Yes, Planetside 2 is going to be free-to-play, but Sony is keeping mum on just how this is going to work out.
Back in July, Sony revealed it’s got some pretty major plans for the Planetside franchise with Planetside 2. The sequel is set to include a new resource system, the ability to level up when players aren’t logged in, and a dynamic skill tree, and now Sony’s revealed something else: Planetside 2 will be free-to-play.
Speaking to Chinese news site 17173.com, Sony Online Entertainment’s president John Smedley broke the news, though he didn’t exactly explain how the F2P elements would work. Not only that, but the original translation wasn’t all that great, so Planetside Universe followed up with Smedley for some clarification; Smedley got back to the group shortly with the following information:
On Auction House
We aren’t doing an auction house like Blizzard. They asked me what I thought of that move by Blizzard and I said I liked it and thought it would help with farmers and that we were doing it years ago with Station Exchange. It has nothing to do with Planetside 2 whatsoever. Ive [SIC] said before the game will be some form of F2P but we aren’t announcing anything specific yet.On Beta
I did in fact say we are aiming for late this year or early next year. No further comment about that. It’s ready when it’s ready and we are proud of it.On Crafting
Not sure what they were talking about relating to “crafting” other than we want players long term to be able to make weapons. That won’t be there at launch.On Payment Model
The game will be F2P. What form will it be? We’re still working that out. But here’s a hint – we like League of Legends a lot.
That last bit is certainly interesting, as League of Legends model is not only highly profitable, but it also allows players a ton of freedom to play in a variety of styles. Since Planetside 2 is apparently going to be starting its beta process in the near future, maybe some more light will be shed on the F2P elements soon.
Source: Planetside Universe via VG247
