Activision to start charging online subscription fees for Modern Warfare 2?

360 Rumour | Let's hope this stays a rumour.

Mere days after financial analyst Michael Pachter commented that the games industry needs to start thinking about adding subscription plans to multiplayer games - namely Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - a video has surfaced showing an alleged membership plan for the popular first-person shooter.

The video, as shown below, was recorded and uploaded by a member of 360 Junkies. The original forum post is accompanied by the following text:

"I was trying to join a friend's session on MW2 the other day and had this screen pop up. It clearly says at the top of this menu: "Modern Warfare 2 Membersh", in which we can confidently assume that the last word is "Memberships". If you'll notice at the bottom is an option to "Add Microsoft Points", clearly indicating that this was intended to be a menu for purchasing different levels of Membership, presumably memberships would have been offered in a variety of durations.

"I don't want to see the day that we start having to pay a monthly fee for online play, as we already pay for our internet connections and XBL subscriptions. The CoD franchise has brought XBoX (sic) so much revenue that it would seem they wouldn't want this either, but apparently they went as far as to make a menu for it.

"I could be totally off base with this theory on what purpose this menu was intended to serve, but it seems a likely path for Activision to take."

Could the video be fake? Numerous YouTube users seem to think so, but only time will tell.

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25 Comments

renegadesx

1 year ago

Not happening for Modern Warfare 2, maybe for Modern Warfare 3 or their MMO Call of Duty title but this would just put people off the franchise if they did it to existing games (not to mention here the ACCC would knock them out).

There are 2 things that could possibly happen:
1) Make the CoD titles cheaper and charge a monthly subscription
2) EA's unlock code deal, where you have to buy a Modern Warfare code to unlock multiplayer (supplied in new copies).

Michael Patcher's main issue is he thinks the consumer is made out of money, he thinks that people will be lining up for a 3DS that costs more than the Wii was when it launched ($US300 which would translate to $450-$500, personally I wouldn't pay a cent over $300) and thinks publishers should charge more.

If Bobby Kotick choses to charge full price PLUS the subscription would just alienate a large chunk of the userbase (not all) to rival products like the new Medal of Honor, or Bad Company 2 (which I find superior to MW2). But I wouldn't put it past him to be dumb enough to do something like that. I know Riccatello would love for that to happen.

Shnryu

1 year ago

the hell?! no way can this be true, that's crazy lol!

Cavedog

1 year ago

I'd switch to another game, No way in HELL am i paying a monthly subscription for a FPS, Ontop of another membership, the RRP of a game being $119 now AND a console that i originally spent $400 on ( which can easily break ).

Stupid Stupid Stupid.

Cyph

1 year ago

LOL hilarious. People like Pachter and companies like Activision embody the problem with current day trends; the continual push for greater profits year after year. They're out of touch with the consumer and just want to push as many costs on to us before we push back.

Eventually people will get sick of CoD and then they'll see their bottom line drop.

Camm

1 year ago

With other quality alternatives on the market, and most of infinity ward now in EA working on Medal of Honor, I can't see this working.

waz79

1 year ago

The real joke was them charging 20% more for PS360 games, and then ANOTHER 20% when MW2 released. Core gamers frankly are bigger suckers than casuals.

@renegadesx, why are you attacking Nintendo? They've ALWAYS said they don't want to charge for online, and they have NEVER proposed bullsh** like this before.
In fact i would strongly hope that Nintendo will, depending on their actions, completely change online costing criteria with new standards in the next gen, and this probably be followed by competitors.

pom013

1 year ago

I don't think that was an attack on nintendo, just a comment that the 3DS is more expensive than renegadesx is willing to pay at the moment. The actual point was that analyst Michael Patcher thinks people have more money than they actually do and his subsequent belief that publishers should charge more is wrong.

macca macca

1 year ago

renegadesx wrote

(not to mention here the ACCC would knock them out).

ACCC? I fail to see how this is anti-competitive...

Kurupt

1 year ago

macca macca wrote

renegadesx wrote

(not to mention here the ACCC would knock them out).

ACCC? I fail to see how this is anti-competitive...

Because they're making every other game more competitive. It's still anti-competitive on your own games, right?

Lord Haart

1 year ago

One the one hand, I hope it's true since it will kill a series I have no particular love for.

On the other hand, all the hackers and n00bs that play CoD will then start playing the real FPSs... It's probably best to keep CoD around as a honeypot trap.

ppjim3

1 year ago

macca macca wrote

renegadesx wrote

(not to mention here the ACCC would knock them out).

ACCC? I fail to see how this is anti-competitive...

