Overview
Honor of Kings: World is a free-to-play game requiring no initial purchase. The game is downloadable at no cost on PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), iOS, and Android. Monetization is built around cosmetic purchases and optional progression accelerators, with the developers making explicit public statements that the game will avoid pay-to-win design.
Developer statements on fairness
Lead Designer Simon stated at GDC 2025 that monetization is being built "around social, so it's going to be around outfits and skins, nothing that is pay-to-win." When asked about premium or battle pass plans, he responded: "I think that's very possible in the future. Since monetization is at an early stage of testing right now, we don't have a detailed fixed rule on that, but I think something like that is very likely."
These statements establish the intended direction: cosmetic-first monetization with potential seasonal content passes. The specifics were still being finalized as of GDC 2025, so the launch monetization model may include additional systems not covered in that interview.
Cosmetic focus
The primary monetizable content is cosmetic customization. This includes character outfits, weapon skins, mount appearances, visual effects for abilities, and other aesthetic options that change how the player looks without affecting gameplay performance. Given that the Honor of Kings MOBA generates billions in revenue primarily through skin sales, the franchise has a proven track record of successful cosmetic monetization.
Item | Description |
|---|---|
Outfits | full character appearance changes for the Flowborn and individual heroes |
Weapon skins | visual overhauls for weapons that change their appearance during combat |
Mount skins | alternate appearances for horses, flying mounts, and other traversal options |
Visual effects | enhanced or altered skill effects, auras, and combat animations |
Housing decorations | furniture, structures, and customization items for the player's home |
Flow styles as content
Flow styles represent the game's expandable content. Each new Flow style added post-launch provides an entirely new combat moveset with unique skills, animations, and playstyle. The developers stated at GDC 2025 that they plan to eventually include every Honor of Kings champion as a Flow style, which, given the MOBA's roster of over 100 heroes, represents years of potential content updates.
How Flow styles are distributed, whether through direct purchase, event rewards, story unlocks, gacha, or a combination, is one of the most consequential monetization decisions. Players start with several styles provided through the story. Additional styles are unlockable through gameplay and purchases, though the exact pricing model was still being determined as of GDC 2025.
Gacha system
Third-party sources from the Chinese beta report a gacha system for heroes and weapons. The reported numbers include a 90-pull pity for 5-star heroes, an 80-pull pity for 5-star weapons, a 0.6% base drop rate for 5-star items, and a 5.1% rate for 4-star items. A pity system guarantees a 5-star item within a set number of pulls if the player has not received one through normal probability.
These figures are unconfirmed by official sources and are based on early beta data that may change before launch. The pity rates are comparable to other major gacha-based action RPGs in the market, particularly Genshin Impact (which uses similar 90-pull and 80-pull pity thresholds). Whether the final game retains these exact rates, modifies them, or changes the gacha model entirely remains to be seen.
Comparison to other F2P action RPGs
Honor of Kings: World enters a competitive market of free-to-play action RPGs. Genshin Impact and Wuthering Waves both use gacha systems for character acquisition combined with cosmetic sales. Tower of Fantasy uses a similar model with weapon-based gacha. The key differentiator in Honor of Kings: World's approach is the developer's explicit "nothing that is pay-to-win" statement, which suggests that all gameplay-relevant content should be achievable through free play, with gacha serving as an accelerator rather than a gate.
The separate PvP balance system further supports this philosophy. By balancing PvP independently from PvE gear and progression, the game ensures that spending money on gear or heroes does not create competitive advantages in player-versus-player modes.
Battle pass
A battle pass or seasonal content pass is described by the Lead Designer as "very likely" but was not confirmed at the time of the GDC 2025 interview. Battle passes in similar games typically offer a free track of rewards available to all players alongside a premium track with additional cosmetic rewards for paying players. If implemented, this would provide a predictable, low-cost monetization option alongside the gacha system.
Premium currency
Third-party sources report that all content is accessible to free-to-play players and that premium currency can be earned through gameplay. The specific premium currency structure, exchange rates, and earning methods have not been detailed in official communications.