Tera going free-to-play in February

As will happen with almost any subscription-based MMO that's not World of Warcraft or EVE Online, Bluehole Studio's Tera is switching to a free-to-play model, barely ten months after launch. Come February, anyone who fancies will be able to download and play the fantasy MMORPG for free, though subscriptions of sort will live on in a $15 monthly 'Elite' membership with various perks.

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As will happen with almost any subscription-based MMO that's not World of Warcraft or EVE Online, Bluehole Studio's Tera is switching to a free-to-play model, barely 10 months after launch. Come February, anyone who fancies will be able to download and play the fantasy MMORPG for free, though optional subscriptions will live on in a $15 monthly 'Elite' membership.

The Tera: Rising launch, which publisher En Masse hasn't pegged for a specific day yet, will also bring new content include a wave-based dungeon and a new PvP battleground map.

An item store is coming to fund the new model, selling microtransactional doodads like mounts, costumes and consumables for cash money. En Masse also hopes you'll choose to pony up $15 a month for Elite status, which gets you an exclusive mount, boosters for XP, gold and reputation, a higher daily quest limit, and other jazz. People who bought Tera before the switch will become 'Founder' members, dodging new restrictions like fewer character slots.

A F2P switch has looked likely not only because, as previously stated, it happens to almost every MMO that's not WoW or EVE, but because its 11 North American servers were merged into only three a mere four months after launch. Clearly things were not going nearly as well as hoped, but at least it earned ten months of subscription fees and retail purchases to help recoup costs, and the F2P switch should give a jolt of new life and money.

From The Chatty
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    January 9, 2013 7:45 AM

    Alice O'Connor posted a new article, Tera going free-to-play in February.

    As will happen with almost any subscription-based MMO that's not World of Warcraft or EVE Online, Bluehole Studio's Tera is switching to a free-to-play model, barely ten months after launch. Come February, anyone who fancies will be able to download and play the fantasy MMORPG for free, though subscriptions of sort will live on in a $15 monthly 'Elite' membership with various perks.

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      January 9, 2013 8:10 AM

      Excellent!!! I think this might be the first MMO to go F2P that I am actually excited about.

      I really enjoyed the game but couldn't justify paying $15/month for how much I was playing. Also I didn't have many friends playing but hopefully they will give it a shot when it is free.

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        January 9, 2013 8:15 AM

        Let's just hope they don't cripple it with the same silly restrictions EA put on SWToR etc.

        For some reason I really felt the grind in Tera more than any other MMO too but like you I still enjoyed the game but couldn't justify the monthly sub.. (especially as I was taking 2-3 week breaks).

        There was something very satisfying about soloing a BAM in Tera.

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          January 9, 2013 9:02 AM

          I just want TERA's combat in other MMOs. The rest of it didn't really grab me.

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          January 9, 2013 10:19 AM

          There is absolutely no restrictions on content if you are playing the F2P model which is nice. However if you dont have the Founders title you will be retricted to 2 character slots with the option to buy more.

          I absolutely love the game and am excited for the new content and will be rolling an Elite account.

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            January 9, 2013 1:06 PM

            I was in the beta and had a subscription up until a few months ago so I imagine I'll have the founders title.

            That said, I logged back in for a few minutes after seeing this announcement and played my level 50 fighter for a bit.. I loved the combat but was immediately reminded of the grind.. 4 quests to kill 16+ of various mobs which I believe only gets worse at higher levels. I just haven't got the patience for it anymore :(

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          January 10, 2013 3:18 AM

          http://support.enmasse.com/tera/tera-rising-play-for-free#What_are_the_different_account_tiers?

          The differences from paid, free and the founder accounts.

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        January 9, 2013 8:18 AM

        I wonder if any other games could survive the monthly pricing model anymore...

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        January 9, 2013 9:19 AM

        it's pretty much F2P to a point already, you can spend as much time as you want in it but can't go over level 20 or 28 or something like that. The 'trial' is unlimited.

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      January 9, 2013 9:19 AM

      LOL I swear I just read a month or so ago where the devs alluded to this game never going to F2P. I was like, riiiiight.

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        January 9, 2013 11:22 AM

        Old Republic said the same thing. So did WoW so i guess they're next... in a few years.

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          January 9, 2013 8:53 PM

          I believe reading somewhere that Blizzard admitted the inevitable F2P future of WoW, just a matter of when.

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      January 9, 2013 9:23 AM

      about time. Tera was fun but i'm not paying a monthly fee for it

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        January 9, 2013 9:34 AM

        I liked the game but with all that button mashing on my slayer I nearly got carpal tunnel. Not paying a monthly sub for carpal tunnel lol. I'm glad however that its going F2P, now I can play it casually.

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      January 9, 2013 11:32 AM

      I might try it now and i love the little jab at EA making you pay for basic hotbars that made me laugh.

      It sounds like they plan to do F2P right and charge people for hats and stuff TF2 style and little xp and maybe drop boosts but not go SWTOR and make a fake free to play that cripples you with so many chains you have to pay to play still.

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