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World of Warcraft increases fees in China
It's going to be a little more expensive to vacation in Azeroth from China in just a couple of weeks. MMO Culture noted that Chinese publisher NetEase is jacking up World of Warcraft's fees for the first time ever in the region. As of October 16th, the fee will go up by about 45% to become 30¥ for 2700 minutes and 15¥ for 1350 minutes. Instead of paying a flat subscription per month, Chinese players purchase blocks of time to access World of Warcraft. NetEase handles a bundle of properties in China including World of Warcraft and reported an increase in profits for the previous quarter. However, Blizzard pointed at Asia as the location for a "disproportionate" amount of the 800,000 subscribers lost earlier this year.
Breakfast Topic: How do you pay to play?
Logging on to do my dailies last night, I was confronted by this dread error message. What horrible doom had befallen me? Oh, I'd forgotten to pick up a new game time card. While I'd previously given Blizzard my credit card information and let them bill me as needed, lately I've gone the game card route -- mostly because it was easy to pick up game time cards using gift cards after the holidays. But I have a feeling that laziness will win out moving forward and get me back on a credit card subscription plan. That way I can never forget and get this login error again... though on the flip side, it also means I could go weeks without playing and still pay for it. And what about you? How do you pay to play? %Poll-81550%
Allods Online Russia opens up subscription-based server
The Russian branch of Allods Online made an interesting move and opened up a subscription server for an otherwise free-to-play MMO. The catch and selling point of the server is that its players won't be able to access the cash shop at all. Every character will be on an even playing field in terms of perks and boosts. Certain quality of life items will be available for gold or as quest rewards, but no one will be able to just buy perks outright. You can read the full FAQ here. (If you don't read Russian, we suggest a translator.) [We don't speak Russian, so thanks to intrepid tipster Tandarighttanon for bringing this to our attention.]
The Think Tank: What elements make up your perfect business model?
The topic of the MMO business model is a hot one lately as studios are in the Wild West of experimentation, discovery, and limit-testing. New games are going free-to-play every week it seems, and we, as consumers, are accepting more and more as these business models become standard. But that's certainly not always the case. Among the Massively staff, pricing opinions run the gamut, and we're not afraid to tell you what we think. That's why this week's Think Tank column is all about how we would assemble our own perfect business models from the pieces of others. Who does it right? Who does it wrong? Read along for more on our thoughts for the perfect business model.
Free for All: What I learned from the Guild Wars 2 free weekend
Before this free trial weekend for Guild Wars 2, I had spent a total of around an hour and a half in the game. I also spent more time watching my wife play the game during beta. Our PCs, at the time, were in the same office, if that helps you picture just how much exposure I had. At first, neither one of us was impressed; it felt like RIFT 2.0. That's not entirely a negative; while RIFT is not my favorite game and while I have not played beyond something like level 17, I do respect the game and think it is a high-quality game. Both games are wonderfully crafted. So when Massively's Elisabeth Cardy shared a buddy key with me last week, I knew I'd be able to finally clear up some of the fog surrounding the title for me. I'd spend a good part of the weekend playing the game -- plenty of time for a fresh first impressions. Here's what I thought.
Google Shopping to change formats, charge merchants
It's just about closing time for Google Shopping's free merchant listings. The iconic search engine has traditionally shown us products regardless of a commercial relationship with sellers, but they'll be required to fork over some coin if they want to join the party after the fall. Currently called Google Product Listings, the platform's name and format have evolved several times since the Froogle days. Google says the older model can lead to some shady and obsolete info, whereas charging vendors will "encourage them to keep their product information fresh and up to date." New shopping formats are already being tested with a small population of users and include bigger pics and the ability to fine tune the search based on brand or product type. As the song goes, every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.
Older gamers more likely to drop money in cash shops to save time
How long are you willing to wait for your next level in a given game? According to a recent study, the older you are, the less likely you'll wait and the more likely you'll be to just whip out a credit card and buy an experience booster. Flurry Analytics conducted a survey of mobile and social gamers and found that older players are far more likely to just spend some money if it'll save some painful grinding in the long run. While the study was focused on the social gaming side of the coin, the business model is not dissimilar from that employed by many free-to-play MMOs that frequently offer in-game options to earn items that can also be purchased outright. And the logical conclusion is drawn -- younger players have less disposable income but more time to buckle down and grind, while older players have more responsibilities and more free money to spend. It's an interesting look at the spending patterns, one which looks to be increasingly relevant as free-to-play options continue to multiply.
Wasteland Diaries: F2P -- What to expect
Fallen Earth is going free-to-play on October 12th. That's the plan, anyway. Four different subscriber levels will be available. The free accounts will actually have quite a bit of freedom with in the game (in fact, I'm shocked at how few restrictions they will have). The highest tier is a bit pricey for what you get, but we don't want a pay-to-win system, right? There's a fine line between giving paying customers something worthwhile and upsetting the balance of the entire universe. I'll discuss each subscription level later on in the post. There are still a few concerns that many in the Fallen Earth community (including me) have about the F2P transition, and not all of them are technical concerns. I'm really not sure what to expect exactly as far as numbers of players, but I'm sure we'll see a huge influx of players both new and returning. How many exactly? I don't have a clue. I'll cover the sub levels first and then discuss my fears about what's to come afterward. So click past the cut and let's get started.
