Its official.....Champions Online is going Free to play

[GhostMachine]

http://champions-online.com/f2p

This specifically shows the difference between Lifetime/subscribed accounts and free accounts:

http://champions-online.com/f2p_matrix

Basically, no real changes if you're paid one way or the other, but free players will have a bunch of limits. (Only 2 character slots on a free account, for instance)

[Reepicheep]

Neat! I'll be seeing you all once again, then!

[lugaru]

The only sucky limitations: only 2 characters and 1 costume slot.

BUT you can buy more from the shop

Additional Character Slots (1200 Cryptic Points per 4 additional slots)

Additional Costume Slots (400 Cryptic Points per two additional slots)

$6.25 USD 500 Cryptic Points.
$12.50 USD 1000 Cryptic Points.
$18.75 USD 1500 Cryptic Points.
$25.00 USD 2000 Cryptic Points.
$62.50 USD 5000 Cryptic Points

So technically if you are not big into tech support, chat and all that (I'm mostly a solo player) you can get 10 slots (2 + 4 + 4) and 5 costumes for each (1 + 2 + 2) for the cost of 2 or 3 months worth of suscription. I'm not saying I'm doing this BUT I'm not against the idea of making one single payment to enjoy the game my way instead of a monthly fee.

[ow_tiobe_sb]

This is...truly tempting...

And there is only one way to get rid of temptation...

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

[Previsionary]

This is...truly tempting...

And there is only one way to get rid of temptation...

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

The last time you said that, you ended up in Mexico with 2 chihuahuas, a paddle, and a duck singing nursery rhymes outside a shady bar.

This is interesting, but it makes me wonder why it's now free-to-play when it just came out. Was it not doing well membership wise and this is their way of turning a profit? I'd probably consider this if I weren't so bored early on when I played the beta. Of course, a lot has changed since then, so who knows.

[MJB]

Interesting. There are quite a few limitations but nothing that is deal breaking IMO.

[ow_tiobe_sb]

The last time you said that, you ended up in Mexico with 2 chihuahuas, a paddle, and a duck singing nursery rhymes outside a shady bar.

This is interesting, but it makes me wonder why it's now free-to-play when it just came out. Was it not doing well membership wise and this is their way of turning a profit? I'd probably consider this if I weren't so bored early on when I played the beta. Of course, a lot has changed since then, so who knows.

You are almost absolutely correct, Prev, though your memory of these events may be slightly muddled.  Instead of two chihuahuas I was accompanied by two women from Chihuahua, who just happened to be dog trainers.  The "duck singing nursery rhymes" was not present; instead, we three repeatedly sang a clever little limerick that used the word "duck" as one of its end-rhymes.  Yes, there was a paddle involved, and, yes, the bar was shady--but shade is somewhat of a welcome luxury in the sunnier parts of Mexico, is it not?

My suspicion is that F2P with optional P2P expansions is the emerging trend, and, it would appear, Champions Online would like to be part of the vanguard.

ow_tiobe_sb
Phantom Bunburyist and Whirled Braker

[lugaru]

My impression is that they "have" the audience that would pay for a superhero MMO (although they could lose some to DC) and now they are after the free to pay/microtransaction audience.

In other words they are probably saying "We have decent servers... lets introduce a bunch of people to the game and hope they buy costume slots, character slots and costume pieces".

But that is just made up speculation of course.

[GhostMachine]

I have two theories about why they're adding the free to play option:

1. They're panicking due to the impending DC Universe Online. A mistake, if they are; most CO players I've talked to have either had no interest in DCUO at all, or lost any interest after seeing the trailer.

Or

2. They're not getting as many new players as they would like from referrals and are hoping a free to play option might lure in more players, hopefully some of whom will decide to subscribe.

My only problem with all this is that at times the game is too overcrowded already; Usually when there's a major patch, a new Adventure Pack has just launched, or a holiday event is going on. But sometimes weekends are fairly crowded, too. Adding free players could make those times worse.

However, I think they picked a bad time to announce this. The game has had major lag and rubberbanding issues that at times make the game downright unplayable for the last week or so (Don't even go to Millennium City if you can help it if you play before this is fixed!). There's no fix in sight yet. (They're said they've known about this problem since Thursday but the source of the problem is hard to track down) Its kind if irritating that they announce this while the game is messed up. And this lends credence to the people who believe Cryptic shows favortism toward STO and treats CO like a red-headed stepchild.

