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Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Turbine makes Dungeons & Dragons Online game free to play
By Mass High Tech staff
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Online game developer and publisher Turbine Inc. reports it is adding a free-to-play model to its subscription-based Dungeons & Dragons Online massively multiplayer online game.
According to Westwood-based Turbine, Dungeons & Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited will officially launch sometime this summer, and is signing up people for a private beta test period right now. The new DDO Unlimited, as the company calls the free-to-play game, will include a “major” content upgrade to the current subscription-based Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach.
The game will use the “freemium” business model, in which players can download and play DDO Unlimited for free, and can purchase additional content and items in the new DDO Store. The subscription model is not going away entirely, as players can join the new DDO VIP program and get unlimited access to all the premium content for a monthly fee.
According to Adam Mersky, director of communications at Turbine, the free version of DDO Unlimited will use the same graphics and game-play technology as the current subscription-based Stormreach version.
Turbine decided to add the free-to-play aspect to its D&D online game in part because it fit best with that model, Mersky said.
“This is very much in line with the way D&D sold itself back in the day. You are paying for content when you want it, as opposed to this all-you can eat buffet,” he said.
According to Mersky, Turbine began preparing for the new model for DDO more than a year ago. Since announcing the beta sign-up earlier today, it has been flooded with requests. “We’ve already had tens of thousands of sign-ups in the past few hours,” Mersky said.
DDO Unlimited is based on the famous Dungeons & Dragons fantasy gaming franchise of Wizards of the Coast Inc., a subsidiary of Providence, R.I.-based Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS).
Last week, Turbine named M. Beau Paradowski as chief financial officer. Paradowski will replace Peter Faubert, who will remain with Westwood-based Turbine.
In April of last year, Turbine landed $40 million in a third round of venture capital funding. Granite Global Ventures led the Series C financing, which included previous investors Highland Capital Partners, Polaris Venture Partners, Tudor Ventures and Columbia Capital. Granite Global managing partner Hani Nada took a seat on the Turbine board.
Turbine, which also makes the games Lord of the Rings Online and Asheron’s Call, has raised a total of $88 million in venture financing.
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