The game that was just recently released called Where Winds Meet has apparently achieved a marvelous thing. It was able to get 2 million players playing the game right from the first day which is a pretty big number for any game, especially for the free-to-play games that hardly have any recognition! The game is taking a lot of heat and there are very different opinions about it, some people are very excited, others are so confused that they’re actually asking how can a game that looks so good be free.
The first question that came to everyone’s mind was regarding the price. To be more accurate, the lack of price. One username LuxuYoz very briefly stated the common astonishment: “This game is F2P !? China, I did not know about your game.” StarChief had the same impression and he stated, “How is this free? Crazy.” And there is indeed some truth in that. When you get to a game equipped with film-like cut scenes and a character that games are calling a blend of _Ghost of Tsushima_ and _Sekiro_, you are willing to believe that the price will be something around $60 or $70. Not merely a free download. This is a very thought-provoking question that has definitely added to the player count.
But the question is, does it really deserve the title of “best game”? There are a lot of different answers which is quite normal for a game that has experienced such quick success. Players like it a lot and one of them is _Frostbanehere12_, who praised the game saying: “So far i’m liking it feeling the Tsushima and Sekiro vibes at the same time, Optimization is great, the cinematic cutscenes were great, and i can’t believe this is free to play and doesn’t have an 80$ price tag.” This could not get a better recommender than this. Another user _Xathareus_ simply stated, “Game is great, been playing it all weekend,” and that says it all. A third one named _Pokkitaa_ was very excited. He amused us with the phrase “fun af” accompanied by a laughing GIF which, to the listener, is far from implying the opposite. Hence, it seems like quite a few people who gave it a try are really blown away by the game.
On the other hand, there is a different version of events. The controls have become the main cause of complaints for many and are the source of unrest among players. _Rasler_Elos_ said, “Cool game but I hate the controls,” while _FauntleroyMp_ got straight to the point by saying, “Controller. No thanks,” which may sound a bit confusing but the message is clear. It might be that the standard mouse and keyboard settings are not appropriate. But that’s where the community comes into play. A user _Hung Nguyen Tuan_ or _Katsumirei90_ is the one who decided to take over the replies encouraging people to use a gamepad. He said to one user, “Try gamepad, i just switched and damn … insanely better,” while to another, “you need to have more weapons and skill, when you have both and the skill to switch between them bosses become fun af.” From this, it is obvious that there is a learning curve and the right controller setup is key.
Beside this, there are also debates about _why_ the game gained such a big popularity. Is it just because it is free? _Devouring_gods_ is in support of this view and simply responds, “Because it’s free. 🤦🏻🤦🏻🤦🏻”. On the other hand, _Jean_ or _Xathareus_ countered this view and said in a reply, “Plenty of free games release and they don’t make it to top 5 steam charts.” He is certainly right. The free-to-play market is overpopulated so that just being free is not enough to attract 2 million players on the first day. There is the matter of the game’s graphics and the hype that is calling people. _DR.Cheesecake Melendez_ (what a cool name!) hinted that the shock of it being free was a significant factor when he said people “did not know it was going to be free. It was promoted as a big game and now you can just download it?”
And of course, one of the topics discussed by gamers the most is… monetization. _Arcueid_enjoyer_ voiced the concerns of many players concerning free-to-play titles: “What’s the catch for FTP? Gacha? Tedious progression later on? Time saver micros?” This is a legitimate question. _Shugosha_ considered giving the answer and pointed out, “The money is made through cosmetics, so that’s a plus for those wanting to go f2p.” If this is the case—that the game is available on PlayStation and Xbox platforms—it makes sense why it reached such a broad audience.
