Free iPhone game Tiny Tower turns players into architects, and sometimes into payers.
Image courtesy NimbleBits

Game developers and app creators of all stripes and all sizes are cottoning to the idea that free can pay.

You only have to browse the gaming news headlines to see how many industry titans, MMO behemoths, obscure Korean gamemakers and dozens upon dozens of mobile startups are releasing their games as “free-to-play” or ditching old price tags and subscriptions.