Creative Director Matt Higby has assured and supported a free to play model that most players would agree is fair, effective, and down right fun. Right off the bat, new players are able to compete with players who have sunk hundreds of hours into the game.

Game Update 13 is currently poised to hit next Wednesday and brings vast changes to the icy continent of Esamir, updates to the Empire Specific Fighter gameplay, and the possible additions of "implants" which have been teased for months.

(Much thanks to Redditside for the Esamir screen shots)

The update is insanely and includes hundreds of small changes, bug fixes, and also a new set of VS weapon sounds which can be found in the YouTube video below. Plus, don't forget about the new empire specific pistols!

It isn't the amazing Esamir update or the pistols that the players are worried about, it's the implants. We actually haven't gotten a chance to see implants since early beta when they were planned to be purchasable via Station Cash and Auraxium (which was later turned into certifications). These implants will be short duration buffs to a player and each implant will give a specific bonus to a type of gameplay.

The new iteration of these implants is also planned to be purchasable with Station Cash and Certifications as they were in beta testing, but it seems some implants may be significantly greater than others and reward those using the implants a straight advantage over those not using them.

Here are the current implants planned to be added with GU 13 from the recent Director's letter:

Awareness : Auto-spots enemies who damage you or you damage.

: Auto-spots enemies who damage you or you damage. Battle Hardened: Reduces camera shake from explosions and flinch.

Reduces camera shake from explosions and flinch. Clear Vision: Protects against concussion and flash grenade.

Protects against concussion and flash grenade. EMP Shielding: Protects against EMP Grenade effects.

Protects against EMP Grenade effects. Enhanced Targeting : increases the range that you can see enemy health bars and names.

: increases the range that you can see enemy health bars and names. EOD HUD: Allows you to detect enemy explosives in a short radius around you.

Allows you to detect enemy explosives in a short radius around you. Regeneration: Slowly regenerates health over time when not in combat.

Slowly regenerates health over time when not in combat. Safe Landing : Reduces fall damage.

: Reduces fall damage. Sensor Shield: Makes you undetected on enemy radar/motion sensors.

Makes you undetected on enemy radar/motion sensors. Thermal Reduction: Prevents the wearer from being highlighted by thermal vision.

As you can see, some implants give a situational advantage like EMP shielding and clear vision for when assaulting in close quarter situations. Others, like Thermal Reduction and Sensor Shield, are suspects of suspicion and seem to give too great of an advantage to not use. In battles, which sometimes average in the 100s of players, it is often vital to rely on spotting and mini-map read outs to see battle situations and plan attacks. If players can't be seen on the mini-map, then a lot of player confusion and frustration may be around the corner.

Now, as always, these features are on test server currently and Sony Online Entertainment is always up front when addressing concerns of their players. With the community strongly debating the usefulness of these implants and the possible disruption of balance to a currently well-balanced game; we might expect to see a change or at least a hold put on these implants until further testing can be done.

What do you think? Are these implants good for the game? They certainly give players more options to customize their characters and play around with varying modes of gameplay. The question remains whether or not this is a necessary addition or if it convolutes Planetside 2 with a possible entry to the "pay to win" stigma. Check out the full Creative Director's letter here.

Also, don't forget, GameSkinny will be on location at SOE Live to deliver you all the latest news on your favorite Sony Online Entertainment games like: Planetside 2, EverQuest Next, EverQuest Franchise, DC Universe Online, Dragon's Prophet, Vanguard, and more. Keep a look out for more of our coverage starting August 1st!