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Free-to-play games have been around for over a decade now, but many companies have been slow to explore the business model and even slower to make it not feel awful or exploitative. With the new Command & Conquer, it seems Electronic Arts may have the hang of it. Victory Games general manager Jon van Caneghem has detailed the sorts of things it'll sell in the free-to-play RTS, trying to avoid being "pay to win."
Counter-Strike creator Minh 'Gooseman' Le's new multiplayer FPS, the free-to-play Tactical Intervention, may have missed its planned spring 2012 launch but hey, at least it'll make spring 2013! Publisher OGPlanet today announced it'll launch in North America on March 28, preceded by an open beta from March 14.
Mythic's Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes will shut down on March 29, having never officially launched. It simply didn't make enough money for EA to keep running it. The free-to-play PvP arena battle 'em up entered open beta in April 2012, where it has stayed ever since, and shall until EA turns off the servers next month.
Uncharted 3's multiplayer is officially going free-to-play. You'll be able to play for free up to level 15, and unlock various extras through microtransactions.
The upcoming free-to-play Command & Conquer will be set the Generals universe, with the GLA, China and the United States as adversaries. But developer Victory Games envisions including other universes from the franchise sometime down the road.
Typical! You wait a decade for a giant killbot game, then three come along at once. Publisher Stompy Bot Productions today announced Heavy Gear Assault, seeking $900,000 in crowdfunding to bring the free-to-play multiplayer game to PC. It's being made by MekTek Studios, the folks who jazzed up MechWarrior 4 for its free re-release in 2010.
Crytek has spoken before about its hopes for free-to-play, hoping to escape the conventional retail model and solely make free-to-play games. The Crysis developer doesn't feel quite ready to make the switch yet but whether it takes two years or five, CEO Cevat Yerli has said, free-to-play will rival retail and Crytek will be there.
All reality shows are inevitably cancelled once the novelty wears off, and bloody reality show FPS Bullet Run is no different. Publisher Sony Online Entertainment has announced that it'll shut down the free-to-play FPS, developed by Acony and originally named Hedone, on March 8. Because it's an online-only affair, that'll be it, no more Bullet Run for anyone.
The physics acceleration revolution may have failed long ago, but Nvidia's keeping the dream alive for romantics by cramming its PhysX tech into games whenever it can. A new Hawken trailer shows the fancy particle effects PhysX enables in the free-to-play stompy mech shooter, much the same as any other PhysX game: a big confusing mass of particles which look out of place.
Tera's free-to-play relaunch under the name Tera: Rising will come on February 5, publisher En Masse Entertainment confirmed this morning. The PC MMORPG will be free for everyone to download and play, supported by optional subscriptions and microtransactions for players who want to pay for extras.
