Age of Conan Free-to-Play Interview

The editors at Massively have taken the opportunity to interview Funcom’s Craig Morrison after the announcement that the game would go free-to-play (though it must be noted that it will still be possible to subscribe for extra content). Here’s a sampling:

Massively: Your initial communication with us regarding this announcement referred to AoC’s new business model as a “hybrid.” The term free-to-play was nowhere to be found. How deliberate was that wording? Is Funcom intending to steer clear of some of the stigmas associated with “free-to-play” or is the terminology simply a more practical description of the actual model?

Craig Morrison: I think probably a little more of the latter. If you are being specific about things, many of the business models that borrow the free-to-play mantle are really a hybrid offering, as they retain an element of subscription. You just have to look at LotRO, DDO and EQII Extended to see that, and our offering there is no different.

We really started the ball rolling with that back in 2005 with Anarchy Online and used the words free-to-play because at a fundamental level it is actually allowing for just that — the user can play the game, and a whole bunch of content, for no up front investment. Of course the companies want to make money, and there are very few free-to-play games that remain truly free. So the terminology itself is just what the industry has adopted to describe quite a wide variety of possible implementations.

Western F2P conversions can thus far be divided into two types: Turbine’s approach with LotRO/DDO (where most things in the game are freely obtainable given enough time/grinding) and SOE’s approach with EQII (where there are many desirable in-game items that are only obtainable via the cash shop or the card game). Was Funcom influenced by one of these models more than the other?

We didn’t really take any narrow or specific influences, but we did research all of those games and more. We looked at the item stores and inventories of many, many games in search of the best balance there. There will, though, be items in the store that are exclusive to the store, but likewise there will be also be those that the players can get in-game or through the veteran system, so it’s very much a mix of both.

Being “nickel-and-dimed” for in-game stuff like pets or appearance items is a concern of some free-to-play opponents. Will Funcom consider a higher flat-rate premium option that gives players the ability to earn everything in the game for a recurring monthly fee?

I don’t think that is something we would consider right now. People after all have an easy choice there — if they object to vanity purchases in principle, then they don’t have to buy them. We might add some of that stuff to the veteran vendor down the line or offer them to subscribers as gifts at certain points in the future, but I think there will always be cosmetic stuff like those that sit outside the subscription costs. I am not sure that would be a good enough reason for people to want to pay more for a subscription, but who knows how things develop in the future… you never know, it might be an idea that takes off.