It’ll be launching on the 1st of March, with a headstart for pre-orders beginning February 24th.
That’s all pretty standard, though a little sooner than many were expecting. The pricing is a little more peculiar though:
Founder’s Subscription: For a limited time, Trion Worlds is pleased to offer Founder’s Subscription pricing. If you choose a subscription plan by 3/15/2011, you’ll be able to pick one of the special pricing plans listed below. You’ll get to keep this special pricing as long as you retain an active subscription to RIFT.*
*Your payment method will be charged (on a recurring basis at your selected subscription rate) until you cancel your subscription. If you choose to cancel your Founder’s Pricing subscription and later re-subscribe to RIFT, the Founder’s Subscription plan will no longer be available.
| Monthly | 3-Month | 6-Month |
| $14.95/month | $11.99/month | $9.99/month |
| $14.95 | $35.97 | $59.94 |
This is a little weird, as what we’re seeing is not the normal pricing rates. These are the special Founder rates that you’ll be able to get if you play from launch, up until the time you decide you want a break, whereupon you’ll end up on the, yet to be announced, normal subscription rate.
It’s an interesting way of locking people in to subscribing continuously, for fear of losing that special rate. Unsurprisingly, I don’t much like it, as while it is certainly “interesting”, it’s a bit heavy-handed for my liking, and feels a little like a punishment.
$14.95 a month seems to be the special Founder’s pricing. We’ve not seen the regular pricing yet, and so I am wondering if we are about to see a new price-point set for a subscription MMO.
One good sign is the lack of a lifetime subscription. Lifetimes have become a big red flag for me that says that a developer does not have faith in the longevity of its product, and wants to cash in as soon as possible. Not having one means that Trion believes in Rift.
Update: Starseeker’s comment below suggests that the Founder pricing only means the 3 and 6 month bundles. I’ll be looking about for some clarification on that.
I hope it’s a typo or they pulled the $9.99 price Massively is quoting for some reason. The game is good but “pay more than any other MMO” good? No, probably not.
It’s always said $14.99 per month, before the preorder site was launched (yes, I’ve been camping the page) The 6 month term breaks down to $9.99 /month but it’s a lump sum of $59.94/6 months.
The info on the subscription sign up page is as follows:
Get special 3 and 6 month Founder’s Pricing – Only available through March 15th!
At the end of any game play time included with new accounts and at the end of each successive subscription period, your payment method will be charged (on a recurring basis at your selected subscription rate) until you cancel your subscription. If you choose to cancel your Founder’s Pricing subscription and later re-subscribe to RIFT, the Founder’s Subscription plan will no longer be available.
So the discount is for multimonth subs, the per month cost remains the same
This is not a new pricing plan. I believe that Fallen Earth uses tiered discount, and EVE Online as well.
I’m a bit confused about your assessment that tiered discount pricing feels like a “punishment”. First, you have the option to pay month to month at the industry standard $14.95. If you move into the tiered plan, then chances are you actually, you know, LIKE the game. I fail to see how it’s punishment to pay LESS for something you enjoy…
Sorry, Scopique, but that’s not was I was saying at all.
Of course there’s nothing new about tiered prices for buying multiple months.
If you choose to cancel your Founder’s Pricing subscription and later re-subscribe to RIFT, the Founder’s Subscription plan will no longer be available.
That’s what is new.The moment you stop subscribing, you are forever barred from founder pricing.
If I were a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, now I’d say “Kwugbonaa, dude!”
Lulz. Don’t bother Ark. Riftfans will just see what they want to see. Don’t expect them to actually read your posts.
[…] of the the talk this week centered around that topic, but they also managed to cover Rift, discuss the pricing model they’re taking, wonder a little about the sale of in-game items in MMORPGs and talk about Petter’s fondness […]
forever barred from it… until discount time when this will all come back. welcome to the beginning of lotro all over again. minus the lifetime subs