The Future of Games is Free-to-Play Says Candy Crush Developer

IGN: "The future of all games is with free-to-play and micro-transactions, according to the man behind Candy Crush."

[Mikelarry]

SHOCKING a developer who made His millions via the free to play route says free to play is the future of all games... NOPE!!!

http://awesomegifs.com/wp-c...

[ZodTheRipper]

Compare the quality of F2P games with traditional games and you know why I'm against this. I have no problem with paying for my hobby as long as I get what I paid for. F2P can coexist with traditional business models but I don't think that everything should be F2P.

[Tony-Red-Grave]

The quality ( potential ) for F2P and a AAA exclusive can, let me emphasize -CAN-, be the same. It's just a matter of how much money the company wants to put into such a game and how they plan on making that money back. Some of the best F2P games tend to be MMOs since these are games evolve over time thus making a profit over the long haul.

Of course the practices they use in F2P games sometimes we can argue to death about ( what to pay for what should be unlockable without cash in the game etc etc ). But that doesn't automatically mean F2P=lesser quality than AAA $60 since thats not always the goal ( remember its a long term goal to make money over time ).

Just to toss a quick example from games I myself play. Gundam battle operation lets you use all the mobile suits everyone else can use. BUT only until level4 after level4 you need to pay yen to be able to unlock a certain amount of suits/custom parts/weapons. You also need to pay a few yen to be able to play more than 3 times per 6 hours. So this makes the game along the line of P2W if you want to compete at high levels.

However the being a game i personally enjoy i've just as much if not more time into gundam, without paying a cent, as i did into ME2/ME3/Dark Souls2.

An example of a game that isn't "so" P2W is Tekken Revolution while the quality of the game isn't the same as something like TTT2, it's not ment to be. It's more of a arcade version, or HD version, of some of the older tekkens since there are no bounds ( which as a king player makes iSW freggin hard on pad ). But the thing is there's a minor RPG element to it that lets you make characters stronger. However you don't have to get involved in it since in player matches you can turn that off and fight high level people on equal terms without all the crazy 200VIR or 200POW.

What i'm saying is ( thank you for actually reading all that btw XD ) F2P/=/lesser quality than $60 AAA game just because it's f2P. Most of the times it's just a matter of different focus on the game.

oh on a note to ZodTheRipper i have to agree F2P shoudln't be industry standard since, like i said, they tend to be MMOs. but there are some genres that could benefit from being F2P, Shooters and fighting games being the first that come to -my- mind.

[Magicite]

well said.
games that are not worth paying for, can stay f2p.

[UltraNova]

IMO F2P is a marketing moniker to sway gamers to dive in only to realize if we truly want to invest our time and effort into the game we inevitably have to shell out far more than 60 bucks just to have a dying chance at it.

In other words F2P is a front to P2W - Pay to Win.

I truly hate to see things come to this.

[3-4-5]

95% of F2P games are trash, that sucker stupid people into buying them.

We have 350+ million people here in the US.

* At least half are stupid. = easy sales.

Candy Crush = The reason mom's in minivans are swerving on the road everywhere.

[lyvon]

If done right Free-to-Play is a Win-Win for developer and gamer. I don't understand the stupidity and knee-jerk reaction of F2P = bad. LMAO.

If done well and not forcefully pushed on the player from the get go, and if the game is designed to support the F2P model from the ground up it works.

The user gets a great game for free, and the developer can monetize of advertising and in game purchases from those willing to pay. Win-Win. It's pretty obvious that on mobile platforms his statement is ABSOLUTELY TRUE!!

[N311V]

I disagreed because I've not experienced a F2P game that was win-win, I hate the typical grind or pay model, but I do agree that F2P is the future of mobile gaming. I just scrolled through the top 100 grossing Apps and 94 of them are free! I think F2P will become more common on consoles this gen but I can't see it become the norm like it has on the mobile platform.

[MegaRay]

Why is this a news? I dont come to n4g for some mobile games news

[randomass171]

Unfortunately mobile games still count as games. And look at it this way, it's a good way to keep an eye out for potential scams so you can warn friends and family members who may play those sorts of games.

[MadLad]

Sadly, I have a friend who has spent probably more than $500 on that damn game . . .
She thinks the fact that I PC game is bad . . .

[ZodTheRipper]

You should live up to your name and slap her, maybe she comes back to reality.

