Could World Of Warcraft Go Free-To-Play?  With many major
massively multiplayer online role-playing games adapting the
free-to-play model, could Blizzard's immensely profitable World
of Warcraft one day make the switch? Lead designer Tom Chilton
says that one day the game's subscription model "may not make
sense."  With MMO titles with strong licensed properties behind
them like Dungeons and Dragons and Lord of the Rings Online
going free-to-play, even the king of the castle, Blizzard
Entertainment, has to sit up and take notice. Speaking to PC
Gamer, World of Warcraft lead designer Tom Chilton pondered a
day when his highly profitable MMO goes free.  The chances seem
slim, however. Chilton suggests that games like Lord of the
Rings Online go free-to-play in order to compete with games that
have similar subscriber levels. Perhaps Dungeons and Dragons
Online going free took away some LOTRO players, and Turbine
responded in kind.  The same thing could happen with World of
Warcraft.   That's a rather large "if."