DC Universe Online: The Free-to-Play Breakdown
Sony Online Entertainment shares a few very interesting tidbits about their superhero MMO.
Published: November 22, 2011
What a difference just a few weeks makes. When DC Universe Online went free-to-play at the start of this month, it was apparently all the online gaming community was waiting for. And why not? The idea of fighting with a custom created superhero of villain alongside some of the most famous (and infamous) names in comics is not something many fans can resist. There's something innately amazing about knowing you're slugging it out with the Batman or watching Supes light enemies up with his heat vision, and for all of the game's faults, there was an undeniable magic to it all.
But of course that somewhat-faulty magic had to be imbibed for a monthly (or multi-monthly, or yearly if you were really committed) subscription basis, and with every massively multiplayer online game from World of Warcraft to Age of Conan turning to this new-fangled free-to-play model, it was hard to justify upwards of $15 a month, even with the constant release of new content to keep things fresh. Enter the free-to-play model, which allows the most basic interaction with the world for zippo. Oh, sure, more advanced stuff like better gear, more character slots and so on must be paid for, but they're one-time costs rather than something that's paid every single month.
As our erstwhile Managing Editor Ryan Green pointed out, however, the free-to-play model works precisely because people will buy that stuff -- sometimes in amounts that far exceed what they would have paid had they been doing the usual subscription fee (which, it should be noted, is still an option for those that want everything and premier status). Even still, the core game experience can be had, now, for free, allowing players to jump in for longer than a 30 day trial to really see if the game's worth their time and money. We wouldn't be surprised in the least to see this model expanding beyond MMOs, but that's a discussion for another time.
So just how popular has DC Universe Online become? In just the first 10 days of the service, SOE counted a whopping one million new players. Now, a few weeks later, SOE's head cheese, John Smedley tweeted a few new facts over on his Twitter account, and they're impressive to say the least.
Since DCUO went free-to-play, the interactive world has seen:
[.] The player base grow by 6% a day
[.] A 700% increase in daily revenue (surprisingly the breakdown of PS3 to PC is a 53/47 percent split)
[.] The percentage of European players has grown from 20% to 50% of daily log-ins
[.] More than 85% of daily log-ins are returning players
[.] The most popular marketplace items are: Vanguard of the Heavens character skin & Additional Character Slots
So there you have it. Clearly the decision to move the game to a different set of pricing models has seen some impressive growth. More growth means more players means more stuff happening in the world, and for an MMO, that's absolutely crucial. Here's hoping the trend continues, and if you're curious about SOE Austin's efforts, head on over to the PlayStation Store and give the download a go. Just remember, it's upwards of 15 gigabytes, so set aside some time for download. Some being lots.
But of course that somewhat-faulty magic had to be imbibed for a monthly (or multi-monthly, or yearly if you were really committed) subscription basis, and with every massively multiplayer online game from World of Warcraft to Age of Conan turning to this new-fangled free-to-play model, it was hard to justify upwards of $15 a month, even with the constant release of new content to keep things fresh. Enter the free-to-play model, which allows the most basic interaction with the world for zippo. Oh, sure, more advanced stuff like better gear, more character slots and so on must be paid for, but they're one-time costs rather than something that's paid every single month.
As our erstwhile Managing Editor Ryan Green pointed out, however, the free-to-play model works precisely because people will buy that stuff -- sometimes in amounts that far exceed what they would have paid had they been doing the usual subscription fee (which, it should be noted, is still an option for those that want everything and premier status). Even still, the core game experience can be had, now, for free, allowing players to jump in for longer than a 30 day trial to really see if the game's worth their time and money. We wouldn't be surprised in the least to see this model expanding beyond MMOs, but that's a discussion for another time.
So just how popular has DC Universe Online become? In just the first 10 days of the service, SOE counted a whopping one million new players. Now, a few weeks later, SOE's head cheese, John Smedley tweeted a few new facts over on his Twitter account, and they're impressive to say the least.
Since DCUO went free-to-play, the interactive world has seen:
[.] The player base grow by 6% a day
[.] A 700% increase in daily revenue (surprisingly the breakdown of PS3 to PC is a 53/47 percent split)
[.] The percentage of European players has grown from 20% to 50% of daily log-ins
[.] More than 85% of daily log-ins are returning players
[.] The most popular marketplace items are: Vanguard of the Heavens character skin & Additional Character Slots
So there you have it. Clearly the decision to move the game to a different set of pricing models has seen some impressive growth. More growth means more players means more stuff happening in the world, and for an MMO, that's absolutely crucial. Here's hoping the trend continues, and if you're curious about SOE Austin's efforts, head on over to the PlayStation Store and give the download a go. Just remember, it's upwards of 15 gigabytes, so set aside some time for download. Some being lots.
