MMOs: Are the fees worth it?
Do you feel you're getting enough value for your $15 per month MMO subscription? Casual gamers or people who are just too busy at times for games would likely say they're not getting their money's worth. It's one of the big reasons free-to-play business models are becoming increasingly popular. Dave Spohn, who covers internet games at About.com, looks at how game expenses compare to other forms of entertainment.
A lot of MMO gamers use this to justify their time sinks -- but the more time you play, the more value you get for your money. So if you play beyond 10 hours in a given week, you're actually getting your kicks for less than 50 cents per hour. Sometimes you're paying far less than 50 cents if you're a hardcore player of a particular title you sub to. But do you need to rack up ludicrous amounts of gaming time to really get the full benefit from that sub? To answer that question, Spohn looks at a few of the most popular forms of entertainment and breaks down their costs per hour in comparison to subscription games.
Subbing to an MMO is considerably cheaper than going to the movies on a regular basis, particularly when you consider that you're only getting a few hours of entertainment from the film. Television and cable/satellite subscriptions are another matter though; couch potatoes can probably hit that 'few cents an hour' mark that a hardcore MMO gamer would. While Spohn doesn't debate the merits of active entertainment vs. passive entertainment, what he comes up with is that an MMO is still "one of the better values you can get for your entertainment dollars, but the lamenting over monthly fees isn't likely to end anytime soon." Do you agree with Dave Spohn, and is that $15 per MMO account you shell out money well spent?
Via WarCry
