Today on Headline
RePLAY: Everquest II sees a free-to-play 300% player jump, Sony isn’t going to
unveil a new console at E3 and Riot Games stands against SOPA.
The free-to-play model (F2P) is the new trend for MMOs, and Everquest II’s transition is another case of how it can exponentially spur player growth.
Gamasutra reports that
Everquest II has seen a 300% increase
in new player registrations since the game switched to F2P in early December. Everquest II also experienced a 40% increase in daily logins and a 200% rise of
in-game item sales.
This isn’t the first F2P
rodeo Sony Online Entertainment has been to either: DC Universe Online attracted one million new users in a week.
*Source: Gamasutra
Rumors and analysis of
a new generation of consoles were aplenty late last year, but today Sony is putting
to rest one such rumor: there isn’t going to be any announcement about a new
console at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo.
At a roundtable with
reporters during the Consumer Electronics Show, Sony’s Kaz Hirai was asked about
a statement attributed to the head of Sony’s videogame division, Andrew House,
that there wouldn’t be an announcement of a PlayStation 4 at E3.
“Andy [House] is
absolutely right in that we are not making any announcements at E3,” said Hirai.
“I’ve always said a 10-year life cycle for PS3, and there is no reason to go
away from that.”
*Source: Wall Street Journal
Riot Games, the brains behind League of Legends, has released a statement challenging the U.S.
House bill “Stop Online Piracy Act” (SOPA) and the Senate’s “Protect IP Act”
(PIPA).
The studio observes
that SOPA/PIPA “goes far beyond addressing piracy” and the proposed legislation
“threatens any website that features user-generated content.” Riot Games then
proceeded to lay out how it would impact League
of Legends players and the means to voice opposition to the bills.
*Source: Riot Games
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