ChangYou new free-to-play portal targets midcore and hardcore gamers

Don’t feel ignored, hardcore gamers. Free-to-play game publisher ChangYou created a new online portal aimed at winning you over.

ChangYou revealed its new GameFuse website today that focuses on mid-core to hardcore free-to-play games. GameFuse offers a variety of games playable in a browser or as standalone downloadable packages.

“We are excited to showcase GameFuse in time for this holiday season,” said Vickie Chen, ChangYou’s general manager. “Our goal is to leverage this new publishing platform to create a seamless and convenient gaming experience across our portfolio. This is just the beginning as new content and features will be rolled out rapidly in the near future.”

GameFuse features games like Totem, a real-time strategy game set in a World of Warcraft-like fantasy world. Dungeon Viva is a social massively multiplayer online dungeon builder. DDTank Champions is a turn-based Worms clone. Renaissance Heroes is a first-person shooter that runs on the same engine as Gears of War.

Free-to-play has proven itself as a viable model for all types of games. Developers like Zynga have proven its effectiveness in casual markets, Riot Games has made a boatload of cash using it for its League of Legends game, and Turbine has turned MMORPGs such as The Lord of the Rings Online into viable, profitable free-to-play games.

Most publishers are jumping on this sector in one form or another. In the past year, Activision announced Call of Duty Online for China and Take Two Interactive revealed its plans for Civilization Online for South Korea and surrounding Asian markets.