DC Universe Online To Command A $14.99 Entrance Fee

When it comes to MMOs, you just can't avoid 'em.

Fees, that is. There were rumors floating about that DC Universe Online would require a subscription fee for playing on the PlayStation 3, and those rumors have now been confirmed. Sony Online Entertainment's Scott Gulbransen told Push Square that a $14.99 entry fee will indeed be mandatory. Of course, this will give you full access to the entire game and its wide assortment of capable superheroes, and this is hardly anything new to MMO fans, but PS3 owners were thinking they might get a break with the free-to-play Network model. Yeah, not really. But at least the PS3 version will launch on the same day as the PC version this November, so that's something. We're wondering how popular the title will be for SOE, and whether or not MMOs will be as big on consoles as they are on PC. Perhaps Final Fantasy XIV, also slated to arrive later in 2010, will reinforce the genre on home entertainment consoles.

Still, you have to make a choice: FFXIV or DCUO? Well, I'll be passing on both but that doesn't mean one - or even both - aren't right up your alley.

Related Game(s): DC Universe Online

Tags: dc universe online, subscription fee, network

6/21/2010 10:43:02 AM Ben Dutka

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Comments (51 posts)

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tlpn99
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 11:10:24 AM
Reply

Passing on both myself too.

5 up, 0 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 11:16:20 AM
Reply

I'll be getting FFXIV. Loved FFXI. I know and understand why people don't like playing fees, but with the way MMO's are run, it would be impossible to have a worthwhile experience unpaid. There's too many things going on in an MMO for it to be free, and it's structurally different by far than any other game you might play online.

You need 24 hour support and constant upgrades. I, for one, can spare a few bucks a month if it's a worthwhile experience, so I'll try out FFXIV.

2 up, 1 down

NeoHumpty
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:09:17 PM

$15 is far from a few dollars. 4 months=a new game. Plus, I have months where I work too much to be able to get my money's worth. I could go $5 max.

2 up, 1 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:49:47 PM

Like I said, I can understand why some people would be against paying for these MMO's. It makes perfect sense. But again, it would be impossible for them to deliver quality service for a miniscule amount of dough. Basically, the game would suck monkey butt if it was free or a tiny fee. You can count on that. But I completely understand where you're coming from, and I think SE knows people won't get this game due to the fees. It's really catered to a specific audience. And for fans, it's looking like a very unusually loyal entry from SE in terms of gameplay.

For me, it's a no brainer, despite how much I can play each month. $15 isn't too much to fork over for me. I'm not generally one to buy a lot of games in a year anyways, and $15 is only a little less than a half hour's work for me. To be honest, I pay off my credit card 100% every month, and I barely even notice it's been charged for my FFXI account. So for guys like me, it's a D1P.

3 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:04:13 PM

The way Ben put it it sounded like a one time $15 entry fee? Hmm ...cuz that's a bit much for an untested mmo franchise, I think $15 is the most expensive I've personally seen, if it's monthly.

Last edited by Zemus101 on 6/21/2010 1:05:47 PM

0 up, 1 down

kraygen
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:20:52 PM

Actually $15 a month is the standard mmo fee. That's what it costs to play WoW, EQ2, Vanguard, City of heroes/villains, and on and on and on.

Just because it's on a console doesn't mean it's different from the others, just that the ps3 is awesome.

3 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 9:01:29 PM

Hmm ...$15 is the normal fee if you round up I guess. $12.99 is what I've paid for FFXI for years, and I don't think it was more than that for WoW, I only paid for 3 months but I think I woulda remembered if it was over $15 with the taxes, which is what DCUO is charging. Crazyness.

0 up, 0 down

kraygen
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 12:50:19 AM

wow is $14.99 a month standard, always has been. FF XI is one of the very few that have a $12 monthly fee.

0 up, 0 down

pyro117
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:02:47 PM
Reply

If this is true, will the games be at the same price point? $60 dollars for the PS3 game, but only $50 for the PC game (I think that is the usual price for a PC game) and both PS3 & PC users have to pay a 15 dollar "entrance fee".

0 up, 0 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:52:09 PM

The most I ever saw FFXI was about $30 for the complete game with all expansions included. I didn't get into it until a few years after release, however, so I don't know what the release cost was.

