Buy-to-play (B2P) is a revenue model for video games where a game can be played after a one-time purchase, as opposed to a subscription model where the player must pay a subscription at regular intervals to continue having access to the game. Buy-to-play, while a form of premium games, generally apply to games where there is continued ongoing content or support from the developer or publisher well beyond the period of purchase, such as through maintenance of online servers or through the production of ongoing content and expansions, as often the case in

massively multiplayer online game A massively multiplayer online game (MMOG or more commonly MMO) is an online video game with a large number of players, often hundreds or thousands, on the same server. MMOs usually feature a huge, persistent world, persistent open world, alt ...

s (MMO). This support is monetized through additional

microtransactions Microtransactions, often abbreviated as mtx, are a business model where users can purchase virtual goods with micropayments. Microtransactions are often used in free-to-play games to provide a revenue source for the developers. While microtransact ...

or through an ongoing subscription fee. Microtransactions are becoming evermore entwined with the Buy-to-play revenue model as most recent games allow for some sort of additional purchase. For example, buy-to-play title ''

Guild Wars 2 ''Guild Wars 2'' is a free-to-play, massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed by ArenaNet and published by NCSoft. Set in the fantasy world of Tyria, the core game follows the re-emergence of Destiny's Edge, a disbanded guild ded ...

'' allows players to purchase additional in-game items with microtransactions, while ''

Destiny 2 ''Destiny 2'' is a free-to-play Online game, online-only multiplayer first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie. It was originally released as a pay to play game in 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. It became free-to-play, ...

'' lets users purchase season passes for additional content. Buy-to-play can be contrasted with

free-to-play Free-to-play (F2P or FtP) video games are games that give players access to a significant portion of their content without paying or do not require paying to continue playing. Free-to-play is distinct from traditional commercial software, which ...

(F2P), where users are granted access to a fully functional game (usually with limitations), but must pay microtransactions to access additional content. Some studies have been completed on the success of the free-to-play revenue model and also gamers' perception of this method. The results of one study shows that players are often satisfied with purchases made in free-to-play games, however, they believe a lot of content is overpriced. The study also displayed that free-to-play game developers create restrictions in order to encourage more purchases.

Pay-to-play Pay-to-play, sometimes pay-for-play or P2P, is a phrase used for a variety of situations in which money is exchanged for services or the privilege to engage in certain activities. The common denominator of all forms of pay-to-play is that one mus ...

(P2P) is a model in which a subscription payment is required on an ongoing basis, in order to use a service. When comparing the three revenue models, the free-to-play and buy-to-play model is slowly rising in popularity as the pay-to-play model is decreasing in relative popularity. This trend can be roughly shown by the number of ''

World of Warcraft ''World of Warcraft'' (''WoW'') is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released in 2004 by Blizzard Entertainment. Set in the ''Warcraft'' fantasy universe, ''World of Warcraft'' takes place within the world of Azeroth ...

'' subscribers over the years. Since 2011, the number of subscribers has been decreasing with the exception of a few small spikes.

Game mechanics

Buy-to-play games require a one time fee to install and play. Some games, such as ArenaNet's ''

'' uses in-game advertising or "Cash Shops" to provide income for buy-to-play games, which usually offset the subscription fee of a pay-to-play game.

References

* https://web.archive.org/web/20161120125710/http://gamelist.mmosite.com/game/search.shtml * http://n4g.com/news/1810001/top-5-buy-to-play-mmos-2015 * http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/1792247-Can-someone-explain-the-difference-between-Buy-to-play-and-Pay-to-play Business models Video game gameplay Video game distribution {{Videogame-gameplay-stub