So I'm watching the military channel and guess what?

[Bear76]

The WoT US server right now has 16,000

[Mister Fork]

The WoT US server right now has 16,000

Wow. Imaging if Aces High had around 20,000 subscribed and players... it would be incredible...

[Mister Fork]

I'm going to backup GMAN and promote his idea.  Open up the game for free-for-fall.

What you do get:
 - Hurri I
 - Spit I
 - Zero
 - C202
 - Bf-109E-4
 - access to the MA arena only

What you don't get...
- no access to the AvA
- no access to SEA events
- no access to bombers
- no access to vehicles or tanks
- no access to PT boats or any ship position
- no access to AAA guns on airfields
- no access to join or create squads
- no access to MA missions
- no access to the mission arenas

What all that? It $14.95 a month... or tier it to what you get...

What do the paying members get?
- apart from the plethora of new targets, we potentially get a huge influx of players who will want to expand their experience. Aces High has a lot to offer - and by letting it be free to fly the easy/older planes is just an expansion on a test model that works - 'try before you buy'.  2 weeks isn't enough - for some, trying to learn just how to fly 'ok' takes two weeks alone.  But give them something to try for free - if they like what the see, they'll pay the $15 a month.

What's the harm? Try it - if the model doesn't work, go back to the two-weeks free trial.

[caldera]

I'm going to backup GMAN and promote his idea.  Open up the game for free-for-fall.

What you do get:
 - Hurri I
 - Spit I
 - Zero
 - C202
 - Bf-109E-4
 - access to the MA arena only

What you don't get...
- no access to the AvA
- no access to SEA events
- no access to bombers
- no access to vehicles or tanks
- no access to PT boats or any ship position
- no access to AAA guns on airfields
- no access to join or create squads
- no access to MA missions
- no access to the mission arenas

What all that? It $14.95 a month... or tier it to what you get...

What do the paying members get?
- apart from the plethora of new targets, we potentially get a huge influx of players who will want to expand their experience. Aces High has a lot to offer - and by letting it be free to fly the easy/older planes is just an expansion on a test model that works - 'try before you buy'.  2 weeks isn't enough - for some, trying to learn just how to fly 'ok' takes two weeks alone.  But give them something to try for free - if they like what the see, they'll pay the $15 a month.

What's the harm? Try it - if the model doesn't work, go back to the two-weeks free trial.

Don't see why you wouldn't include a vehicle or bomber.  Add the TBM and the Panzer.  Some players have been here for years and never up a fighter. 
Fighters may be the primary draw but no reason to not expand the bomber and tanker player base too.

[Sloehand]

That sort of business model has been taking over in recent years. Unfortunately AH isn't set up very well to use that business model.

AH is not setup for that at all.  First, AH is a continuous first-person shooter/simulation game, while WoT and WoWplanes, and WoWships are arcade-style games, played in 15 minute or less increments.  Further, it is actually free to play, however, significant advantages can be had simply by forking over many dollars.  I've played WoT in the past, and currently play WoWs.  They are fun.  For awhile. But it soon gets repetitious and boring.  At this moment there are 15,455 players playing on the North American server.  There is also an EU server as well.  So these games are startlingly popular.  The graphics are great, and the concept of building your own stable of tanks or warships is fun for awhile.  I hate that all the money is going to Russia though.

[Mister Fork]

Don't see why you wouldn't include a vehicle or bomber.  Add the TBM and the Panzer.  Some players have been here for years and never up a fighter. 
Fighters may be the primary draw but no reason to not expand the bomber and tanker player base too.

Good idea - give them the He-111 and the Sherman (Panzer is too cool to be free). Might as well throw in AAA as well...

[haggerty]

Obviously the game isn't setup for free to play, but if you can manage to greatly increase player base by going free to play you will have more pockets to pick for minor things that would likely add up to more revenue that is brought in currently.

For example, open up a rotating collection of planes/vehicles (not just early war crap that will drive them away), but don't allow players to earn perk points, thus eliminating the ability to fly perk planes.
You'll take a hit on subscriptions right away until the numbers climb, i'm sure many vets have no problem with not being able to fly perk planes or any of the other benefits of subscribing, however they will have more ammo to bring their friends over from other games.  I know my brother and best friend refuse to play this game because of the idea of a monthly fee.  You may say, well if they come to the game they still will not bring any income to HT...but the fact that they refuse to play this game pulls me away from the game to play the games that they are willing to play, losing my subscription often.
Some of the benefits can include petty stuff like skins, squads, perks, rankings, all planes/vehicles.  Reduce monthly fee to a more realistic $10/month.  I'm a cheapskate and even I spend more than that on WoT type games for no good reason, give people microtransactions that aren't pay to win and there are enough people out there that will hand over plenty of money.

[SlipKnt]

I'm going to backup GMAN and promote his idea.  Open up the game for free-for-fall.

