Developer ZeniMax Online has officially confirmed that their upcoming PC/next-gen console MMO The Elder Scrolls Online will require a monthly subscription.
Elder Scrolls fans who were hoping that the upcoming MMO version of Tamriel would be hopping onto the F2P bandwagon are in for some bad news.
According to ZeniMax Online general director Matt Firor, The Elder Scrolls Online will be using a subscription-based model, a bold move considering the fact that many other recent MMO’s that tried such a strategy, such as BioWare’s Star Wars: The Old Republic and Funcom’s The Secret World, were forced to convert to F2P/B2P models soon after when sales and player populations floundered.
As with many other subscription-based MMO’s, Elder Scrolls Online players will be able to purchase subscriptions at $14.99 a month or $12.99 a month if they buy in six-month increments or $8.99 a month if they pay for a whole year at once. New copies of the game will come bundled with 30 days of pre-paid game time.
While this may come as disappointing news for more thrifty MMO players, it sounds like the massive undertaking that ZeniMax is making with The Elder Scrolls Online will be well worth the entry price. We won’t know for certain whether or not ESO will be able to utilize a subscription-based payment model as adeptly as Blizzard’s World of Warcraft until the game is officially released but fans eager to delve into ZeniMax’s online Elder Scrolls landscape should start saving up subscription money now.
Firor’s full statement confirming the subscription-based model can be found on the next page.
