John Carmack of id Software said today at the QuakeCon 09 press conference that the browser-based Quake Live would be introducing a subscription-based premium service to players. It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that such a massively popular free to play game can’t support itself on ad revenue alone.

According to VG247′s live-blogging, Carmack also said that Quake Live will probably always have some level of free to play service, expecting the game to be alive in “many, many, many years” assuring gamers that this announcement didn’t mean it was in any danger.

There seems to be no specifics about this ‘Premium’ service. I think it’s safe to say that there’s a chance it means that the current free version will have features dropped, instead appearing in the paid-for service. However it will probably mean that it will get more support and development from id as it becomes a fully-fledged income source and not just advertising space.

I don’t claim to have had much experience with Quake Live but the little I have had was good. It works and it works well. But most importantly for people like me: it’s free. whether or not it’s worth subscribing to is up to the hardcore players. It’s a shame to see it have to undergo this transformation, but it’s unfair to expect a business to support a product that can’t support itself.

Via: The Escapist