What you do get:
 - Hurri I
 - Spit I
 - Zero
 - C202
 - Bf-109E-4
 - access to the MA arena only

What you don't get...
- no access to the AvA
- no access to SEA events
- no access to bombers
- no access to vehicles or tanks
- no access to PT boats or any ship position
- no access to AAA guns on airfields
- no access to join or create squads
- no access to MA missions
- no access to the mission arenas

What all that? It $14.95 a month... or tier it to what you get...

What do the paying members get?
- apart from the plethora of new targets, we potentially get a huge influx of players who will want to expand their experience. Aces High has a lot to offer - and by letting it be free to fly the easy/older planes is just an expansion on a test model that works - 'try before you buy'.  2 weeks isn't enough - for some, trying to learn just how to fly 'ok' takes two weeks alone.  But give them something to try for free - if they like what the see, they'll pay the $15 a month.

What's the harm? Try it - if the model doesn't work, go back to the two-weeks free trial.

Some of this is really not a bad idea.  Seems like it would be a programmer's nightmare though.

But lets say this was possible.  I think you still give the standard free 2 week trial so they get a taste of the MW and later planes.  But would be pretty cool to allow access to the EW planes.

Personally I like things the way they are, but this idea isn't half bad...

 

[Ack-Ack]

I guess HiTech's comments about using a F2P business model for AH went over everyone's head.


ack-ack

[Gman]

It's not a F2P model at all, to be precise, it's a change to the "trial" system, changing it from a 2 week full access trial account, to a long term/indefinite limited access account.  There is no FTP for the regular game involved in my idea, never has been, nothing would need to change in terms of how the subscription system works now, including the rate.

HT only made comments on a completely F2P model  - I'm not suggesting a FTP game, I made it very clear 10x now that the current sub system and rate could stay the same, and that the only "free to play" would be the open slots in the MA (which is 99 percent of the game, including scenarios) being filled up with free trial accounts with limited plane/gv/etc capability.  Since those slots are empty now and not drawing in any revenue, and since that a huge swath of the "problems" with the game are directly related to low numbers, what would the harm be in having them filled up with POTENTIAL additional new full accounts.  Again, it would benefit the regular pay/sub system as a percentage would subscribe to get access to what they are seeing yet not getting to use, while giving those who already sub to the game more targets, a full arena, etc.
 


The major problem I see with this idea is that the game would be so popular that the free trial players would be fighting over the available empty slots, and HTC would be faced with either having to expand the arena sizes, or do splits into blue/orange and have to add a bunch more colors to that, in order to fulfill the demand.  I have no idea what the cost is to HTC in terms of bandwidth per player, or how that affects the game in terms of it working well still and being lag/etc free, but this seems like a 1st world problem to me.

[popeye]

Trying to imagine playing on a team of 50 subscribers, and 150 people who don't think the game is worth $15 per month....

[The Fugitive]

Trying to imagine playing on a team of 50 subscribers, and 150 people who don't think the game is worth $15 per month....

I dont think it would ever get that way. Once the "free loaders" play for a bit with the restricted equipment they would get to the point of either subscribing, or leaving. After all, out of all the people that have played this game over the years I can think of only one player that is happy to stick to all the low eny planes, Snuggie 

[Wiley]

Trying to imagine playing on a team of 50 subscribers, and 150 people who don't think the game is worth $15 per month....

Well, with the aircraft available to them in the proposal above, the avalanche of HOs won't be that tremendously effective.  They won't be able to run.  I'm just envisioning airfields that you can't see due to the amount of aircraft circling in the ack.  Err...   Moreso.

It would just become a world of ganging early war planes.  Myself, I'm not tremendously interested in having a ton of targets that have no real chance unless I hobble myself down to their level of available planes.

Fugi, I believe you vastly underestimate how long people will play something that's free before becoming bored, especially when you have an opportunity to tick off other players.

Wiley.

[The Fugitive]

Well, with the aircraft available to them in the proposal above, the avalanche of HOs won't be that tremendously effective.  They won't be able to run.  I'm just envisioning airfields that you can't see due to the amount of aircraft circling in the ack.  Err...   Moreso.

It would just become a world of ganging early war planes.  Myself, I'm not tremendously interested in having a ton of targets that have no real chance unless I hobble myself down to their level of available planes.

Fugi, I believe you vastly underestimate how long people will play something that's free before becoming bored, especially when you have an opportunity to tick off other players.

Wiley.

Im not counting on boredom, Im counting on the frustration level of getting killing often and quickly. Thats how the F2P games work. Players get frustrated and dump money into the game for the little upgrades figuring that will make them elite.

[Wiley]

Im not counting on boredom, Im counting on the frustration level of getting killing often and quickly. Thats how the F2P games work. Players get frustrated and dump money into the game for the little upgrades figuring that will make them elite.

Even with limited aircraft, they understand that more friendlies than enemies in a game like this works extremely well.  I really don't think it would end well.

Wiley.