One thing they're doing that is going to be stupid: Archetypes. Free users will not get the one thing that sets CO apart from CoH the most; the ability to build a hero any way you want. (Lifers and Subscribers will be able to use Archetypes OR build custom heroes like we do now; Free users will only be able to use Archetypes)

[lugaru]

I'm curious about the Archeotype part... it says "for character creation" so I dont know if they mean archeotypes only in the character creation faze (which is not that big a deal) or through the entire game. Also all things are subject to change, whatever that means. That said I agree, I have no "pure" heroes, they are all odd mixes of 2 or more types of powers. Not because there is any advantage in dviersty (this game focuses a lot on specializing) but because I want to aproximate the heroes in my head.

edit
Found something! (btw not what I was hoping to hear).

Q: What are Archetypes?Top
With the Free-to-Play launch, Champions Online is adding a new way to define your hero: Archetypes. These hand-designed character progressions are built to be simple but exciting. They're based on the superheroes you know from comics. They make it fast and easy to get in and play Champions Online. When you play a Archetype, you don't choose which abilities you acquire over time; instead, you advance similarly to class-based RPGs. Of course, all players will still retain full control over how their character looks using our costume editor.
Players interested in complete control of their character can opt to create a custom class. Doing so gives players access to the same unparalleled character customization available in Champions Online today. Custom classes are available only to Gold Members.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

The current version of the announcement says that if you don't subscribe, characters created previously without an archetype will be unplayable unless you turn them into an archetype somehow.  You apparently have nearly no control over powers with archetypes too.

I was actually interested when I heard the announcement, but this is a dealbreaker to me.  No other MMO that I know of that has gone to free to play has taken away all build options as part of that.

Im thinking this will be a disaster.  Could be wrong though, but I'm out.

[JKCarrier]

I thought character creation in CO was way too fussy and complicated, but it sounds like this Archetype thing probably goes too far in the other direction. For free, I'll try it out, but I don't see myself playing it on any regular basis.

[Tawodi Osdi]

This might work out for me. I've been wanting to play more seriously, but even if I had the and time for the full service, I would need a much better computer system to make it worth my while.  I could make some crappy no account super-hero to use while I get the hang of the game and be a pro by time I am in place for a subscription.

[RTTingle]

First Pirates of the Burning Seas - now Champions going free to play and microtransaction route.  Sweet.

RTT

[Figure Fan]

I'm pretty excited about this. I agree with most of what's been said here about the features. Archetypes might not be that bad, especially since I've been using them in CoH for years. It sounds like they're going to create a decent amount of new ones that mix different powers (based on well known heroes) so that should help. Spending $15-20 to buy the features I'd actually use and never having to pay again is amazing. Paying for a bunch of crap I never use just turns me away from most of these games. $15 a month is just too high for me, so I just swore off all MMOs without much of a problem. This, however, has me interested. Having it be free with limitations is 100 times better than just not playing it at all.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

Yeah, but Archetypes means something completely different here than it does in CoH, from what I understand.

In CoH, it's just a character class.  Beyond that, you have many different power set choices, then there are the other power pools, enhancement slots and such.

CO's version, however, chooses all of that for you, according to their own press release.

[detourne_me]

I'll have to see it firsthand, but you guys may see me back on CO again....

[BentonGrey]

I agree with Cat.  I read about this a few minutes ago, and I was really excited.  If I can't play the characters I want the way I want, though....that is, as he said, "a deal breaker."  I wonder what lifetime subscriptions will cost.

[BlueBard]

It might not be too bad, as long as you're willing to pay microtransactions for the features you want.

The F2P matrix says that 'Gold Archetypes', 'Gold Travel Powers', and 'Special Devices' will all be purchasable.  Combined with costume options, it might provide enough of a mix to satisfy players who won't pop for a full subscription.

Seeing as how I'm currently invested in STO, this is the only way I'd get back to playing a superhero MMO anytime soon.  Going F2P might pull me in to CO, where otherwise I wouldn't even try it.  Cash flow issues might force me to drop any subs whatsoever... in which case CO would start to look very attractive.

[bat1987]

If/when I get back to the game it will be with a sub.
With APB down, this game has by far the best character customization out there, and I don't want it to be limited in any way.

[Trelau]

Aaaaannnnnnnndddd i'm in.
I had already tried the demo and used an invite from this forum to try this game, bfore deciding that 15/month was sadly too expensive for me.
The character slot/costume slot limitation is a little harsh, but if a one time only payment of about 20$ unlocks it for good, i might consider it.

