NCsoft Reinvents Online RPG Business Model... Again
NCsoft is no stranger to crazy ideas. In publishing ArenaNet's Guild Wars, NCsoft proved that it wasn't afraid to venture boldly into uncharted business and technical waters, what with that game's fabulously fee-free subscription and neigh-unto-instant startup time. Now NCsoft gives us Dungeon Runners, a game which is not only free to play but free to download as well.
Well, it's slightly more complicated than that - but only slightly. Dungeon Runners is a free, download-only online multiplayer action RPG that combines hack'n'slash action with humorous riffs off of traditional MMORPG cliches: like weapons with names such as "Shifty's Crystal Sword of the Hypersonic Monkey." It's also, as mentioned, free to download and play - for the most part. A "large chunk of the game's content" is available to all comers, while a "membership level" for $4.99 a month opens up access to log-in priority queues, larger bank storage, potion stacking in your inventory, as well as the most powerful weapons, items and armor.
Says lead programmer Stephen Nichols:
“Dungeon Runners is a lot of fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously. But the game will take players into an action packed-adventure, where they blaze through a maze of dungeons, face fierce monsters and formidable opponents to become a hero..."
“Regardless if a player pays to be a member or plays for free, Dungeon Runners will deliver more than 200 hours of game play and a continually growing number of missions and quests. The game is also designed to appeal to gamers who have limited time to give to a game, but it will have the content to keep players adventuring for hours at a time.”
In other words, it looks like Dungeon Runners will be - at the very least - a game you can try out with no commitment for as long as you like. And if you find yourself enjoying it, a $5-spot is all you need to go full-throttle. What say we all?
NCsoft Unveils Dungeon Runners Game With A Free-to-Download and Play Business Model
Tuesday 29th May/...NCsoft® North America announced it has opened to the public its first free-to-download and play game, Dungeon Runners™, as the company continues to expand its online entertainment offerings. Dungeon Runners is an online, multiplayer role playing game in a fast-paced sword-and-shield setting where defeating monsters and evil enemies results in piles of loot and treasure.
Dungeon Runners, currently available strictly via free digital download, has a play-for-free tier where players can access large chunks of the game’s content, and a “membership level” for $4.99 per month where players are given, among other things, log-in queue priority and access to the most powerful items, weapons and armor. Membership status also includes bank storage for up to 220 loot items and the ability to stack potions in one slot to save room for even more loot.
In Dungeon Runners, there are a variety of character archetypes to choose from including fighter, mage and ranger in a classless RPG system where players are not locked into skills that are usually associated with their specific archetype.
Dungeon Runners focuses mainly on action and battles with limited death penalties and endless gold, weapons, armor and magic items available to claim after defeating hordes of monsters. The game also features a lighter side, with subtle and not-so-subtle humor sprinkled throughout the game including names of many items in the game. For example, one particularly dangerous sword is called “Shifty’s Crystal Sword of the Hypersonic Monkey” and a very helpful magic item called the “Pulsating Dragon Eye Amulet of the Thorny Donkey.”
“Dungeon Runners is a lot of fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously. But the game will take players into an action packed-adventure, where they blaze through a maze of dungeons, face fierce monsters and formidable opponents to become a hero,” said Stephen Nichols, NCsoft’s producer and lead programmer for Dungeon Runners. “Regardless if a player pays to be a member or plays for free, Dungeon Runners will deliver more than 200 hours of game play and a continually growing number of missions and quests. The game is also designed to appeal to gamers who have limited time to give to a game, but it will have the content to keep players adventuring for hours at a time.”
While NCsoft presents Dungeon Runners as a scaled down version of its other online games, Dungeon Runners is far superior to other “free with membership” type games due to the high standards NCsoft’s development team applies to all the products it creates, regardless of business model.
“Dungeon Runners is a bold leap into a new business model for NCsoft and it is taking us into a new direction in terms of the kind of games we can provide our customers,” said Robert Garriott, CEO of NCsoft North America. “There are plenty of other ‘free’ games available for online RPG fans, but none that packs as many features as Dungeon Runners has or comes with the NCsoft stamp of quality. We expect that players will receive this game warmly because it is fast, fun and free. It is hard to beat that deal.”
Dungeon Runners is available to download and play for free at www.dungeonrunners.com/join.html.
Moreover, an exclusive Dungeon Runners promotion with bonus contents can be found on FilePlanet.com can be found at http://www.fileplanet.com/promotions/mmoclub/dungeon_runners.aspx from now until July 4th 2007.
To find out more please visit the Dungeon Runners web site at: www.dungeonrunners.com.
The game is rated Teen by the Entertainment Software Rating Board.
tiny dancer
Posted to Video Games on 29 May 2007
· Comments (3)
Other stuff like this: dungeon runners, free, ncsoft, online, pc, rpg
I've attempted similar such games in the past, but never have I seen one as detailed as what is presented in this article. Most other types have you in a 2D world or at very least on a grid system. I'm sure you know the ones ;)
Dungeon Runners looks to be of a fine caliber (content withholding), showing the masses that it doesn't take a multi-million dollar budget to build a fun and functional game from the ground up.
As a past player of Dark Ages of Camelot, ShadowBane, World of Warcraft, and now Lord of the Rings Online, I can truthfully say that, as per this article, I think I would enjoy Dungeon Runners almost (probably not just) as much-- We'll just have to see what types of players are attracted to this title, as generally free online-games harbour an ilk of gamers with which many would rather not be associated.
Well, we'll see what happens. It's free, so I can't complain there. In fact, I'm downloading it now.
To be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of any of NCSoft's other titles (although Tabula Rasa looks promising). But what can it hurt? And if I like it enough, and the content is worth it, what's $5 a month? It would save me $10 a month from any other MMO I've played...
I'll post back after my first impressions tonight.
Sounds like the business model plan that Dofus uses in a longer term of the "free agreement" (Dofus allows you too explore the Incarnam, the floating island, and Astrub, the first city, for free with no limitations...even up to the five character to the level cap if you were willing to do that).
As Pirate Prince already wrote about