Microsoft recently announced that they were bringing their first free-to-play game, Happy Wars to XBox Live Gold members. They’ve announced that they’re also planning to bring other games into the XBLA free-to-play arsenal.

An article posted on the Official XBox Magazine Europe website talked about the big plans Microsoft has to ramp up its free-to-play selection. Also looking to adopt the action-RPG Ascend: New Gods, they plan to allow free play of these games while players can purchase additional perks and decorations.

Free-to-play games seem to be the direction the MMO market is moving, and with the exception of Final Fantasy XI and Phantasy Star Universe at the beginning of the 360 lifespan, MMO’s have been nearly non-existent on the platform. But with the increased popularity of DC Universe Online after it went free-to-play, it only makes sense that Microsoft would try to counter with some games of its own.