[MadLad]

"And the lord sayeth unto his people; If thine friend, in all her folly, doth decide to squander her riches in a matter ill-fit for humanity's progression as a whole, thou shall strike her down; relieving her of any potential demons and, in all hopes, sending her down the path of righteousness and morality"

[ZodTheRipper]

Amen! :D

[stavrami-mk2]

it's like revelations 6:8 all over again

[randomass171]

She spent THAT much? holy crap. You could get a decently running PC desktop for that much for goodness' sake. :/

[cyber_daemonx]

Nooooooooooo

[Darklordnick]

Go home candy crush you're not welcome here....

[Shane Kim]

No it won't.

[blackstrr411]

Nope it wont

[Snappy]

If this every happens , I will no longer be a gamer

[Agent_hitman]

Glad to hear it from a dev, though I don't think that his prediction will ever come true. I don't think big publisher will implement that Free-to-play future if it will generate low profit on Ads and microtransactions only..

But it's really amusing to see some developers and publishers releasing their games like MMOs for free and let gamers play it without subscription, they only earn on Ads and Micro-transactions.. Not to mention those games are not crap like BLACKLIGHT, Warframe, PlanetSide 2, DC online etc. etc.

[memots]

So basically anything in the ps4 , oh wait I just read your comment history ,,,

I fell for it , I'll try not to feed you next time

[TitanUp]

if i could develop games and i could get money for a game like this i would do it.

as a gamer im like nope but as someone trying to earn money hell yeah i would have went for it.

[Fez]

I wouldn't be happy with myself if I developed a Free-to-Play or more accurately Wait-to-Play game like Candy Crush or the myriad of other cash grabs.

I really don't like the idea of developers consciously gimping their game to extract money from players. At certain points in Candy Crush, to progress you have to complete 3 quests, waiting 24h between each level..or you can pay them to unlock, or advertise for them on Facebook.

Every EA mobile game works like this which is why DK is rubbish, and Simpsons Tapped Out, and the Sims. All wait-to-play.

Then there are pay-to-win where games that are made very hard so buying boosters is the only way to progress without grinding.

The annoying thing is these games would be really good if they hadn't purposefully been manufactured to extract money. I would rather pay a one off payment for a great game rather than be forced to trickle in more money in the long run. Problem is this isn't as lucrative for the publisher.

[boeso]

Mars.

[AtomicGerbil]

Free-to-play has a future in the games industry, it's certainly not THE future.

Candy Crush definitely does not have a future when the casuals move on.

[TitanUp]

yep these games don't last long but they can make you a millionaire for life, if you spend the money correctly.

[_LarZen_]

Then fuck the future and fuck King Games.

I'll start playing board games instead.

[Ratty]

Exactly. I'll do the same if that's really the future.

[tigertron]

If I see another Candy Crush invite...

[Ratty]

Wrong. Free to play is the ENEMY of gaming. I don't want ads or microtransactions in my games. I'd much rather pay 59.99$ once than having to pay to win and help greedy bastards like King make millions off ads.

[F4sterTh4nFTL]

Pay-to-Win.

[assdan]

Wow! A dev that's made million off of f2p and destroying lives thinks that!? I have no respect for what this dev says or does. They're not a developer in my opinion. They're a lawsuit factory that makes a game every so often so they can find more excuses to sue people. I think law suits are too common as it is in this country, but the second that you sue a company/person for content that YOU stole from THEM, is when I lose absolutely every shred of respect for you and your pathetic company.

[STK026]

Free to play is unlikely to be the future of video games. With that being said, most comments so far seem to focus on the bad F2P games; it is possible to have quality fun with a F2P game when done right. WarFrame is a good game, so is PlanetSide 2(although I personally ain't much a fan of these 2 games, they are still solid experiences), Dota2 and LoL are two of the most popular games at the moment, World of Tanks and WarThunder are also good games and Team Fortress 2 is still as good as ever despite going F2P.

The F2P business model works and can be a great value for customers; greedy developers (like King) on the other hand are bad for the consumers and the industry as a whole, F2P or not.

[kevinsheeks]

Free to Play makes the most profit for them therefore it is the future why have a set price when you can make unlimited :O

[TheDarpaChief]

Came here for the comments. Lol

[kevinsheeks]

King your free to play with these nuts

Lmao there now have a comment as well :p

[Skate-AK]

Dude is insane. Period.