Ever since the release of Cataclysm, World of Warcraft has been taking quite some heat and losing a fair number of its subscribers. With Diablo III coming in the near future, Blizzard has revealed a new subscription plan that will help the company hold on to its precious subscribers.
Dubbed the World of Warcraft Annual Pass, the new subscription method will allow players to enter a 12-month subscription commitment. Luckily for players concerned with breaking their banks, the plan lets players either pay on a monthly basis at $14.99 per month or use a different billing plan of their choosing.
For current WoW subscribers, this means there won't be much of a change other than the fact that they won't be able to cancel their account for a year. The commitment could be a turn-off to some subscribers, but the rewards are definitely tempting. For a limited time, WoW Annual Pass subscribers will get a digital version of Diablo III for free, along with the new Tyrael's Charger in-game mount. In addition, subscribers will also be granted guaranteed access to the upcoming WoW Expansion Beta Test.
For more information on eligibility or if you would like to sign up, head on over to the sign-up page here.
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brn_gomes I mean, just when I thought Blizzard was gonna lose its ground, they come up with stuff like this, It's a genius move, you pay the one year subscription fee, alright... It's quite some money, but if you're into WoW, you probably would anyway, specially now with 4.3 coming up you get to kill Death Wing while you grind up for the new expansion, expansion which, you already know what's it gonna be about, so, either you like it and go ahead with it, or you don't like what you're seeing and just don't, is take it or live it, but in case you are interested on the new expansion, with all the new stuff including the "Pokemon" fights, and if you were already planning on getting Diablo, which I am, you save up huge money, let's face it, I was going to pay 60 euros for Diablo, and each time I buy a 60 day subscription card, I pay 26 euros, I probably would pay 6 months of play during a year, which would cost me effectively, 78 that sums up 138€, which is already 18 euros more than I'd pay for the yearly subscription, plus you get an awesome mount, not excluding that you can play WoW a full year, other than you would paying for the 6 months. It's win win win win for me, and very tempting to a whole lot of people. With Star Wars: The Old Republic coming up, and Guild Wars pressing forward its release, this is a really bold move from blizzard, they're all IN, it's take it or leave it I guess. I like how they don't discriminate between their own games, they really just want you to be in the Blizzard "side" of gaming, as long as you're going blizz, they don't really care what you're playing as long as you're paying for their services and stick to their products, a lot of synergy here.Reply -
billybobser tied in to 12 month contract,Reply
release utter rubbish
Blizzard : /Trollface
From a business perspective. I think if blizzard made all their games pay for, for half the curernt wow cost, and made the sub for all of the games. That'd be an interesting propasition, possibly more lucrative.
Combined with this idea, that a 1 year sub (loyalty) will be rewarded.
I don't like the idea of loyalty to an aged and run to the ground game however, but i don't mind being loyal to a great development house. -
gio2vanni86 I have that tab open for it.. I just quit in july, I'm really unsure if i want be tied to it for that long, but the bonus's to it make seem like a great deal. I will have to think about this. Looks good though.Reply -
Star72 From what I understood by reading the stipulations, you would have to complete the year before getting the copy of Diablo 3. If so, then I think they are just hoping that people will accept the agreement & then get too impatient to wait a year & buy Diablo 3 anyways. Big Win-Win for Blizzard there. I could easily be wrong though, may have misunderstood.Reply -
vilenjan Star72, read it again. "You'll be able to download and play Diablo III as soon as it's available and once you complete the one-year term, it's yours to keep, even if you cancel your subscription. Tyrael's Charger will be available with Patch 4.3, and beta access will go live with the beta launch."Reply -
vilenjan As far as pricing goes, if you count DIII's retail price ($60) and the year discount for the sub, its like getting 12 months for wow for 6 months worth pay.Reply -
jn77 They just need to retire WoW and come out with WoW II that lets users with "Modern" hardware that does not belong in a crypt for Indian Jones to find and be put in a museum.Reply