Sometimes, video game developers have to do drastic things in order to keep their games active and relevant, sometimes, that means doing extreme things. When H1Z1 became playable years ago (via Steam Early Access), it was (at the time) very unique. The game even broke off into different versions of itself to expand its gameplay reach. But, with the arrival of titles like PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite, the title began to lose its fanbase, and nothing they did seemed to get it back.
Last week, the game finally left Steam Early Access and went into full launch on Steam. What’s more, developer Daybreak games brought in a new beta game mode called Auto Royale for players to try out. Things seemed to be looking good for the game, but now, you have to wonder if that’s true. For starting today (around noon central time zone), H1Z1 is going free-to-play.
Admittedly, this isn’t the first time the game has gone free-to-play, DayBreak Games did a free-to-play weekend with the title a little while back to try and drum up some numbers. But, it didn’t really work. So, why do it now? Well, it’s possible that the launch of H1Z1 last week didn’t do what Daybreak wanted, so they’re trying to get new players in any way they can, and free-to-play is certainly one way of doing so.
Now, should you have already bought the game, Daybreak is going to reward you for your service, you’ll get an “Appreciation Pack” that’ll contain 10,000 Skulls and 10 Victory Crates among other gear.
The question now is, what’ll this mean for H1Z1 as a whole? Well, the game isn’t going anywhere, at least not yet, as there are still many esports tournaments with the game. But, what happens next will definitely be something to pay attention to.
