A few months ago, Turbine revamped Dungeons & Dragons Online, re-branded under the name DDO Unlimited, to be one of the first large MMORPGs to offer a free-to-play side to an already established subscription model. Previous users could, essentially, continue playing without hindrance, while new players could jump into a limited version of the game with pay-to-play barriers that could be hurdled with either microtransactions, a subscription, or a massive amount of play. Hopes were that it would bring more traffic to the dedicated, albeit somewhat desolate community. According to a press release sent out earlier today, it has done just that, reaching over 1 million new users since the update.

“The response from players to DDO Unlimited has been nothing short of phenomenal,” said Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc.  “We’ve known all along how great this game is and by implementing an innovative new model that put the players in charge of how they pay and play DDO Unlimited, we’ve successfully expanded our reach and injected new energy into the game.  Without a doubt, DDO Unlimited is a hit!”

This is great news for Turbine and the game's community, which I was actually a part of for some time. I likely spent more time exploring Ebberon than I did in nearly any other MMOG I've played, and am happy to hear of the game's success. Now if they can only get the rumored console port pushed to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, we'll have a real contendor on our hands. Come on, guys, you can do it, shatter that wall.

The press release is below, and if you haven't already, download DDO Unlimited. It's free, for Gond's sake. You've no excuse not to.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS ONLINE®: eBERRON UNLIMITED™ surpasses one million NEW players

Best Free-to-Play MMO Marks Four Years of Operation with Sharp Growth

WESTWOOD, MA – February 26, 2010 –Turbine, Inc. announced today that Dungeons & Dragons Online®: Eberron Unlimited™ (DDO Unlimited), the world’s best free-to-play massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) has already attracted over one million new players since its September 2009 launch.  The massive influx of new players has been across all of the various consumer plans available.  DDO Unlimited’s paid subscriber base has more than doubled, while at the same time players are transacting in the new DDO store at three times the industry average, growing the franchise’s revenue over 500% since its launch in September.

DDO Unlimited is a free-to-play MMORPG which delivers heart-pounding gameplay featuring the industry’s best combat system, a massive world with state-of-the-art graphics and gameplay, and a rich set of features that until now could only be found in premium subscription-based MMOs. DDO Unlimited offers an innovative new pricing model that allows players to download and play for free, purchasing adventure packs, items, and account services a la carte from the new DDO Store, or to subscribe to get unlimited access to all of the game’s content. Players can download and play DDO Unlimited for free by visiting http://www.ddo.com.

“The response from players to DDO Unlimited has been nothing short of phenomenal,” said Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc.  “We’ve known all along how great this game is and by implementing an innovative new model that put the players in charge of how they pay and play DDO Unlimited, we’ve successfully expanded our reach and injected new energy into the game.  Without a doubt, DDO Unlimited is a hit!”

“The launch of DDO Unlimited has been a huge success and has really taken the game to a new level,” said Fernando Paiz, Executive Producer of DDO Unlimited.  “As we celebrate our 4^th birthday, the game has never been better and we’re just getting started with more adventure packs, more store items, and other innovative features coming in the major updates we have planned throughout 2010.”

DDO Unlimited is based on the world-renowned DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® franchise of  Wizards of the Coast LLC, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc.® (NYSE: HAS),  under license to Atari, SA. DDO has been enthusiastically received by many gaming critics, including The New York Times, PC Gamer, Game Informer and many more. For the latest information, please visit www.ddo.com.

About Turbine
Turbine, Inc. is the premier creator and operator of massive, persistent online worlds that foster powerful social gaming communities.  Turbine is the largest privately-held online gaming studio in North America and has created some of the world’s most popular and award-winning online games, including The Lord of the Rings Online™, Dungeons & Dragons Online®: Eberron Unlimited™, and Asheron's Call®.  For more information on Turbine, its products and services please visit www.turbine.com.

About ATARI, SA
Atari group is a global creator, producer and publisher of interactive entertainment for interactive game platforms that include PC, online, consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony and advanced smart phones (i.e. iPhone).  Divisions of Atari, SA include Cryptic Studios, Eden Studios, Atari Interactive, Inc. and Atari, Inc.

Atari benefits from its global brand and an extensive catalogue of popular games based on classic owned game franchises (Asteroids®, Centipede®, Missile Command®, Lunar Lander®), original owned franchises (Test Drive®, Backyard Sports™, Deer Hunter®), MMO games from Cryptic Studios (Star Trek Online, Champions Online) and third party franchises (Ghostbusters®, Project Runway™, Dungeons and Dragons®).