What If A Subscription Was Required?

[Rakosta_Kai]

Pay to Play is an outdated system; Free to Play is more profitable, and popular.

 

Not so much outdated as it is un-popular currently.  F2P can definitely be more profitable but that profit is unpredictable from month to month.

 

What I've found is that I almost prefer a subscription model over F2P as the amounts spent are less in a 12 month period for a subscription model than they are for the F2P models.

 

That said though, Warframe still wouldn't benefit from a sub based model because it lacks meaningful content or an update cycle that includes it.

Warframe will gross more with it's current model and gets less criticism in the process.

 

You know what my biggest fear for Warframe is?

DLC's

 

While I don't ever see DE migrating to Subscription based model... I can see them pushing the current F2P and a DLC pack model at players.

For my part, I view DLC as the most vile and predatory thing to be implemented in online gaming and it's exactly the kind of thing that I can see DE doing with Warframe.

Edited February 4, 2015 by Padre_Akais

[swihart91]

Not so much outdated as it is un-popular currently.  F2P can definitely be more profitable but that profit is unpredictable from month to month.

 

What I've found is that I almost prefer a subscription model over F2P as the amounts spent are less in a 12 month period for a subscription model than they are for the F2P models.

 

That said though, Warframe still wouldn't benefit from a sub based model because it lacks meaningful content or an update cycle that includes it.

Warframe will gross more with it's current model and gets less criticism in the process.

 

You know what my biggest fear for Warframe is?

DLC's

 

While I don't ever see DE migrating to Subscription based model... I can see them pushing the current F2P and a DLC pack model at players.

For my part, I view DLC as the most vile and predatory thing to be implemented in online gaming and it's exactly the kind of thing that I can see DE doing with Warframe.

Where did dlc come from? I haven't heard talks or even whispers about it. Also it is just as bad as subscription and they are smart enough to know that

[Vesiga]

It would be like ESO. They'd end up getting rid of the sub fee, and pray the game can make a recov. 

[vaugahn]

For my part, I view DLC as the most vile and predatory thing to be implemented in online gaming and it's exactly the kind of thing that I can see DE doing with Warframe.

 

Vile and predatory aren't generally words I associate with DE.

 

Given Steve's words on the F2P model in the past, DLCs aren't something I can ever see them doing. Just doesn't seem in their style. 

[(XBOX)Grihaly]

I already give Microsoft $60 a year just to play online, why would I pay more money to essentially do what I already am doing?

[(PSN)MoRockaPDX]

I already give Microsoft $60 a year just to play online, why would I pay more money to essentially do what I already am doing?

 

So true, but your first mistake was paying MS that sub. PS4 doesn't require sub to PS+ nor does PC have sub.

[TheErebus.]

For my part, I view DLC as the most vile and predatory thing to be implemented in online gaming and it's exactly the kind of thing that I can see DE doing with Warframe.

That isn't true at all. There are plenty of DLCs that add content that only expands onto the game.

 

Dark Souls 1 and 2 had DLC that improved the game (Sir Alonne and Knight Artorias anyone?).

Edited February 4, 2015 by ScrublordPrime

[Snydrex]

That isn't true at all. There are plenty of DLCs that add content that only expands onto the game.

 

Dark Souls 1 and 2 had DLC that improved the game (Sir Alonne and Knight Artorias anyone?).

[Stratego89]

While WF is Free-to-Play, in order to enjoy certain aspects of the game, quickly move through ranks, or quickly acquire new and exciting gear, a player must either purchase Platinum (digital currency of WF) or complete enough trades with other players to acquire Platinum.

This is completely untrue. I have bought no platinum in game. The platinum I have traded for I have only used on either slots or cosmetics and most of my those trades were a couple minutes here or there in downtime between missions. I have been playing for about 5 months now, but have been rank 11 for at least 2 months because I took a bit of a break. This means that in a matter of 3 months without spending any money or working my butt off trading I've gotten to rank 11/19(? I think is the current soft cap). The only things in this game that you NEED plat for is weapon slots, but a player could theoretically never pay a cent or complete a single trade and still play with every frame and weapon at one point or another.

[JerZeyCJ]

"Possible pros would be more frequently given content"

 

You act like we aren't given new content almost every week and a major patch every two or three months.

[CaptainEras]

Quite a few years ago one very clever chap said the future of gaming is give the game away and fund it on microtransactions, not subscriptions but the kind of thing DE is doing.

 

I have forged about 90% of my stuff but still managed to spend over £400 (since oct. 2013), on the game. If anyone had told me I would ever spend over about £25 on a game I'd call them mad . . . and I'm only one of a great many.

 

This is the only game which has had me playing on a daily basis, there is just something about it, and fantastic graphics.

 

We don't need subscription, leave that for that other giant of a game . . .

