Jagex: Retail can sell free games

Shops can help sell free games, says free-to-play specialist Jagex.

The firm predicts stores will experiment with selling add-ons for games such as Killer Instinct, a free-to-play launch title on Xbox One.

I think there are plenty of opportunities for retail to be involved in F2P,” said Jagex marketing director Rob Kinder. Take Killer Instinct. You can sell characters or character packs in store for what is essentially a free game. I think we’ll see lots of experimentation like that.”

Kinder adds: Retail is already indirectly involved in free-to-play through the sale of things like App Store credit or Xbox Live and PSN points, which are used to purchase in-game items and currency.”

But the longer-term future for retail is not so clear, warns Kinder.

The longer term concern for retail is when broadband infrastructure gets good enough to make digital purchases more convenient than a trip to the store.”