Final Fantasy XIV Online: A Realm Reborn Producer Naoki Yoshida told GamesIndustry in a recent interview that the pay-to-play subscription model is the only way to support the development of AAA MMORPG’s and that developers only switch to the free-to-play alternative to make a “quick buck”. With the hugely successful revival of Final Fantasy XIV and the upcoming launch of The Elder Scrolls Online, the financial benefits of the pay-to-play model are a hot discussion topic at the moment but if the past has shown us anything it’s that pay-to-play quite often alienates a huge number of players.
“A lot of games look at the first two months of subscription numbers,
think that’s not going to be a feasible business, and switch over to
free-to-play,” producer on Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Naoki
Yoshida told GamesIndustry .
“I don’t think it’s necessarily because free-to-play is a better form,
though. It’s more about people making a rash decision to switch over and
chase a quick buck.”
During the interview he explained his stance on the pay-to-play industry, stating that only continued support through regular subscriptions gives developers the funding to financially support larger teams and provide quality content on a more regular basis.
With MMO’s just starting to break into the console industry there’s a whole new generation of players that need convincing. Are pay-to-play titles really the future of the MMO genre or will we be seeing less and less as the industry grows?
Source: GamesIndustry