EA hosted an "EA Originals" event during E3 last month, and one thing that its panel of indie game makers unanimously agreed upon, which I didn't see in this article, was really intriguing. (And nobody in attendance seemed to write about it. The event's basic info is
here.)
What they all said was, if you hitch your game's wagon to a subscription service, the "bang for the buck" design imperative is GONE. You can make a game at whatever length you want without critics assigning it a value based on how long or deep it is. A two- or three-hour game can get lost in the marketplace when it demands a retail cost, but as something to try out in a hodgepodge of subscription options, it becomes a totally different proposition of time and surprise for a potential player.
(Coincidentally, Sea of Solitude is out today, a freebie as part of EA Origin, and I'm gonna go start playing it right meow.)