0 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:06:25 PM

It cost me $99+tax to buy FFXI on ps2 in 04, but it came with a 20gb hdd ^^

1 up, 0 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 5:10:40 PM

Oh yeah, it would if you got the hard drive. lol

If you have a backwards compatible PS3, it can be put on that. And after you get it on that one, you can transfer it to another non-backwards compatible PS3, since it merely saves entirely to your hard drive.

0 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 9:02:50 PM

I have done that a few times actually, played FFXI on my ps3. Now I have my ps2 hooked up to my hdtv and I can use my ps3 browser to look stuff up (whch you should definitely NOT have to do, but it's required for FFXI)

0 up, 0 down

Fabi
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:07:05 PM
Reply

I'm game testing for this game at SOE in San Diego :)

2 up, 0 down

aaronisbla
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 5:02:54 PM

How is it so far?

0 up, 0 down

Fabi
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 6:39:16 PM

I start next week, I might do regular game testing OR interpreting the game in Spanish which is less fun, but pays almost twice as much.

0 up, 0 down

NightHawk17
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:37:40 PM
Reply

DCUO, so far. FF14 doesn't look that fun to me, maybe an invitation to the beta would change my mind square

0 up, 0 down

herukuti
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:45:38 PM
Reply

i posted a thread on this and will express my taste about this decision here.i think its a bold move.i cant say anything good or bad about the decision because there is no option of knowing if an mmo in the same league as wow could have been good on the ps3 without monthly fees.

0 up, 0 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 12:50:51 PM

I personally found WOW too watered down and ended up playing FFXI instead. But I'm a glutton for punishment when it comes to the difficulty of games.

2 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:07:43 PM

I'm looking for an mmo experience between the likes of WoW and FFXI. I wanna be able to solo and craft with relative ease, but be able to get together with a group and grind out some epic items.

0 up, 0 down

kraygen
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:22:32 PM

ff xiv might be the game for yo zemus, that's exactly how square has described it.

0 up, 0 down

Zemus101
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 9:03:39 PM

Well ..that was actually the game I was describing, glad someone picked up on that ^^

0 up, 0 down

Alienange
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:15:53 PM
Reply

If by "entry fee" they mean "monthly fee" they can count me out. Which is what it must mean because why would you buy a game for $60 and then have an added "entry fee?"

Monthly fees are nonsense. What's next? $15 a month for facebook?

1 up, 1 down

Superman915
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:16:52 PM
Reply

is it 15 dollars a year or is it included if I get PSN+? If yes, where do I sign?

a month? sorry DC. i heartbreakingly say no.

0 up, 2 down

bridgera
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:23:46 PM
Reply

If they are going to charge $15/month.... then the game itself should at least as low as $10 or free.

I mean if you go buy the disc off of the shelf, it should be $10, not $60 + $15/month to play.

Maybe I wouldn't mind so much if MMO's didn't blatantly overcharge for their product. They are viewed as cash cows, which I really don't think should be the case. If it's $15/month at first, then drops to $5 or $10 after they recoup their costs sure, do it.

Charge me $5 or $10, just don't make me feel like I'm getting hosed by $60/game + $15 montly fee.... cause that's $60+$15x12 = $240 that I spent that first year playing that game.

Last edited by bridgera on 6/21/2010 1:25:08 PM

1 up, 3 down

kraygen
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:26:59 PM
Reply

There's apparently a lot of people on here that have never played an MMO. It's completely different from a console game. It's more open world than any sandbox you'll find on a console and is updated at least every month.

$15 a month is the standard fee for the big name MMO's. They update them often and are always expanding them.

However as for DC univers online, no thanks. I've tried several super hero mmo's and they have all been terrible. I hated the gameplay in city of heroes/villains and DC looks like a complete rip off of that, but with DC characters.

I am interested in FF XIV tho, actually been waiting for it for a long time. My only question is, will I be able to use keyboard and mouse on the ps3 version? A controller with an MMO just doesn't mix.

2 up, 0 down

bridgera
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 2:53:41 PM

I played FFXI Online on/off over 4 years and was a 75 paladin.

Square Enix did not update every month (I'm not going to count very minor patches).

They had HUGE balance issues that allowed the Ninja/Bard to reign supreme as the ultimate tank (the Paladin was intended to be the best tank).... that went on for over 6 months (I think it was 10 months, don't quote me on that).

