Sony Online's EverQuest II Goes Entirely Free-To-Play

Following last year's experiment to run a concurrent freemium service, Sony Online Entertainment's fantasy-themed MMORPG EverQuest II is switching to an entirely free-to-play model. The switch will occur in early December, according to the company, to coincide with its latest expansion pack, Age of Discovery. The game, which recently celebrated its seven-year anniversary, will no longer require an upfront fee to download and play. Memberships will now be split into three classes: a Free class that offers basic functionality with some limitations, a Silver class that removes many restrictions, and a subscription-based Gold service that offers several premium-tier options for ease of play. The move follows a previous attempt to experiment with making EverQuest II free-to-play. A "parallel" free-to-play version of the game called EverQuest II Extended has operated since last year, separate from the traditional subscription-based service. The December upgrade will merge all existing services into one free-to-play model.