Gamers in Southeast Asia will soon receive access to Blizzard’s blockbuster sci-fi RTS StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty without the need to purchase the full retail version.
According to a press release, PC gamers in Hong Kong/Macau, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand will have access to three game card options that grants 3 days, 7 days, and 30 days to the game. The passes will be used on the Southeast Asian Battle.net server for both StarCraft II singleplayer and multiplayer modes.
Friday Blizzard said that Southeast Asian gamers would also have access to a DVD starter kit for those who would rather not download the game client. The kit will include the disk, a 7-day pass, and a guide to creating a Battle.net account and installing the client.
Blizzard added that the prepaid game cards and DVD starter kit will be distributed across Southeast Asia in select Internet gaming cafes, convenience stores, and gaming retail shops. For more information about the StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty passes and where to buy them, head here.
Currently we’re still waiting on a response from Blizzard to see if the "tiered" pricing plan will come to the States.
Update: According to Bob Colayco, PR Manager at Blizzard, there are no current plans to bring this business model over to the U.S. Colayco indicated that Blizzard was giving customers in Southeast Asia another option to play the game if they did not want to fork out for the full price of the game up front. "This business model gives gamers in that region another option, if they just want to play for a week or a month," said Colayco. "We have different business models for different regions."
