Are you paying for friends?

Ten Ton Hammer bears down on the business of MMOs. Does Guild Wars hearken the end of the pay-to-play days, or are we stuck paying month-to-month? How does the payment scheme affect a gamer's will to play? Answers to these burning questions and more in the Ten Ton Hammer main site edition of our weekly cross-network editorial extravaganza.

" But monthly fees are ultimately a barrier to gamer experimentation. The credit card requirement keeps the rugrats out, yes, but also makes gamers leery to try out MMOs without friends or word-of-mouth backing. One solution to that: nearly every game has a free trial, but I'm one of those people that can't enjoy a free trial. A free trial actually pressures me not to enjoy the game, and since I already bought the box… I get all conflicted. A good compromise is something like SOE's Station Access pass, which allows gamers to play all of SOE's MMO titles for $25 a month. It's still a good deal, despite the $3 price hike this month. And, if Vanguard is added to the Station Access pass, it's the best deal in town."

Read the rest right here at TenTonHammer.com!