A new game is being released now for PC.
But not in the way you would think. This game is being released completely online, with no material version available. In addition, the game is being released for no price at all. So, you might ask, how does this new system of payment work? This is an model of the internal market model of pricing.
There are many ways companies can get money from their customers in exchange for their product. The first is the bread and butter model of payment. You pay for the complete version of the game. You then can enjoy the game at no extra cost. This method, however, is not necessary for games based around the internet, where it is possible to get money in smaller payments. This is called B2P, or Buy to Play.
Another payment method popularized by Blizzard, the makers of Hearthstone, is subscription based games. These games are based on a monthly payment to play the game, and in this players try the game for a small fee rather than buy the whole game. This is called a subscription model.
When cell phones came about, gaming became a market that almost everyone could access. This led to deceptively cheap games that allowed you to spend real cash in game. Developers could get money from dedicated players who didn’t want to go through parts of the game.
Hearthstone adapts this model for the personal computer. The game itself is free, but either investments of lots of time or cash are needed to get all the game has to offer.
Other games go for fusions of the previous two styles. Some versions use DownLoadable Content (DLC) to deliver concrete upgrades to the game. These games are sold like standard games, and DLC can come from online downloads or discs.
