Roar Engine might have won fans thanks to its multi-platform, social gaming bent, but it appears the charge attached to 'premium' elements of the engine's set up was not so popular.

The social gaming building engine is designed to streamline the development process for studios looking to launch the same game across multiple platforms.

Roar Engine also comes complete with key social features such as virtual currency and Facebook integration, but the platform's signature feature is the ability to create custom attributes and resources, and embed them into specific items, quests or tasks.

Bringing down the wall

Up until now, however, certain facets of the web API, such as scripting elements, were hidden behind a paywall.

The company behind the engine – Run With Robots – has now admitted the charges were acting as a barrier to new entrants, and has dropped all such fees until the game in question reaches 100 Daily Active Users over a billing cycle.

"We were understandably concerned that charging fees for our premium services might be stifling innovation and growth," said Run With Robots' David Evans on the Roar Engine blog.

"So, we decided to make everything available for free. It just makes sense that we only get paid when you’re successful and we make it as easy as possible for you to gain the most success."

Price drops

Developers can now access hosting, management (including detailed analytics), support, and server and development tools - initially without charge.

Should the DAU total pass 100, developers then pay an average of $6 per thousand users up to 20,000 users.

The fee drops to $4.50 per thousand users for games attracting between 20,000 and 100,000 DAUs, comes in at $3 for up to 200,000 DAUs, $2.10 for up to 1 million DAUs, and $1.50 for any games that pass the million player mark.

Roar Engine is also available via a more traditional licensing model, allowing developers to use the platform outright for a one-off charge of $125,000 per game, although hosting charges are paid separately.

Developers looking to sign up should visit Roar Engine's website.