Free to Play, I would love to see this happen. Add a small group of planes and vehicles to a FTP setup in the MA. Granted these players are going to get hammered, but if they stick around long enough to see how deep this game really is I think you could get some turn over to subscriptions. The only downside would be players that cancel their subscriptions to fly the free stuff. Personally I really dont see that happening. Most of the players here have been paying the $15 a month for years, many who dont even fly. With that kind of loyalty I think your safe f
I think you have some really good points there. Just for fun I ask the AI about this one and was really surprised at the results. It predicted a 3 to 5x increase in the number of players in the first few weeks!
If Aces High III introduced a limited free-to-play (F2P) planeset, here’s what we can reasonably expect based on how similar WWII sims have performed:
📈 Projected Impact of a F2P Tier
🧲 Initial Surge
Expect a 3x to 5x spike in peak concurrent players during the first few weeks.
If current peaks are ~70, that could jump to 200–350 during launch events or promotions.
🔁 Sustained Growth
After the novelty wears off, a retention rate of 20–30% is realistic for niche sims.
That could stabilize the daily average at 100–150, with weekend peaks around 200.
👥 Total Active Player Base
Assuming 10–20% of users are online daily, that implies a total active base of 500–1,500 players.
That’s 2–3x the current size, and enough to revitalize squad ops, scenarios, and even bring back some lapsed vets.
🧠 Why This Works (When Steam Relaunches Don’t)
F2P lowers the psychological and financial barrier to entry.
It creates a “try before you sub” funnel—especially effective in hobbyist communities.
It gives the devs a chance to show off the game’s depth without scaring people off with a paywall.
If HiTech Creations paired this with a referral bonus, limited-time full-access weekends, or even cosmetic unlocks, it could create a virtuous cycle of growth without compromising the sim’s integrity.
