THQ plans "flexible" business model for Warhammer MMO

THQ's forthcoming Warhammer MMO Dark Millennium Online will have a "flexible" business model that can support the demands of consumers all over the world.

Speaking in an earnings call following the company's second-quarter results, CEO Brian Farrell responded to a question about how the MMO would be monetised.

"The markets are different around the world for the business models with which you can ship an MMO,," he said.

"So what we've done is make the business model within Dark Millennium Online flexible so we can use different business models in different territories and exploit the game on a worldwide basis."

Dark Millennium Online is in development at Vigil Games, the studio behind THQ's Darksiders franchise. According to Farrell, the team at Vigil is designing the game with multiple business models in mind.

"We will have not just one business model, like subscriptions. There will be other monetisation mechanisms in the game... The team there is being very thoughtful about how we maximise monetisation in this game."

Dark Millennium Online is one of the most expensive projects in THQ's history, with CFO Paul Pucino placing its budget at a minimum of $50 million. It is scheduled for release some time in 2013.