Yes there were some tweakings and additions, but there were many major issues that persisted for YEARS.

I can't speak from any experience with DC Online, but I do have experience with Square Enix.

If they actually did the things that you said, I guess I wouldn't mind paying $15/month. As a customer, I didn't receive what you described.

Most MMO's take a year to get balanced, and that's fine, but when it gets into year 5 and they are STILL balancing jobs (like they did with the Paladin Job), that to me is utterly ridiculous and not worth $15/month.

2 up, 0 down

Alienange
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 6:42:46 PM

Are the updates worth the $180 a year? I highly doubt the "updates" are worth that kind of money. My experience is that the updates are quite trivial until there is a real update that everyone has to pay for.

0 up, 1 down

BikerSaint
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 8:53:11 PM

Hey Kraygen,

Don't know if you'd be interested or not, but here's a new keyboard & mouse type controller set-up that's coming soon out for the PS3(BTW, no set date, or price as of yet though)

Hori's PS3 MMO Controller is large and in charge

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/19/horis-ps3-mmo-controller-is-large-and-in-charge?icid=sphere_geek_inline

1 up, 0 down

kraygen
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 12:54:43 AM

@ biker

Thanks, yeah that's pretty cool, hope it comes in black tho. Also curious how much it costs.

@Bridgera

Not sure why you wouldn't count small patches, the people working on the game still have to go through the game and spend hours trying to write the code to do even the small updates.

MMO's are expensive to run and they have to run for much longer than any console game. Yes they make money on them, but that's why companies make video games, to make a profit, nothing different about an MMO except they have to profit over an extended period of time and keep all their ppl employed for the life of the game.

0 up, 0 down

bridgera
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 1:55:16 PM

@kraygen

I wouldn't count a patch that added new maps and new quests the same as a small patch that tweaked something very minor.

Let's say a patch tweaked a Paladin to have 67 Strenth at level 75 to having 68 strength at that same level.

That's a very minor patch, which doesn't compare to say adding a new map.

You can say "well there's balance testing involved with that" to which I would say "well when the Ninja/Bard reigned supreme as the ultimate tank for MONTHS and it wasn't fixed, I fail to see the balance testing". That game was so ridden with job balance issues for YEARS after it's release, it's not even funny.

Most importantly, the company on 2 separate occasions released "expansion packs", but didn't actually release the entire expansion pack until over a year after its release via download for those who purchased those packs.

So at that point, you buy a $30 expansion pack, pay $15/month for a year after that, and then finally get the finished product a year later.

What sense does that make?

Again, I didn't receive anything near the "services" which you described. If I had, I guess I wouldn't mind paying $15/month.

Making profit is fine, but it needs to be a good enough service where the user walks away happy at the end of 4 years, instead of saying "I don't recommend any MMORPG from that company ever".

Try someone else before you try an MMORPG from Square Enix.

Last edited by bridgera on 6/22/2010 1:58:01 PM

0 up, 1 down

NeoHumpty
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:38:48 PM
Reply

$15 a month is a lot of money for the company, even if they only get 500,000 players(which I'm guessing would be a low estimate by their expectations). That would equal 7.5 million a month they are bringing in. For that price, they damned well better bring out new content and expansions every month that are free for the users. Making that kind of money the programmer's wives should give out random BJ's to subscribers. I just think it sounds a bit greedy.

Maybe the price will come down when no one wants to pay it. Of course, FF is a different story than DCOU fanwise. We'll see, but DC just fell completely off of my radar. I may try FF for a couple of months, but I'm pretty frugal about my monthly expenses. I hate adding more bills than I already pay.

1 up, 1 down

Kr3sn1k
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 11:33:39 PM

yea ill probaly play both for a month each and see which i prefer more and play that one my hopes is dc universe is better just because it has supper heros but i doubt it

0 up, 0 down

tridon
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 1:47:34 PM
Reply

So since $14.99 is an entry fee, does that mean each month after will be less?

I still wish SOE would've picked up the Marvel Universe instead of DC. I have no interest in DC characters at all (excluding Batman).

0 up, 0 down

main_event05
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 2:24:40 PM
Reply

Screw the console MMOs. When can we get a decent RTS?

