Great idea, Zazen.
The legitimacy of the box is the critical factor here. Obviously putting money down into printing boxes, CD's, posters is an upfront cost, and can be considered a gamble. But think about the untapped consumer base: we all know that guy who, near his computer, has boxes and boxes of random games, some opened, some not, and of no discernible taste in genre. He buys games that catch his eye in the store. In fact, it's not just that guy, its thousands of guys. While they all don't own as many games, they all follow the same buying pattern, and buying philosophy "If it's good, it's in the store. If I see it in the store and it looks fun, I'll buy it"
Many people don't even know a game like this exists! 80 or so WWII vehicles, all human controlled, 24/7 action...people drool over this type of stuff. They end up playing the Battlefield series and CoD because those are what they see in the stores to satiate their urge for this type of stuff.
You might argue that HTC wants to keep a more "pure" customer base, and avoid the masses of completely inexperienced players who would come pounding on the server doors. I would argue that this game already has a great system that eliminates players who won't be a good "fit for the game. It's called getting the plane off the ground. People who are best suited for Battlefield games will find out within 5 minutes of playing this game that it's not right for them. They may return the game, yes, and then that would be no different than someone not subcribing after a free two week trial. But don't underestimate the large percentage of those who are well enough off with money and simply won't be bothered to return it. That's profit right there that would never have been made by the two week trial system. And of course the increased profit from a larger market goes without saying.
Making the game more accessible to the "traditional" buyers is only a good thing.
