Welcome to the 1,209th edition of Loading...

Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news, coverage, and
commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.

A few subscription MMOs have made a succeessful switch to the microtransaction / "freemium" pricing model. Is this the right way to turn fan-favorite games into legacy builders and even long-term earners, or are devs and publishers correct to backburner and eventually cancel games after they crest their subscription peak? Thoughts on the next step for mature MMOs and a ton of great new and exclusive content (including a Star Trek Online interview you won't want to miss) in today's Loading... Taking a Toll.

Loading... Daily

When Turbine made its bid to convert Dungeons and Dragons Online into a free-to-play MMO earlier this fall, no one was quite sure what to expect. The commonly-held belief was that an MMORPG must be designed to suit its pricing model - that you couldn't just take a subscription game, throw open the gates, ramp up the difficulty, peddle some consumables and items, and hope to create a profit, much less a compelling game experience. What DDO had going for it that other sub-to-RMT converts did not was a hub-and-instance format that minimized travel time, one of the key components of a grind-based game. DDO was designed to be item / content store driven before anyone coined the RMT. As a result, the subsequent redesign seemed almost like a fait accompli, and despite one eyebrow-knitting event, DDO Unlimited is by all accounts a critical and financial success.

It's clear that Turbine wasn't end-of-lifeing the game with DDO Unlimited, but DDOU's success does beg the question - is a free-to-play about face the right thing for mature games who have crested their subscription peak? DDOU isn't the first game to attempt the feat, Anarchy Online went the free-to-play route three years after release in 2004. Being that AO is on track for a complete graphical revamp, it seems that the move worked out well for Funcom. Unlike just another endgame expansion, going free-to-play opens the game up to a huge influx of new players. In DDOU's case, seasoned players could continue to pay their subscription for a host of benefits or go a la carte, losing their ball-and-chain subscription without forfeiting their game.

There's another important effect of going free-to-play, too. I'm a huge fan of David McCullough, and as I was re-reading The Great Bridge durng a bout of insomnia last week,something struck me. The book is about the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, and no other work of public utility has inspired quite like this one. Poets and painters as diverse as Walt Whitman, Jack Kerouac, Georgia O'Keefe, and Andy Warhol have captured a sense of the sweeping span, one-of-a-kind wooden promenade, and Gothic arches. When the Brooklyn Bridge opened in 1883, it cost a penny to traverse by foot or buggy. The bridge financeers were allowed a annual profit of no more than 15% for the $15 million dollar bridge. Long after the investors had reclaimed their due, New York City passed a law forbidding tolls for bridge maintenance and construction in 1910, and the penny toll was removed.

Arguably, the removal of the toll transformed what was a romanticized work of engineering into an American icon - one of the few venerable and lasting pieces we've produced in our short history. Were it just a bridge built on a balance sheet rather than a legacy, it might have been replaced or discarded, like many overgrown stone railway viaducts that dot the valley landscape around my Pennsylvania home.

MMOs are not unlike large bridges, with massive startup costs, tricky problems encountered during construction, a climactic testing period and opening, then a constant flow of traffic that requires constant attention and security. But unlike bridges, when an MMORPG is canned, fans lose a game and community they enjoyed, developers lose face, and publishers lose money. Anarchy Online and Dungeons & Dragons Online Unlimited show that there's a better was to preserve the legacy of the quality original online games and even grow the playerbase, and I hope this approach is something other developers and publishers consider before the next round of layoffs and trashed titles.

Those are my thoughts, why not share yours in
the Loading...
forums!

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of
the Day

From our Aion General Discussion Forum

Colorful Fun - Share Your Dyed Armor!

Although
this thread is brand new (and therefor not yet epic), I thought I'd
give Ten Ton Hammer's Aion commuity site lead, Savanja, a hand. She's
looking for screenshots of dyed armor, and she's posted one of her own
character in stunning omblic red to kick things off. Show us your true
colors, all you Skittles! Let's taste the rainbow.

==============================
Awesome Quotes from the
Epic Thread

No quotes today, just post screenshots!
==============================

Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? Tell
us!

8 new Ten Ton Hammer MMOG
features today! 57 in November! 3,029
in
2009!



