After several months of uncertainty, Flagship Studios has finally decided whether to go with free or paid multiplayer, and the answer is Both.
According to Games for Windows magazine, players will be able to play Hellgate: London online for free, but they may choose to pay a $9.95 monthly subscription for the Elite advantages.
Here is the full list of advantages for Elite over free players:
No server queues!: No more "server is full" for the Elite players.
More character slots: Elite players now have shackles of 3 characters, granting up to 12 player slots.
Bigger bags: Instead of the normal 20 inventory slots, Elites will get 40 spaces and access to an account-wide inventory feature.
24/7 Support: Non-Subscribers will still get their technical support. No more details are yet available regarding the difference in technical support.
Phat Loots: You will know an Elite character when he walks by. He'll have on unique gear and will stand out in a crowd.
VIP Shuttles: Lazy Elites will no longer have to walk to the far regions of the game.
Roof Over Your Head: Player housing isn't available to the freeloaders.
Guild Leadership: Players who want to be guild leaders or officers will have to pay.
More Game Modes/Servers: A Hardcore difficulty mode is the first subscriber-only variant, with more coming later.
Continuing Content Updates: Fresh content will roll into the system on a monthly basis, promising "...a lot of ongoing content that won't be available to the basic player".
Level Cap: Non-payers have a soft cap in between 35 and 40, but that cap will change as subscribers receive new content.