I'm personally a fan of the early F2P with a subscription mid-to-end-game. That way I can ease my level up into the mid 20s or so, then probably get bored with the game and not have to spend a dime. If I don't get bored, I'll pony up for the subscription and keep going. However, never in any MMO that I've played (other than Runescape in gradeschool) have I got up much farther than, say, the first third of the level cap (20-30). If a game can hold my attention I'd be glad to pay the sub, but so far nothing has made me want it that bad.

If they lose the subscription fee then I would play. I don't want to spend sixty bucks plus fifteen a month to play one game. Their will be other games coming out, and I don't want to waste money not being able to play ESO. If they lost the fee, then I wouldn't feel as bad playing these other games, and I will be able to jump back into it whenever I want.

MMOs definitely require some time and dedication. Pay to play MMOs need to be backed with content or it isn't really worth it and games that go F2P tend to lose content updates, not always. Defiance is an example but many factors were involved there.

It's hard to say, but with ESO's world being several times larger than Skyrim and laid out to expand I can't see it surviving as F2P. If it could sell like Skyrim it could go F2P but with a subscription those salse won't happen. It's a double-edged sword really.

I think ESO could get away with a similar model to maybe SWTOR. I mean it is an excellent franchise already that people will be willing to buy just because it is an Elder Scrolls game. That being said, there are tons of people who subscribe and pay for SWTOR because it enhances your experience.

I would argue that ESO would be very successful if they let you play free at the expense of having certain features available to you or you receive certain things late. I've done both the free to play and subscription for SWTOR and I definitely agree it's worth paying the money but if I didn't have that money I would be so sad to not have to opportunity to play it. Hearing that ESO has a subscription made me think twice about buying it.

I don't mind it as I understand the cost associated with it, in fact I prefer the pay model over the free to play model. I plan on getting ESO at some point, but I don't look at it as having to pay 15 month every month to have to play it. I'm going to play it for one month, the time included in the base purchase, then I'm going to move one to something else. If I decide to come back to it, I'll pay for another month.

that is why I wasnt a huge Xbox Live fan. Most of the time I was playing single player games, games that didnt need me to use Xbox Live, yes I had the ocassional Multiplayer game, but even then I played the campaign first. So to me it was a waste of money to pay for Xbox Live when i was not going to use it for long periods of time. On the other hand Sony had a great idea of giving you free games if you have PSN+, and not just shovelware. Games that are really good. So when I went with the PS4 I bought PSN+ (on black friday for $29) and so far had 3 games for "free" for the PS4 (Resogun, Contrast, Dont Starve). Each of those were $14.99 without the PSN+ so basically I have gotten my investment back and then some. On the other hand I mostly play Warframe which doesnt need PSN+ to be playable. But again I feel that I gotten my money's worth already. As for MMO RPG games all I can see are 4 options. 1) You buy the game (shell out $60) and then pay a monthly fee to play it. This is the worst option because you are already paying to play the game. 2) Buy the game and there is no monthly fee. 3) Have the game be "free-to-play" and then charge for the extra stuff. kind of like Warframe is. 4) Download the game for free and pay a monthly fee to play it. I can live with 2 and 3. But 1 and 4 are a no go in my opinion...even if the game is free paying $15 to play it every month is not good on my wallet. What if I dont play for 2 weeks because I am busy, so I just wasted $7.50.

I pretty much agree with the majority, if its a good game, its worth the cash.

I have only stuck with one subscription based game and that was SWG, I tried a few others such as WoW,Matrix Online,DCU,STO and TOR but none of them felt as engaging. F2P games I have tried where all worse including P2P that went F2P. I think there is just too much money grubbing in these games and not enough care or dedication to quality of product.

I hate subscriptions because I end up paying at times when I am not playing the game regularly. That just equates to me throwing money away.

Having said that, I am going to give Elder Scrolls Online a try once it comes out for Xbox One. I have a hard time devoting all of my gaming to one MMO, but that's what I feel like I need to do to get my moneys worth.

Played WoW, FFXI, FFXIV and SWTOR (When it was subscription). To be honest I prefer the Subscription way of MMO's. Everyone is paying the same amount, getting the same game and the same benefits. Its an equal field. I have played games that are 'Free-To-Play' and they have never entertained me nearly as much as the previous ones. The ability to buy stuff instead of play the game to earn it doesn't do it for me. The game becomes silly with the people who buy in game items being much more powerful than the ones who are actually taking advantage of the free-to-play scheme. Subscription Scenario = Pay £8 a month. I want a mount. Go in game, spend a few hours playing and earn it. Free-To-Play Scenario = I want a mount. Pay £5 for mount... End game...

I played the Final Fantasy XIV beta, and even though I liked it, I didn't like it enough to justify paying $15 a month to be able to play it.

Free-to-play is a terrible model for the player and the developer. It ultimately doesn't benefit either in the end.

Why it doesn't benefit the player is because of the fact that the entire experience of the game is centered around buying items from the game shop or purchasing access to content. What players don't realize is they generally end up spending more money with a F2P game than they would a monthly fee, with lesser-quality to no content.

