PC

The Emotions Free-to-Play Games Prey On To Get Players To Pay

“In a freemium game it’s not a rational decision to pay; it’s an emotional one.” Wednesday at the East Coast Games Conference in North Carolina, former BioWare design manager Ethan Levy explained how free-to-play games can harness to emotions of their players in order to profit.


March 17, 2012
PC

After 13 Years, Original EverQuest Goes F2P

One of the longest-running subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing games has finally succumbed to the sweet, sweet lure of the microtranscation-based business model, as EverQuest celebrates its 13th anniversary by going free-to-play.


March 3, 2012
PC

Watch Robots Explode In This Hawken Teaser

Here’s a new teaser for Hawken, the great-looking free-to-play mech shooter that will be out this December for PC.


January 18, 2012
PC

Star Trek Online Free-to-Play Now Open To Everyone

Set your phasers on stupid Trek reference, as Cryptic’s Star Trek Online opens its free-to-play docking bay and invites the world inside following a brief subscriber-only period. To see what players get for free, hit up the official Star Trek Online web page.


August 16, 2011
PC

A Tiny Slice Of LEGO Universe Goes Free

Bright, colourful and charming, the massively multiplayer LEGO Universe has attracted droves of players willing to spend $US10 a month to experience everything the block-built world has to offer. For everyone else, there’s LEGO Universe: Free to Play.


June 24, 2011
PC

Team Fortress 2 Is Now Free. Free Forever.

If you’ve waited this long to finally play a game of Team Fortress 2, now may be the best time. Or at least the cheapest, as Valve is giving Team Fortress 2 away for free – forever – with the team-based first-person shooter now solely supported by microtransactions.


June 15, 2011
PC

Steam Goes Free To Play

Starting today, Valve’s digital distribution service, Steam, supports Free to Play games (Spiral Knights, Forsaken Worlds, Champions Online, etc) with in-game purchases through Steam’s microtransaction system. Players who download the games through Steam will receive exclusive content this week. [Valve]