1 up, 1 down

WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 4:54:09 PM
Reply

Pass.

1 up, 1 down

Dendrostamen
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 6:16:35 PM
Reply

Entry fee sounds a lot like a one-time fee. Still, a lot of people willing to pay that much (even if it comes to be monthly) would probably choose not to if the game sucked.

1 up, 0 down

main_event05
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 6:39:40 PM

Yea, thats why most PC based MMOs offer atleast a free week of play.

1 up, 0 down

NeoHumpty
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 7:12:24 PM

Nope, they mean monthly from the article I read elsewhere. I'd be fine with paying $15 extra for unlimited access. I think Playstation Plus should get you something on this, though.

0 up, 0 down

sha4dowknight05
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 7:32:56 PM

Awesome user pic. PHYSALIS. period.

0 up, 0 down

Turpieli
Thursday, June 24, 2010 @ 1:44:44 AM

The word entry fee should have been changed to monthly fee. Wouldn't have caused any confusion. But yes all games do offer a free trial period, some give 10 days, others a week or two, or even a free month. If a player decides the game sucks after had paying the monthly fee the player is free to cancel at any time and not play for whatever period of time.

0 up, 0 down

sha4dowknight05
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 7:31:56 PM
Reply

Well it's a MMO so really not to surprising but still a fee on a console based MMO, that's new.

0 up, 0 down

Underdog15
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 8:34:00 PM

Phantasy Star Universe, anyone?

not new.

Last edited by Underdog15 on 6/21/2010 8:34:13 PM

2 up, 0 down

Turpieli
Thursday, June 24, 2010 @ 1:34:59 AM

Phantasy Star Online 2 for the Dreamcast, Gamecube, and Xbox 360 all had pay to play. Final Fantasy XI: Online for the Playstation 2/3 and Xbox 360 again pay to play. Just saying

0 up, 0 down

Kr3sn1k
Monday, June 21, 2010 @ 11:27:58 PM
Reply

Curious is the 15 dollar entrance fee monthly or just a one time thing

0 up, 0 down

junglemunquay
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 2:27:01 AM

Per month according to Wikipedia...

"When asked whether the game would require a monthly subscription to play, or free to play, Sony's Wes Yanagi suggested that the game may implement a non-traditional or hybrid business model although such matters haven't yet been revealed by Sony Online Entertainment. As of E3 2010, it has been revealed the game has a standard $14.99 a month subscription fee"

0 up, 0 down

___________
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 6:30:14 AM
Reply

WAIT ITS FINALLY RELEASING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow, i thought id never see the day its been so long since we last heard of this.
now all i need is the agency and APB and im set!

1 up, 0 down

Deathb4Dishonor
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 2:45:52 PM
Reply

I don't understand why these MMOs have to charge monthly fees... I mean they already gonna charge for the game AND the DLC... I mean mayb if they said a one one time FEE of $15 or even $30 for the whole year then that wouldn't b so bad... But i see monthly fee $15 and I automatically say PASS... I'm sure i'm not the only one... It's 2 bad b/c both FFXIV and DConline Look awesome

1 up, 2 down

Turpieli
Thursday, June 24, 2010 @ 1:40:19 AM

MMOs charge for something call expansion pack which is bigger than just a down-loadable content for a game. Expansions normally give things like more areas to explore, enemies to combat, new missions and so on, sometimes new characters/jobs to play with.

Monthly fees are for being able to maintain the servers when something goes wrong or needs some kind of repairs, pay for the internet service provider host that runs the game, to be able to purchase new or more servers, the electric bill, paying the people who do the work.

0 up, 0 down

maxpontiac
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 @ 8:55:04 PM
Reply

Bummer. I was looking forward to buying three copies for my sons and I to play on.

But now? No thanks. $45 USD a month is to expensive for me considering I planned on dropping $180 USD on the game.

0 up, 1 down

Geobaldi
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 @ 9:30:15 AM
Reply

I just want to know what the difference is between the Hero Edition on the PS3, and the Collector's Edition on the PC. Only thing I've seen different is the cover art so far. The Collector's Edition costs more, so hopefully they'll be some nice goodies included. And as of E3, the PS3 and PC versions will be $14.99 a month. No biggie for me. I already play two other games I pay for each month, and about to add another on Saturday.

0 up, 0 down

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