World of Warcraft is free-to-play through level 20

You've hear of World of Warcraft right? The mega-popular, life stealing, money machine? Well, if you haven't you can check it out now for free. The first hit is always free. Previously Blizzard offered a mere 14-day free trail to WoW but now they are dipping their toe into the free-to-play market. Blizzard has no problems keeping a large subscriber base but as WoW ages and new MMOs chip away at Blizzard's cash cow they may need to plan ahead. This free period of play and their online store which sells mounts and in game pets is a step in that direction.

There are quite a few restrictions during this period but unless you're a gold farmer they shouldn't hinder your experience all too much. You can sign up for free and enjoy WoW right now here. I don't think WoW will be going completely free-to-play any time soon but Blizzard has a new secret MMO project still in the works, could this be some experimenting for that new franchise? It wouldn't only make sense, you wouldn't want to cannibalize sales of your own game after all.

Blizzard via: WoW Insider