New Exclusives Today at Ten Ton
Hammer

• Down to Earth or Another Planet - a Star Trek Online Ground Combat Q&A with Dan Stahl
  This week's Q&A session with Cryptic Studios took place with Daniel Stahl, Producer of Star Trek Online. We've talked about space combat with the team a couple of weeks ago, and this week, we wanted to delve in a bit more into ground combat. How does the game play feel and differ when on ground? How does ranged combat work? How often will we be on ground? All of these questions, and more, were answered by our guest, who was more than happy to explain Star Trek Online ground combat to us.
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 PC Review
  Infinity Ward isn't afraid to take it to the next level with graphic content as they have shown with their latest game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (CoD:MW2). The CoD franchise has, over the years, set the standard for what gamers might see and experience in FPS games and CoD:MW2 has raised the bar just a little bit higher. With a realistic modern day setting and one of the most controversial missions ever developed for a game, CoD:MW2 has already shattered the record for day-one entertainment sales with over $310 million earned in the first 24 hours. How does this new entry to the franchise stack up? Join Martuk as he dusts off his combat boots and reviews the latest game in the CoD lineup.
• Aion Stats Dictionary
  Nearly every MMOG that we play uses character stats in some way to alter the effectiveness and playability of our characters.  The stats used and what they do though are unique to each game and this is certainly true of Aion stats.  Knowing what stats you need to focus on is easy once you know what your stats do.  This guide will define each stat for you to give you the basic knowledge you need to manipulate your character’s stats for the best gameplay results.

New Features

• New Pugilist and Gladiator Screenshots for Final Fantasy XIV
  New renders for the Gladiator and Pugilist classes have been added to Final Fantasy XIV Online. Along with these captures, we also found some new weapons pics. Take a look at some of the weapons you'll be able to use in the game, as well as two all-new images of the Gladiator and Pugilist.
• EverQuest 2 - Sentinel's Fate Trailer
  Sony Online Entertainment recently announced that pre-orders for EverQuest 2: Sentinel's Fate are now available and with the announcement came several new screenshots and a new game trailer, which includes a look at the newest content in the game's latest expansion. Find out how the lands of Odus have changed over the last 500 years in Norrath.

New Guides

• Aion: Spiritmaster Grouping Guide
  As the lowest overall played class in the game, the Spiritmaster has an uphill battle to educate people on why our presence is required in a group. Besides bringing the unique buff of increasing the mobs’ drop rate for loot, we bring a myriad of support skills to the table. From helping with crowd control to watching our pets tear into the enemies, we have a lot going on to manage and damage. For budding Spiritmasters or those wanting to better understand the class, read the rest of our Spiritmaster Grouping Guide.
• World of Warcraft - Oracles/Frenzyheart Reputation Guide
  Deep in the vast jungle of Sholazar Basin two rival tribes live in relative seclusion. Befriend either tribe and make an enemy of the other but gain great rewards. If you are looking to decide which faction is more useful for you, or are curious about the daily quests involved in each, this guide is for you!
  
  
  
• World of Warcraft - Obsidian Sanctum Guide href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/guides/classes/rangerstigmas">
  
  Under the frigid expanses of Dragonblight, a dark secret is kept. Sartharion with his three lieutenants keep vigil over a clutch of twilight eggs.  The dark future that these eggs could set in motion could wreck havoc all across Azeroth. To learn how to defeat Sartharion and about the loot and achievements related to this instance, look here.

Today's Hottest Content

1. Down to Earth or Another Planet - a Star Trek Online Ground Combat Q&A with Dan Stahl
2. Neverland Online Novice Pack Giveaway
3. Dragon
   Age
   Origins
   - PC Version Review
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 PC Review
5. href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/rom/editorials/first_impressions">Runes
   of Magic - First Impressions
6. Aion: Spiritmaster Grouping Guide
7. EverQuest 2 - Sentinel's Fate Trailer
8. In-Depth LotRO:
   Siege of
   Mirkwood Expansion
   Q&A with Jeffrey Steefel
9. New Pugilist and Gladiator Screenshots for Final Fantasy XIV
10. Allods
    Online Beta
    Key Giveaway

Thanks as always for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer
network!

- Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team