by Stacy Jones on Jul 01, 2010
World of Warcraft (WoW) has been king of the proverbial MMOG hill for quite some time. But the game has leveled out a bit as the inevitability of aged gaming sets in. However, Blizzard may is considering new ways to bolster the still sizable WoW populace. During a recent pres event in Seoul, South Korea, Blizzard stated that active Korean WoW subscribers would have free access to StarCraft II.
The deal could help generate more interest in WoW in that region as StarCraft remains one of their most popular games in Korea. According to Gamasutra, the new deal will offer the dual-game pass for 9,990 won (about $8) a month, or 2,000 won (about $1.65) for a day. The game will still be offered as a standalone, no-subscription box here in the United States.
Additionally, Blizzard is still open to experimenting with its subscription model for WoW. Turbine has generated a lot of interest with their transition of Dungeons and Dragons Online and The Lord of the Rings Online to free-to-play. So is it possible that we might see Blizzard eventually follow suit?
That is certainly a possibility, but according to an article over at PC Gamer, WoW's lead designer, Tom Chilton explains that it's not being considered for the near future, but eventually, when Blizzard has another MMOG out or another game happens to "blow them away" then it may not make sense for WoW to continue the subscription model.
I can definitely imagine that being the case with World of Warcraft. If another game comes along and blows us away it may not make sense for us to have a subscription fee. Or even further down the line, when we have another MMO out.