It's Hard To Sell Free
blog.atomicbrawl.com
blog.atomicbrawl.com
...we haven’t yet reached a level of revenue to even sustain operating expenses for the game
This all suggests you're generating some revenue but you don't mention how. Advertising? I'm genuinely curious.
I'm in a relatively similar predicament albeit an entirely different product. I run http://hackerjobs.co.uk with a good friend and it's been free to post for almost two years now. The site is generating more users & advertisers every week through word of mouth alone and at some point, if the site is to grow appropriately, we'll have no choice but to monetise it and I'm dreading it to be honest.
AB is a card/board game hybrid. You can collect cards and experiment with different decks. You get additional cards for regular logins and of course for playing.
AB offers both a subscription and the possibility to buy different amounts of gems. Subscribers get additional cards for every login, win or loss. Gems can be used to buy additional cards.
It is like an online RTS mixed with Munchkin.
I don't mind paying for a good game, but buying "into" games are a problem - as described. Maybe add the possibility to either? Launch two options, play your way up or "sell" the game as a package deal.