Premium pricing will survive but console F2P important for new IP

Free games are not a threat to triple-A console releases.

That’s according to experts from the biggest free-to-play companies. Execs at CCP and Wargaming dismiss the idea that all games in the future will be free, but tell MCV that free-to-play is a great way to break new IP.

It doesn’t seem that prices are off-putting. PS4 and Xbox One sold 1m units each during their first 24 hours on sale. Most people buy consoles to play popular franchises and games that have already become classics – not free-to-play titles,” said Andrei Yarantsau, VP of publishing at Wargaming.

David Reid, CEO of CCP Games agreed: I don’t think there’s a shortage of people willing to pay premium prices for quality games. But gamers have grown tired of plunking down a lot of cash up front for a game they’ve never played.”

Yarantsau added that F2P games can help plug a gap between the blockbuster launches, not replace them.

Once completed; boxed games are put on a shelf. This is when F2P comes in handy.”