[Dartiel]

People that couldn't play everyday or play lots of missions daily would quit, no doubt.

 

converting to  P2P would require lots of overhaul, since it was built as a F2P game, and that might cause less contents update before the overhaul finished.

That will increase the number of bored players which will quit before it became P2P and will lose some more after that.

It's a huge gamble and it might kill the game, or worse.

 

F2P will work as long as there are people who pay a lot so others could play for free.

And this might also be the main reason for why all exclusive PA accesories are shiny and unique.

It's a win-win. PA buyer got their shinies, DE Staffs are fed and frugal ninjas could still play.

 

EDIT:

And because it's F2P you could still play even if you're broke.

And it's better venting your stress by playing WF rather than being broke and unable to play after working hard because of subscription BS.

Edited February 4, 2015 by Dartiel

[NoeleVeerod]

Seeing as I'm not the kind of person who enjoys dishing out cash regularly for games, that would inevitably lead me to play less and less, especially since I would only subscribe when there are important events and neglecting the game when there's nothing too interesting to do.

[(PSN)Rawdoginher]

"Possible pros would be more frequently given content"

 

You act like we aren't given new content almost every week and a major patch every two or three months.

We? Who is we? PC players are the ones that get the minor frequent updates, not console.

Second, if you read the entire topic then you would see I'm not taking any sides. I'm just throwing what could happen.

[(PSN)Rawdoginher]

This is completely untrue. I have bought no platinum in game. The platinum I have traded for I have only used on either slots or cosmetics and most of my those trades were a couple minutes here or there in downtime between missions. I have been playing for about 5 months now, but have been rank 11 for at least 2 months because I took a bit of a break. This means that in a matter of 3 months without spending any money or working my butt off trading I've gotten to rank 11/19(? I think is the current soft cap). The only things in this game that you NEED plat for is weapon slots, but a player could theoretically never pay a cent or complete a single trade and still play with every frame and weapon at one point or another.

So you haven't supported DE at all? Shame on you!

[MaverickZero]

So you haven't supported DE at all? Shame on you!

Shame on him for being part of the community. No understanding of F2P systems or are you just trolling?

 

And PS4/XB1 get delayed updates mainly for reasons that have nothing to do with funding. Funding might be a factor (more staff to separate load) but you'd still get delayed updates. Plus you're gonna destroy the console playerbase by demanding more monthly fees. Most already pay monthly for their console service and archaic games that demand sub fees are of a dying breed and are hated for good reasons.

 

I dropped Wildstar because it wasn't worth paying monthly. Their promised continual content is not as good as promised and I can't justify feeding Devs that don't deliver what I was promised. The whole idea of subs is it keeps content creation teams at work to deliver high quality content for years to come. The big disadvantage is there is absolutely no guarantees that future content will deliver. You take a leap of faith and enjoy what you get.

[-GG-KHAOS-PROTOGENOI]

 

 

For instance: what happens when WF steps out of BETA? Why is there still so much lag? Why isn't there more content?

 

I'm going to comment on this tid bit of WTF.

Being in or out of Beta will never stop lag, that's 90% users error right there. As this is a game where ppl from everywhere can connect. Just those connections can be lagged, due to service type the user has and many other factors. As far as content, are we playing the same game?? or are you one of the many that think that DE should be dropping even more stuff then they are cause you rushed through everything??

I'm all for them making PS4 a pay to play, us PC master racer players are fine with the Ninja's Play Free!

[(PSN)D4rk50ul-v2]

Expectations happen.

Edit: On PC I have played games which were free to play but offer a subscription which gives you access to all the paid goodies and an in game currency allowance per month. If it was an optional thing for those who already buy everything anyway to get it at a better rate then sure why not.

Edited February 4, 2015 by (PS4)D4rk50ul-v2

[(PSN)Rawdoginher]

I'm going to comment on this tid bit of WTF.

Being in or out of Beta will never stop lag, that's 90% users error right there. As this is a game where ppl from everywhere can connect. Just those connections can be lagged, due to service type the user has and many other factors. As far as content, are we playing the same game?? or are you one of the many that think that DE should be dropping even more stuff then they are cause you rushed through everything??

I'm all for them making PS4 a pay to play, us PC master racer players are fine with the Ninja's Play Free!

Are you one of those people who didn't read the full post? If you are, then I would suggest finishing it before you post because you would clearly see that I'm not taking sides.

Master race? Apparently the majority of the PC community who comment to topics either can't read, fail at comprehending a subject, or are just too lazy to read the entire topic. Get your nazi master race self out of here son.

[(PSN)Rawdoginher]

Shame on him for being part of the community. No understanding of F2P systems or are you just trolling?

