Do you think most games will go free to play in the future?

[Kane99]

With how games are these days, I could see them going free to play, at least when it comes to the online modes. Reason why, is because so many of these studios can make them live service games, where they constantly update and add new items to their marketplace. Think Fortnite and stuff like that. 

I can see in the near future that they'd try to make more games free to play to capitalize on the microtransactions and so on. What do you think?

[Reality vs Adventure]

I think we're screwed. It's all gonna be the way cable tv is now--subscription based with games only available from their providers. You want the new game that's out? Well damn, now you need a new subscription for the other game provider. What? You want to break contract? Now you gonna have to pay $200 or it will go on your credit report due to a collection agency. 

[Darth]

I think the majority of games won't go free to play but the ones that release every year will go down that route. For example, sports games could easily go down the free-to-play route and rely on microtransactions to make money.

[Kane99]

2 hours ago, Reality vs Adventure said:

I think we're screwed. It's all gonna be the way cable tv is now--subscription based with games only available from their providers. You want the new game that's out? Well damn, now you need a new subscription for the other game provider. What? You want to break contract? Now you gonna have to pay $200 or it will go on your credit report due to a collection agency. 

I could actually see that happening. Especially if all companies start their own Game pass like service. Soon enough we'll be making cable like providers to combine all the services into one. I hope that day doesn't happen though. 

1 hour ago, Darth said:

I think the majority of games won't go free to play but the ones that release every year will go down that route. For example, sports games could easily go down the free-to-play route and rely on microtransactions to make money.

Honestly sports games should go that route. That PES game is making their future Soccer title free to play, I forgot the title of it, but they plan to update it periodically. Madden and other sports titles could benefit from just letting a studio continually work on it. 

[Darth]

Yeah, PES has gone down that route. Unfortunately, it's now also one of the worst examples of a free-to-play game so they have definitely messed it up. The game is full of bugs, looks awful and is missing some basic features. I can't see that surviving for too long

[m76]

Geez, I really hope not. Free to play games rely on other types of monetization, all of which are detrimental to the experience.

Any monetization beyond the initial sale price is a problem, because it means buying access to features that should already be part of the game.

Imagine a free to play movie theatre. You don't have to pay for the ticket but you have to pay for the seat inside the cinema hall, but you can't choose your seat you can only buy lootboxes that might or might not contain a seat. And then they ask do you want sound too? Then pay up! Shall we dim the lights? Then pay up!  Nobody would tolerate that. IDK why gamers put up with such predatory monetization.

[Justin11]

Only the Android phone games which I can download and play for free, every other is a purchases type including it's in-game upgrades, costing more money. 

[Head_Hunter]

Even the so-called Android phone games I'm playing which is free to download without in-app purchases isn't all that free. Because I use my mobile data to access their online gaming. Because, mobile data isn't free to get. 

[Jayson]

It could be cool if the retro games would go into the public domain.  However, they do have some demand so they probably won't.  Well, I'm sure some old Atari and Nintendo games are simply too fun to play.

Well, I'm not sure how public domain gaming would work.  Would it be something like a game that can be shared legally across the net?

Edited December 24, 2021 by Jayson

[Boblee]

I'm not sure if it's possible for that to happen because these gaming industries are well eye glued on the money a lot. They will find it hard to offer games for free. 

[Heatman]

On 12/16/2021 at 5:03 PM, Kane99 said:

With how games are these days, I could see them going free to play, at least when it comes to the online modes. Reason why, is because so many of these studios can make them live service games, where they constantly update and add new items to their marketplace. Think Fortnite and stuff like that. 

I can see in the near future that they'd try to make more games free to play to capitalize on the microtransactions and so on. What do you think?

Which particular game companies would start it out? Is it gonna be EA or Ubisoft or Activision or Santa Monica Studio? These guys can't do without money. 

[Withywarlock]

No, I don't think so. Publishers have shown for the longest time the "fee-2-pay" model works, wherein you have a free-to-play economy in a paid game. See Call of Duty, for instance, where your Battle Pass tends only to work in the free Warzone mode and the latest (paid) installment, and it's only good value for money when you play both. And with how public the feeding frenzy that is acquisitions has become, it should be concerning who will continue making games for money with more inventive ways of taking it.

[Justin11]

13 hours ago, Boblee said:

I'm not sure if it's possible for that to happen because these gaming industries are well eye glued on the money a lot. They will find it hard to offer games for free. 

If that should happen with mobile phone games, such will be elusive on console games. Because it's video game companies are much more for engulfed with money than players satisfaction. 

[Heatman]

3 hours ago, Withywarlock said:

No, I don't think so. Publishers have shown for the longest time the "fee-2-pay" model works, wherein you have a free-to-play economy in a paid game. See Call of Duty, for instance, where your Battle Pass tends only to work in the free Warzone mode and the latest (paid) installment, and it's only good value for money when you play both. And with how public the feeding frenzy that is acquisitions has become, it should be concerning who will continue making games for money with more inventive ways of taking it.

Exactly, there is no game companies out there that would be willing to release their games to be fully 100% free to play. 

[Head_Hunter]

13 hours ago, Heatman said:

Which particular game companies would start it out? Is it gonna be EA or Ubisoft or Activision or Santa Monica Studio? These guys can't do without money. 

This guys are simply into playing money league, I wonder who is topping in their league of money chasing. Do you know who is topping the chart? Because they aren't thinking about game overall performance improvement, it's just about their own steady profit.