After a lackluster initial response when The Elder Scrolls Online released last year, many fans assumed it was only a matter of time before the game went free-to-play, joining the likes of Star Wars: The Old Republic, Rift and many MMOs before it.
The writing has been on the wall for a while now, but today Bethesda Softworks made it official -- The Elder Scrolls Online is dropping its subscription fee.
Now players who purchase the game at retail won't have to worry about paying a monthly fee in order to access the world of Tamriel. The shift in strategy will begin for PC players on March 17, when the game's name will be re-titled The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited. This new subscription-free version of the game will include all the same content as before, but with optional cosmetic and convenience items that can be purchased with real world cash via microtransactions. There will be optional DLC offerings in the future as well as free content updates and patches.
To celebrate the news, Bethesda has also released a sexy new cinematic trailer for the game. Watch it below:
Those who have subscribed to the game in the past need not fret. Those players will automatically be placed into a new program called ESO Plus. The Plus program will include additional in-game items as well as a monthly supply of crowns, which are used to purchase the various cosmetic and convenience items mentioned above.
Last but not least, the long awaited console version of the MMO finally has a release date. The game will launch on June 9 for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 and will include everything included in the PC version up to that point. More details on the game's changes and the console versions will be announced later today during a live-stream event.
