Free D&D Online boosts paid subscriptions

Written by Joe Martin

October 19, 2009 | 11:58

Tags: #free-mmo #mmo

Companies: #turbine

Turbine has announced that the move to re-release Dungeons & Dragons Online as a free-to-play MMO has actually boosted paid subscriptions by a massive 40 percent and attracted plenty of new players to the game.

"We're hitting and exceeding our internal targets, so far we're very happy," said Turbine's Fernando Paiz in an interview with Ars Technica.

"All aspects of our business are growing. Hundreds of thousands of new players in the world are playing for free, with a very high percentage using the store."

D&D Online originally launched as a premium MMO, but was later re-launched as a free-to-play game after disappointing figures. The game is now free to play in the most basic form and players can buy just the extra items and skills they want through a microtransaction store, or they can opt to pay the old subscription model for unrestricted access.

"We have a good chunk of the population that is spending more than $15 a month," Paiz said. "The traditional subscription model can only make X dollars off a player. This kind of removes that cap."

The comments follow nicely on from the news last week that even free Facebook games can make an average of $20 USD per user - maybe Turbine should set their sights a little higher?

You can check out our recent round-up of free-to-play MMOs if you're looking for other free games, or just let us know your thoughts in the forums.
Discuss this in the forums
YouTube logo
MSI MPG Velox 100R Chassis Review

October 14 2021 | 15:04

TOP STORIES

SUGGESTED FOR YOU