Free-To-Play: Kinda, Sorta, Maybe

Welcome to the 774th Edition of Loading...

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Daily Column

Loading... Free-to-play since forever.

First, the Ten Ton Pulse, your finger on the beating heart of the MMOG industry.

Age of Conan remains the game that is generating the most interest in the industry, while World of Warcraft holds down second spot without moving up or down one iota. Warhammer Online plummets 117 BPM in a single day, yet still holds down third place on the strength of the recent Josh Drescher and Lance Robertson interview. EverQuest 2 leaps 12 BPM to push out Lineage II for fifth spot while Guild Wars regains their spot in the Top 10 thanks to falling Pirates of the Burning Sea numbers. (What is Pulse?)

Age of Conan - 200 BPM World of Warcraft - 156 BPM Warhammer Online - 60 BPM Lord of the Rings Online - 55 BPM Lineage 2 - 35 BPM EverQuest 2 - 35 BPM EVE Online - 28 BPM Vanguard - 22 BPM Guild Wars - 21 BPM Tabula Rasa - 21 BPM

GDC Day 2 is behind us with visits to Nexon to see Mabinogi, Funcom (Age of Conan), NetDevil (Jumpgate Evolution), Acclaim, Cartoon Network (Fusion Fall) and 38 Studios.

Free-to-play was the phrase of the day. That term used to hurt my ears, much like a hot-body, ugly-face contest between Tori Spelling and Fergie would hurt my eyes. I'm not usually (and by 'usually' I mean ever) a big proponent of microtransaction games in the MMOG space, but Nexon and David Perry are changing my mind. We didn't get to see what is in the works at Acclaim, but the process they are using to build their stable of titles (and 2Moons) is extraordinary. Acclaim is listening to their players, taking into account what their public and transparent advisory board of community members has to say about their game. Madness! If you give the players what they want, they will only ask for more and more and more and eventually you'll have a game that they enjoy so much that they will pay you for it.

Thumbs up to David Perry for spearheading the player advisory board initiative. Now show your thanks and visit his blog. Go on now. I'm curious how many of you have tried out 2Moons. I'd like to know what your impressions of the game are.

The Funcom team couldn't get enough of us on Tuesday and invited us back to spend another 1.5 hours yesterday talking about Age of Conan. Expect another article and four videos to be posted in the near future. The mounted combat ushered nearly as many gasps from the press in attendance as did the free food.

I have no idea how some of the writers, interviewers, ne'er-do-well can sit through an entire presentation without writing down one note or turning on a voice recorder. I can remember most of an interview without much aid. I have a mind like a steel trap, only one that has been left out in the rain and is partially rusted shut. Nevertheless, these guys and the occasional gal never take a single note, photograph or touch a writing implement to paper. How do they quote people? It's no wonder developers loathe the press. Most of them are just making it up as they go. It's also entertaining to see the press head for the free food like so many three-legged dogs racing around an ice-rink. The developers could be in the midst of the most crucial portion of the presentation, but if the caterer opens the door the pens and paper are discarded faster than Kirk Cameron's career.

This column needs to get posted, so on to Day 3 of GDC.

Decapitate other community members Age of Conan style in The Loading... forums.

Do you feel the need to contact me personally with naughty pictures or derogatory comments? Here's my E-mail.

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12 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 176 so far in February! 453 so far in 2008!

New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today

Acclaim: Interview With David Perry and Howard Marks From GDC Age of Conan: Mounted Combat Video From GDC Club Penguin: Game Guide - Aqua Grabber Lord of the Rings Online: Scholar Product Statistic List Mabinogi: A Preview From GDC Tabula Rasa: Guide to Hightower Outpost Tabula Rasa: Guide to Specialists TenTonWiki: Top Secret and Release Date Calendar Updated ToonTown: Premium Community Site Goes Live ToonTown: Which Type of Toon Is Your Favourite? ToonTown: Guide To Racing Vanguard: Trickster's Haven Quest Guide - Part III

Hot Content - Or, what I took a fancy to

Acclaim: Interview With David Perry and Howard Marks From GDC Age of Conan: Mounted Combat Video From GDC Mabinogi: A Preview From GDC ToonTown: Premium Community Site Goes Live Age of Conan: New Images From GDC Age of Conan: Funcom Shows Off Mounts and City Building at GDC The Agency: Video Interview With Matt Wilson at GDC Jumpgate Evolution: Bi-Weekly Interview #2 - Factions and Missions PlayXpert: Widgets and Community, An Interview With CEO Charles Manning Warhammer Online: Interview With Josh Drescher and Lance Robertson

Real World News (headlines and taglines compliments of Phil Comeau today!)

Man Orders Coffee, Hold The Pants

DNA left at the scene, but police unable to identify him from his jeans The CIA Plots To Kill Fidel Castro
Hypnotizing Reggie Jackson did not make the list Disease Risk is High Near Toxic Waters
Sure, and I suppose smoking is bad for you now?

Thanks as always for visiting TenTonHammer.com

- John "Boomjack" Hoskin and the Ten Ton Hammer Team