Video: Balancing free-to-play in Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter

"I wouldn't have run a branding campaign... I would have spent the money on more PR activity and to give the user even greater value."

At GDC Europe 2013, Perfect World Europe general manager Gabriel Hacker responds to an audience question about what he would have done differently leading up to the launch of F2P MMO Dungeon & Dragons Neverwinter. In this free GDC Vault video, Hacker examines sales data and concludes that the biggest spikes he has seen were caused by content updates, not sales or discounts. He also examines a Neverwinter pre-order pack campaign where the $200 pack outsold the $20 and $60 packs, citing consumer value as a large reason for its success. Also, be sure to check out 'User-Generated Content In MMOs - From Champions Online To Neverwinter' with Cryptic Studios's Craig Zinkievich.

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