I think the point was that if they add a subscription cost to MW2 now, the ACCC would be forced to block it as consumers have already paid for MW2 (including online) without any knowledge of them adding a monthly charge later. Not sure if they could do anything, but it would be an interesting incident to see play out.

el_rezzo

1 year ago

Camm wrote

With other quality alternatives on the market, and most of infinity ward now in EA working on Medal of Honor, I can't see this working.

No no, the Infinity Ward team started Respawn which has a publishing deal with EA partners. The IW guys have nothing to do with the new Medal of Honor (which looks to be in great hands anyway). Respawn get to work on whatever they want, maintaining ownership of the IP as well, which is the perfect situation.

But yes, a pay-to-play MW online would probably fail after a very profitable first few months. The $15 map packs showed how MW2 players don't mind paying a little extra. Even if only 5% of players pay up for the subscription that is still a **** of money for Activision.

It's only a matter of time now.

jesuslol

1 year ago

Didn't Activision or Microsoft do some research or something and it showed that Modern Warfare 2 took up more than or around 50% of all xbox live traffic? (Can't remember at all honestly. Just a fact that I think I may have read.

Marka

1 year ago

Paid subscription models like those found on MMOs only work because they give something back to the players in the form of content updates. IF COD becomes pay 2 play I would at least expect the price tag for map packs to disappear.

Rush152

1 year ago

Of course Microsoft wouldn't disagree to subscription changes to CoD. If Microsoft didn't approve of Bobby Kotick adding a subscription fee then he'd just say "OK we won't develop for your console any more" and there goes about 60% of Microsoft's Xbox Live subscription base.

renegadesx

1 year ago

Sorry, not ACCC but more Fair Trading or Consumer Affairs. When you purchased MW2 online was part of what you paid for, they are not meeting the terms of the agreement between you and Activision. Trust me, the Government has the power to spank Activision over this.

As for the accusation of blasting Nintendo that was NOT an attack on Nintendo it was an attack towards Pachter. He has shown he lives it up. (Near beach side house in the latest Pach Attack) and has demonstrated that he has no clue of the constraints of a middle class budget.

He thinks Nintendo should gouge the consumer just because they can, he takes that view everywhere. It doent grasp him that consumers are buying less games (getting more juice out of multiplayer) because games are expensive (PALGN's gaming bargins are incredibly helpful as I never pay a cent over $80 for a game unless its a special edition that has something worthwhile

But I stand by my comment I will not pay a cent over $300 for a handheld, and trust Nintendo will do what they can to make it affordable for the average consumer. If they let me down then I can just wait. Remember we don't know the price of the 3DS, it was Pach that said ot should be $300 or over. Remember the $250 Wii cost $400 here so you are talking somewhere around $450 to $500. Who honestly will pay $500 for a handheld?

I don't hate the Pach, I think he can be very insightful on some issues in the industry but he needs to learn about the limits of disposable income that he may not have to worry about.

light487

1 year ago

It's odd.. we finally have stable, console based multiplayer gaming and of course profits being made left, right and centre from all the various purchases and subscriptions in the case of X360.. and now they want to have their cake and eat it too.

I am definitely not surprised at all, it is certainly disheartening.. but not surprising. MMOs have filled this space nicely (ie. monthly sub for a full-priced game).. imposing this monthly fee upon standard multiplayer games is going to see one mother of all backlashes if they go ahead with it without offering something that the current generation of multiplayer games don't have..

Jarrod

1 year ago

I doubt MW2 will ever get a pay-to-play subscription, but it will happen for the franchise eventually. Kotick likes his money to much to let something like this get ignored.

Smurf80

1 year ago

I knew I got rid of this game for a reason. To be honest I think the sequel was rubbish and no match for the original Modern Warfare. I was on the fence on buying the "yearly update" to Call of Duty but if this be the case Activision just made my decision easier

Eyce

1 year ago

Not happening on Black Ops.

JD_2020 wrote

JD_2020">No, you will not have to 'Pay to Play' #CODBlackOps Multiplayer either. Rumor -> Squashed.

ANDYBALLINA

1 year ago

This article was on IGN. Its all just rumours.

A purported YouTube video surfaced last night that showed a possible membership program was in the works for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Addressing the video, Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling said the menu shown was an error and that there will never be 'pay-to-play' Call of Duty multiplayer.

"To be clear: There is not, and will never be, additional fees required to subscribe and play Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer," he said on his blog.

"The video above seems to show a user on what appears to be the Xbox Live Gold Membership renewal page via the Marketplace in the guide, but while in-game in Modern Warfare 2 (which is in error)," he added. "It does not however, prove a pay-to-play subscription model is in the works for Modern Warfare 2, because no such plan exists for this or any other Call of Duty (including the upcoming Black Ops)."

"That said, feel free to cease freaking out."

fullmetal_adam

1 year ago

It's not going to happen, but if it does...I won't be buying another CoD game again, or anything developed by Activision.