Shroud of the Avatar goes free-to-play

Richard Garriott's crowdfunded episodic RPG, Shroud of the Avatar, has gone free-to-play.

Development studio Portalarium announced the shift today, alongside a major revamp of the game's user experience.

"We are thrilled to open up Shroud to a larger audience of gamers," Garriott said. "We have removed almost all gameplay restrictions from our free players. Now those players can trade freely with other players, own land and play through the entire story! This means that you no longer need to make a purchase to have the Shroud of the Avatar experience!"

This past June, Portalarium seemed to be struggling with the game as the studio underwent a round of layoffs. At the time, Portalarium said the layoffs were for the purpose of "adjusting our team size to better match our current monthly revenue."

Shroud of the Avatar launched in March after raising over $12.3 million in crowdfunding toward its development.