On the "Archetype" debate: from what i understand, it's directly taken from DCUO's "inspired by" fonction. Don't see anything wrong with it.
If i understood correctly it's optional anyway, no?
Careful character building is not for everyone, if you can choose "i want to be a flying guy who throws fire" in the begining and be done with it, casual player might come more easily.
As long as character's looks customisation is as good as it is right know, even the powers are not that big a deal.

Anyway, definitely waiting for the official launch, i'll be carefully planning my characters for the next few month ^^ (and i'll consider buying an extra costume slot to make "freedom reborn team" costume)

[BentonGrey]

Aaaaannnnnnnndddd i'm in.
I had already tried the demo and used an invite from this forum to try this game, bfore deciding that 15/month was sadly too expensive for me.
The character slot/costume slot limitation is a little harsh, but if a one time only payment of about 20$ unlocks it for good, i might consider it.

On the "Archetype" debate: from what i understand, it's directly taken from DCUO's "inspired by" fonction. Don't see anything wrong with it.
If i understood correctly it's optional anyway, no?
Careful character building is not for everyone, if you can choose "i want to be a flying guy who throws fire" in the begining and be done with it, casual player might come more easily.
As long as character's looks customisation is as good as it is right know, even the powers are not that big a deal.

Anyway, definitely waiting for the official launch, i'll be carefully planning my characters for the next few month ^^ (and i'll consider buying an extra costume slot to make "freedom reborn team" costume)

Nope Trelau, the Archetype thing is a way to tie the hands of free players.  It is not optional, except in-so-far as you have the option to pay to have access to building your character the way you want.  All free players are limited to Archetype builds, and it isn't so much the "inspired-by" thing as it is what the CO crew were originally talking about, giving players "classes" much like CoX.  This violated one of the primary concepts of the Champions system, which is all about flexibility, and after a fan outcry they decided not to implement such a system.  I don't think it's necessarily terribly unreasonable for them to have that as a cap on free players, but it does mean that I'm not going to get back into it because I don't want to have my characters changed to fit into their box.

[JKCarrier]

All free players are limited to Archetype builds, and it isn't so much the "inspired-by" thing as it is what the CO crew were originally talking about, giving players "classes" much like CoX.

Even in CoX's Archetypes, you have a certain amount of flexibility in terms of which powers you take, and in what order. It sounds like free players in CO won't even have that much leeway.

[Trelau]

Hum...so we only have limited build...That's a little disapointing. Like i said it make sense for players who don't want to overthink the perfect build, but damn they better have a large array of choice in build, otherwise it's really just a trap to get you to unlock "real" play, and that's cheap.
Dungeon and Dragon Online did it right, let's hope they take more inspiration from them.

[lugaru]

I suggest posting on their forum about it... if enough people complain about the archeotypes being obligatory for non suscribers they might drop it, much like they made Vibora Bay free as a direct response to forum posts.

I'm not saying it works for every company, but Cryptic seems to listen.

[GhostMachine]

My guess is that the Archetypes won't limit you to what powers you can pick, but to what powersets you can pick. Meaning if you're a Might hero you can only take powers from the Might set, or if you're a Fire hero you can only take powers from the Fire set.

That will cause problems with some sets, though. Archery pretty much stinks as a standalone set, and there are not enough powers to take an Archery hero to 40.

I doubt complaining will help. Because I'm pretty sure they're doing free to play accounts mainly as a way to tempt them into upgrading to paid accounts.

If I had to switch to a free account, I'd start a brand new account than using my existing one, because I wouldn't want to have to charge my existing heroes into archetypes. I enjoy custom made heroes way too much. Purely one powerset heroes, for the most part, bore me.

And one thing gold (paid accounts) will be apparently be getting is a monthly allowance of C-Store points. They haven't said how much CP subscribers and lifers will get, but guess it will be somewhere around 50 to 100 CP.

[Tawodi Osdi]

I do have a question on how the plan to deal with players going back and forth between being subscription based to non-subscription based characters.

[bat1987]

If you have a silver account you wont be able to play with that character until you remove all the gold features.

For example you have a gold account, you make a toon with various powers and costume pieces. After your sub expires you have a silver account, you won't be able to use that toon until you remove all the gold features or you renew your sub.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

My guess is that the Archetypes won't limit you to what powers you can pick, but to what powersets you can pick. Meaning if you're a Might hero you can only take powers from the Might set, or if you're a Fire hero you can only take powers from the Fire set.

You don't have to guess.  The press release states that all powers will be pre-chosen for archetypes and will simply be added to the character at the set level.  The ONLY way to choose powers in any way will be to get a subscription.

[Valandar]

IIRC you will still be able to choose your advantages and talents.