by Stacy Jones on Apr 11, 2011
A rumor surfaced over the weekend from IGN, who reported that a trusted source told the gaming site that that Microsoft will allow publishers and developers to offer games using the free-to-play microtransaction model through Xbox Live. This could certainly pave the way for MMOGs to make their way to the console utilizing the model and not requiring players to also have an active Xbox Live subscription on top of a paid game subscription.
Sometime next year, Microsoft will make available free-to-play (F2P) games through Xbox Live, a trusted source told IGN. This will allow publishers and developers to release games through the service for free where users can then purchase additional content, such as weapons, experience points, in-game currency, and perks.
Microsoft could be looking to attract some MMOG games to its platform to compete with Sony's Playstation 3, which earlier this year launched both Free Realms and DC Universe Online for the console system. Microsoft either wants a piece of the MMOG pie or they have something else up their sleeve for Xbox 360 players.
Source: IGN