Top Ten Free-to-Play Games - Investment Opportunities for Players
Danny "Ralsu" Gourley thinks the trick to hooking players in a game is getting them to invest in it. Those who pay to play games invest money up front while those who play free-to-play games invest their time. Even so, Ralsu's opinion of the long-term investments both kinds of players make could surprise Ten Ton Hammer readers:
Quote:
The person who only plays subscription games will be looking at another $50 start up investment, which is a deterrent because that same $50 would buy her another three months of her current MMOG. On the other hand, she already spends $15/month in subscriptions, so that financial investment would not hold her back.
This is why publishers of f2p games concentrate on acquisition rather than rentention, to get a high volumne of low spenders through the system rather than trying to hold onto a handful of high spenders.
This is why publishers of f2p games concentrate on acquisition rather than rentention, to get a high volumne of low spenders through the system rather than trying to hold onto a handful of high spenders.
I agree 100%. I'll say more in "Investment Opportunities for Publishers."
I think what the F2P scene has lacked is a decent, dedicated and relatively frequent column - essentially like Ralsu's, that helps fight the myth that F2P games aren't worth playing.
With a young family (4 kids) and a 60+ hour working week, my free time is as important as getting value for money. What I don't want to spend countless hours doing is:
* download after download of F2P games (I have a phenomenal amount bookmarked as "potentials")
* install after install
* play for several hours
* get bored or otherwise not enjoy
* uninstall after uninstall (which I hate doing on Windows machines)
Ralsu's weekly post (assisted by TTH game reviews) provides reason for what games I should be looking to give preference to. Basically he's doing the above mentioned "hard yakka" (sorry, Aussie colloquialism) on my behalf and I now know what I should be trying without wasting a heap of time.
At the moment my wife and I (when I get time) and our 2 eldest children (7 & 6) are playing Wizard 101 (family subscription) and I look forward to trying Atlantica, RoM and others on the F2P Top 10 List when time avails.
I think what the F2P scene has lacked is a decent, dedicated and relatively frequent column - essentially like Ralsu's, that helps fight the myth that F2P games aren't worth playing.
With a young family (4 kids) and a 60+ hour working week, my free time is as important as getting value for money. What I don't want to spend countless hours doing is:
* download after download of F2P games (I have a phenomenal amount bookmarked as "potentials")
* install after install
* play for several hours
* get bored or otherwise not enjoy
* uninstall after uninstall (which I hate doing on Windows machines)
Ralsu's weekly post (assisted by TTH game reviews) provides reason for what games I should be looking to give preference to. Basically he's doing the above mentioned "hard yakka" (sorry, Aussie colloquialism) on my behalf and I now know what I should be trying without wasting a heap of time.
At the moment my wife and I (when I get time) and our 2 eldest children (7 & 6) are playing Wizard 101 (family subscription) and I look forward to trying Atlantica, RoM and others on the F2P Top 10 List when time avails.
Thanks heaps.
I think you're absolutely right, Chippen. Danny continues to amaze me with this column, and I hope this year's influx of F2P games really bolster his cause.
Thanks for the kind words, Chippen. You've made my day! I really love all of the people who take the time to read my columns and comment (even when we disagree). As much as possible, I am doing this for you!
F2P games are a must have in our home. My teen daughter goes through games quicker than kleenex these days so I often pass off info from Ralsu for her to check out. So far she's tried several (without spending my money) and a couple have stuck!
Something I'd like to see in the top ten is a key features list next to each title, so people can see at a glance what the main points of the game are. I mean all free to play MMOs are comparable, but they are by no means the same, like Atlantica's turn based combat system which is really different from anything else out there except maybe Dofus / Wakfu.
Thanks for the kind words, Chippen. You've made my day! I really love all of the people who take the time to read my columns and comment (even when we disagree). As much as possible, I am doing this for you!
Mate I look forward to the link in my daily Loading email every week
Also thanks to RadarX for his recent article on choosing a F2P game.
Top Ten Free-to-Play Games - Investment Opportunities for Players
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