ruin normal eq2 at all. Sure you can play for free, but you have a level cap, you can only use treasured or lower, you can only play a small group of races and classes, and for you to unlock more by subscribing to the gold service for the same price as the full game, and you don’t even get everything once you do that.
Everyone is looking at this wrong. It is basically an endless trial, just like what warhammer did. Sure there will be some people who subscribe and spend more money than they would have on the original game, but those people don’t really belong on a real server.
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Starseeker
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Jamanji- basically the issue isn’t that f2p is bad, the issue is that they are putting it different servers and completely separating that community from ours. EQ2 is about community, guilds, hanging out with friends, getting to know each other, raiding…etc. It is a social game. If you take x new player, put them on f2p server 01, let them play for free, then they realize “oh I like this game I want to do more!” They pay for their sub, great.
The issue is: they will still be on the f2p server, and not on the live/legacy/sub servers, because:
A. they cannot transfer their established toons to the non f2p servers, so they’d have to delete and reroll.
B. they’ve made friends, guildmates, community associations with the F2p (btw their forums are completely separate as well).
C. If they can buy items out of the store and have choices like that, or go to our servers and be completely penniless, and not know anyone where do you think they will go?
The way I put it to a guildie: Think of a bucket named EQ2. There is a hole in the bottom of that bucket, there always has been, called disastisfied/quitting players. Also there is a faucet running water into that bucket the water fills the bucket up, drains out the bottm, but the bucket never becomes empty because there’s a flow of water into it constantly. Now add another bucket called EQ2EX, and stick a hose on the end of the faucet and put it in that bucket. What happens to the EQ2 bucket? the water drains out the bottom, and with no new water it empties while the other bucket now is the one constantly being refilled. That, in essence is the problem.
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jamanji
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I see where everyone is coming from with the separation issue. Maybe it is just me, but if I was to play the free to play version and like it so much I wanted more, I would just buy the full game since the price point is much more logical.
As for the transfer issue, I would have no problem with people transferring over to live servers. Given what Georgenson has said about the cash shop items, I don’t see it causing any sort of impact. Losing friends and the community you have played in would hurt, but if you liked the game to the point you were subscribing why not sub to the live servers in the first place.
The bucket analogy makes sense, I just don’t see it that way. Sure the live “bucket” would lose “water”, but there would also be a flow of people who realize live is a much better option. Some people just don’t like f2p communities. Things will always be divided however you look at them and I really don’t see that causing an impact on live servers. Maybe we will lose a chunk of the casual players, but then again why would anyone who already has the game change.
They could have handled it better, sure, but they also could have done a lot worse, like merge these two services together. If that happened then I could see the “bucket” draining very very fast.
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