And PS4/XB1 get delayed updates mainly for reasons that have nothing to do with funding. Funding might be a factor (more staff to separate load) but you'd still get delayed updates. Plus you're gonna destroy the console playerbase by demanding more monthly fees. Most already pay monthly for their console service and archaic games that demand sub fees are of a dying breed and are hated for good reasons.

I dropped Wildstar because it wasn't worth paying monthly. Their promised continual content is not as good as promised and I can't justify feeding Devs that don't deliver what I was promised. The whole idea of subs is it keeps content creation teams at work to deliver high quality content for years to come. The big disadvantage is there is absolutely no guarantees that future content will deliver. You take a leap of faith and enjoy what you get.

Trolling :)

[Overlord_Hades]

Going from free to play to pay to play would make most people quit. Its an extremely stupid idea. Also prime access and other special limited time deals are normally how they can get a large influx of extra money.

 

EDIT:Ths topics been done a few imes not that why yur getting the types of responses ypur getting. People are tired of hearing this, dont want to hear it, and the matter had been setteled by DE. Its not happening and people generally dont want it.

Edited February 4, 2015 by Overlord_Hades

[Niryco]

Hey there Tenno!

 

Now I know this subject has most likely already been brought up but I'd like to see what players say about it as of now.

 

Warframe has been growing consistently over the years and has spread across 3 platforms (PC, PS4, and Xbox). With an estimated 8 million player base, Warframe is a title to be reckoned with in the Free-to-Play community. Having this in mind, some questions have ongoing/new questions being asked.

 

For instance: what happens when WF steps out of BETA? Why is there still so much lag? Why isn't there more content?

 

The list could go on. While there are many answers to these questions, one usually fits the bill...quite literally. That answer is simply funding. While WF is Free-to-Play, in order to enjoy certain aspects of the game, quickly move through ranks, or quickly acquire new and exciting gear, a player must either purchase Platinum (digital currency of WF) or complete enough trades with other players to acquire Platinum. This, in an obvious sense is how DE is able to fund WF and bring excitement to it's fan base. While this method is great for attracting and keeping gamers of all kinds, it is also a double-edged sword.

 

One flaw with this strategy is obvious...limited and unpredictable funding. The strategy is limited by those who choose whether or not to support DE financially while being unpredictable because of in-game market values, special offers, player demands, etc. While this strategy is ideal for gamers, a free game to play, it can either greatly benefit or hurt it's maker.

 

Here is what I am asking the entire community of Warframe. What if DE implemented a subscription in order to better fund Warframe? Keep in mind the pros/cons. Possible pros would be more frequently given content, better gaming performance quality, new and exciting concepts able to be brought to light, etc. while cons being Pay-to-Play, a possible drop in fan base, etc.

 

I'm not voting either side. I would like to hear what everyone has to say.

 

I think subscription based models would bring about more problems then having no subscription model at all.

 

What i mean is the technical aspects and maintenance compared having to receiving funds from it. They probably have to dedicate more work to existing jobs and this means their employees get more pay. It is good for the employee getting more pay, but i don't know if it is worth the extra workload honestly. It can become extremely stressful and even lower job retention due to the heavy workload, so they would be forced to give even more pay.

 

Thus it might lead to alot of financing and even paper work problems, if they calculated it the minor level of profits might not be worth it or it might not even profit at all. Hence the business the operational cost may go up substantially and yet they still require workers for other departments too and even prospectives of the job won't be very appetizing when you have to deal with subscription based contracts.

 

Think about the problems that can happen with subscriptions such as people paying but not getting their items, people paying and asking for more, people paying and asking to upgrade, people paying and asking to cancel within the next moment, people paying but payments bounce back..... etc etc. It becomes a big headache to tend to all these people and if they have to find more workers, then it becomes harder to control the company and ensure there is quality in its services.

 

Also realistically only a certain portion of the community would be expected to spend on subscription based model. Even now players complain about the plat prices and saying how expensive things are, I don't think DE would have a cheap subscription model either. Even if it is cheap i don't think alot of people would spend but a small number, just imagine getting players to pay $9.99 a month and on top of that pay for platinum, would make it a very unattractive package.

 

The only way i can see it work is that a package where you pay for platinum every month with a subscription based model that promises to send a fixed amount of platinum at cheaper prices. This can get buyers, but then again it probably won't be worth the cost since it might attract a small % of the community.

[Kasumi-]

Subscription required?

I'd stop playing.

[Muinocriz]

I would pay a subscription for this game, but I would want the micro transaction store closed if it was a sub. They would also need to make everything trade-able and the only currency would have to be cred. People who currently have platinum should be allowed to choose either cred, mods, and equipment/frames based on how much platinum they have.

 

First one is an absolute must for me. The second one will make it where when they change the game in a direction I don't like I don't cancel my sub. The third I honestly don't care about, but it is fair.

[CrazyCatLad]

1000% No.