GamersFirst CEO Congratulate Activision About World of Warcraft in a Leaked Email

"Dear Bobby,

I wanted to congratulate you on taking your first big step to join the Free2Play® revolution. I was excited to read about World of Warcraft going Free2Play for the first 20 levels in the gaming media today. Having created this market in the western hemisphere, it’s very encouraging for us to see the last bastion of the subscription-only online gaming business joining the Free2Play movement.

As both your neighbor in Irvine, California, and fellow publisher in the gaming community, I wanted to extend our friendship and support in this challenging transition. While the steps you have taken are a great start, we do understand that this is a massive change, but we guarantee that this decision is in the best interest of the gaming community. We can only hope you will consider the same for your other great products like Starcraft, Diablo and Call of Duty, as our office staff would be delighted to enjoy those great game properties for free as well.

Given our recent success in reviving APB Reloaded, which launched as a subscription-based game we transitioned to Free2Play, we know that the first steps are often the hardest. But the proof is in the metrics, as APB now has more than three times the active player base than when it initially launched as a subscription product. We also plan to repeat this success with Fallen Earth.

After championing the cause of taking games Free2Play for nearly a decade it feels great to welcome you and the Activision team to the club. Feel free to drop by the next time you’re visiting Blizzard Entertainment in Irvine, and I also look forward to seeing you at the Free2Play party at this year’s Gamescom in Koln.

Best regards,
Joshua Hong
CEO, GamersFirst"