Ever since SWTOR went F2P, the flow of content has been slower, the quality has been worse, and the only feature that consistently gets updates is the Cartel Market (microtransactions), of which adds worthless fluff to the game. It's a money sink for those gullible enough to buy it with none of that money being funneled into the game to make it better.

Why F2P doesn't work for developers either is because the model isn't sustainable. It has been proven time and time again that the model is initially extremely successful, but will die off after a few months. With no quality content being added and a lesser community, as many who play F2P games are not committed and do not care as much as those who pay monthly fees, the entire experience is watered down and worse.

As a person who has played every model from Free-to-play, Freemium, Buy-to-play, Pay-to-play, etc. I've always enjoyed the MMOs with a monthly fee the most. MMORPGs are not a one-time purchase. MMORPGs are a service, and this is something many do not understand. Especially if you are new to the MMORPG genre, these games never end. They are always adding updates, patches, and new content, of which requires an investment of money, one way or another.

So my question is simple. Would you rather pay a simple and affordable monthly fee, of which is cheaper than going to see a two hour movie in IMAX? Or would you rather spend money on a worthless game shop, or others doing so, on a stagnant game that will never improve? Both models require money, and in the interest of the player, a monthly fee is a better investment and a more long-term experience.

When I'm playing a game, I like to play the game. I don't like having the game world and the real world linked by a magic portal called a market/cartel that allows me to spend real money to gain unearned progress in the game world. In free to play models I usually end up feeling like I am not supposed to progress without paying money. An item that costs 15000 gold is unattainable when you gain 1-30 gold per quest, except that you can purchase gold in the 15000 unit for 2 dollars. It causes me to loathe the in game grind and find the rewards rather unrewarding. I want a game that gives me great and worthwhile rewards for the activities I pursue, and that allows me to feel like a major force in the economy and in the environment. If a free to play game can accomplish that, more power to them. If a subscription based game is what it takes, I'll take the subscription over lackluster game mechanics focused on asking for money.

I used to not mind paying for subscriptions (having played Everquest back when it was sub-based as well as WoW off and on for seven years) but these days I just can't see myself doing it. Whenever I pay for a month of sub time, I feel this constant pressure to play the game as much as I can (even when I'm not really in the mood to) during that month so that I don't feel I've wasted my money.

I'm also a bit burned out on MMO's at the moment which, again, doesn't make me that eager to devote even more money to them on top of their initial box price.

I simply won't play a subscription based game, it's too much of an investment considering MMO's aren't my favorite genre. However I do play a few free to play MMO's, so it would appear that the FTP model is better for attracting players who don't traditionally participate in the genre.

Unfortunately for me time is not on my side. It can take me a couple months to finish a 15 hour long game now with a kid in the house. I just don't have the time to warrant spending $15/month on one game when I can only do a couple of hours a week or so to play. If not for that I would jump at ESO or FFXIV but I just don't have the time so I will wait until TES 6/FF XV, or Fallout 4.

Not really a fan of subscription based games because I hate bills. In order for me to invest in free-to-pay games and the like, it has to be worth it, and I mean REALLY WORTH IT. For the record, I have yet to come across such a game.

Problem I have with subscription based gaming is that I like to play a lot of games. When I do pay for subscription based games, then I'll try and play the game as much as I can. Then there are those moments where I feel like I should play since I paid but really want to play something else. I do enjoy MMO's but I need to really be in the mood to play them which I am not always in. I like shooters. I like regular RPG's. Plus there are aspects of MMO's that I hate. Grinding, to be specific. I can't grind for long before I get sick of it.

I prefer subscription based games. I know that if I have a subscription I will be able to access all of the games content without a surprise fee popping up. Also, it does make budgeting that money much easier. I take my sub fees right off the top of my entertainment budget each month.

Also, it is harder to go crazy with spending on a subscription based game. If you are into a game enough to pay a sub, you would probably be willing to throw money at it for cool stuff or exclusive access to certain areas. I don't trust myself not to buy all the things on a free to play AAA game.

Subscription games are fine as long as they feature content and development worth a subscription fee. For games like the Secret World and Knights of the Old Republic, it seems like they had microtransactions planned from the start and only wanted a recurring fee to help offset development costs (whether or not this is the only reason is moot). This is not acceptable and not fair to consumers. Paying a subscription for 6 months only to find out that if you waited it would be "free" is not cool. However, games like FFXIV, WoW, and soon ESO boast content and continued development that constitutes a subscription fee. People will argue that Guild Wars 2 doesn't have a subscription fee, which is true, but it also doesn't have the character, story, or content depth that the other mentioned games have. Also, it's a common misconception that "free" games don't cost you anything. On AVERAGE, people spend MORE on free games than subscription. To me, that says the people complaining about "subscriptions" are out of touch with the reality of online gaming costs. For me, 15/mo is not bad for hundreds of hours of content. That's a movie basically. 15/2 hours is $7.5/hour for a movie. For a game, that's 15/20 hours (being conservative) which equates to .75/hour (and a much better value). People get upset at the most random things and let other things completely slide, oblivious to how ridiculous their complaints are! I will not understand it and continue to believe people like to complain simply to complain, because others are complaining, or because "that game did it, so why can't this one" mentality. Short version: sub costs are fine and worth the value/money as long as they deliver the appropriate content and depth.