No, World of Warcraft Isn't Going Free-To-Play
...but it was a tidy bit of speculation for a few days, wasn't it?
Blizzard Community Manager Bashiok clarified things a bit on the official forums today, saying that the datamined "Veteran's Edition" wasn't a hidden upcoming free-to-play option, as some speculated, but rather a way for veteran players to get back into the game for free.
To summarize, when patch 6.1 hits, anyone who has previously had an account and subscription will be able to log into the game for free, with restrictions identical to that of a Starter Edition account, with the ability for sub-level-20 characters to join guilds. So it's really not much more free-to-play than it ever has been; you just don't have to create a new Starter account to kick around for free if you're a former player.
I'll probably jump back into WoW for a bit to look around when this goes live. How about you?
Related Articles
About the Author
Jason Winter is a veteran gaming journalist, he brings a wide range of experience to MMOBomb, including two years with Beckett Media where he served as the editor of the leading gaming magazine Massive Online Gamer. He has also written professionally for several gaming websites.
More Stories by Jason WinterDiscussion (22)
Read Next
Square Enix's free-to-play vampires-vs.-humans battler Nosgoth goes truly free-to-play on Wednesday, when the game heads into open beta.
You May Enjoy
Get an inside look at the King Tiger.
The clicker-style crop idle farming game mode is called Go Garden.
If you registered, you might want to check your email.
Earn up to 100% bonus Dilithium for certain game activities.
I thought it would be a restricted buy to play... but nope, I have the privilege of playing the demo like everyone
omg tks blizzard... ¬¬
USS:NO!
YOU:Its not F2P Q_Q …but it was a tidy bit of speculation for a few days, wasn’t it?
USS: -_- No shit Captain obvious!
Blizzard Sending Gift to Veteran Accounts
It looks like Blizzard is planning to send some kind of gift players that have had an account for ten years. A few players have received a notification that a package from Blizzard will be arriving tomorrow. There was a support article about the gift that was taken down shortly after it was posted.