Lost Pages of Taborea: Comparing EVE's PLEX and PvP to RoM's
I was prepping for a Guild Wars 2 comparison with Runes of Magic, but in light of the current buzz in the air, I'm moving my EVE Online comparison up. A couple of interesting blocks fell into place this week that fit well with a look at how EVE and RoM allow money to circulate through the economies, and how PvP works in conjunction with it. While there's no contest as to which MMO has the more robust economy, there are still similarities that fit the pay-to-progress comment Mr. Simon Ludgate made in a recent Gamasutra article. Swarming around the above topics is the question of how much it costs to stay competitive in RoM, which I've also been working on. What does Gamasutra's article have to do with RoM, how much does it cost to be competitive and how are economies similar in these two MMOs? You can also read my memorandum to all EVE PvPers. Set your jump-point past the break to see.
Waging WAR: Warhammer's new online store
This week's Waging WAR catches a whiff of recent happenings on the internet and with Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Greg dives in face-first, grabs a fist-full of the news, and delivers a fast-ball rant on the issue. Well, apparently the RMT has hit the fan, and the resulting spackle is starting to plaster the proverbial walls of the blogosphere and beyond. Recently, some information was released about what players can expect to buy at EA-Mythic's new store. Although only a few items are actually available now, there's a pretty extensive FAQ on the server transfer service, and we'll have to wait a little longer for the Progression and Personality packs, as they're set to be released along with patch 1.4. Naturally, the drama is building up some nice momentum, and it will be interesting to see how the whine will affect this particular cheese over at the Mythic official forum. For now, you can read past the break and enjoy my rant.
Massively's hands-on with Rift: Planes of Telara's dynamic content
Just a few weeks ago, I was invited to attend Trion Worlds' Gamer's Day in San Francisco to get some hands-on time with a couple of the company's upcoming titles, including Rift: Planes of Telara. If Rift seems to have come out of nowhere, that might be due both to the acquisition of EverQuest II veteran Scott Hartsman to head the project as executive producer, and to a clever name change meant to reflect the team's shift in development focus. In fact, that shift in development focus is precisely what I was at Trion's studio to test -- I got to check out the Rifts themselves in all their glory, in the context of the greater dynamic content system that the developers are so excited about. Massively's writers have been able to play and report on character creation and the starting areas of Rift several times over the last year or so, including earlier this summer at E3. But until today's embargo lift (coinciding with the reveal at Gamescom), no one had quite seen the fabled planar invasions and takeovers in action. Now we have.
The Tattered Notebook: F2P bombs and views from the fallout shelter
Well, this week takes the proverbial cake when it comes to the least amount of time spent head-scratching over a column topic. Thanks to Dave Georgeson and the executives at Sony Online Entertainment, I pretty much had this little opus sketched out by dinner-time last Tuesday. Anywho... a week ago tomorrow the bomb dropped. It wasn't a stink bomb, a 50-yard bomb, or even an F-bomb (though there were no doubt plenty of those uttered in some circles), but rather a Hiroshima/Nagasaki type of bomb that changed the world and effectively ended the war between P2P and F2P, at least as far as Norrath is concerned. Or did it? Turn the page to find out.
Allods Online team defends patch 1.1 changes
Typically, a new content patch in an MMO is an exciting time, but for the folks over at Allods Online, it's been a bumpy road, to say the least. With changes to the game, including a death penalty that causes items to become cursed with negative stats, players have been crying foul over the focus on cash shop items to overcome penalties. Specifically, Holy Charms, Incense, and Scrolls of Purification are highly desired by the playerbase, who see them as a necessity to level. Unfortunately, all of these items are cash shop only, forcing players to either fork over money or purchase them on the auction house for very high markups. Due to the widespread complaints, the Allods Online team posted a response to the latest controversy that's hit this free-to-play title. In the article, the team defends the changes and takes the position that cash shop purchases are not required to experience the full game: "We want to assure you that the game has not become Pay-to-Play or Pay-to-Win. At the core of Allods you can still enjoy the game without ever having to worry about spending money. Yes, Holy Charms, Incense, and Scrolls of Purification are only offered through the Item Shop, but they can be purchased from other players and the auction house." The response concludes by saying that patch 1.1 is the framework for future patches, and the Allods Online team has a long-term view of the MMO's goals and objectives. Read the full response and let us know what you think!
Monster Hunter Tri releases April 20, will be free to play [update]
Update: Capcom sent word that the Monster Hunter Tri demo disc will be freely available to any GameStop patron starting March 8. If you pre-order the game, you'll also get a 500 Wii Points card. Original post: At today's Nintendo Media Summit, Nintendo dropped some pertinent details about Capcom's very successful and Wii Speak-compatible hunt-em-up, Monster Hunter Tri. The game will release on April 20 in North America as two versions: bundled with a Classic Controller Pro for $59.99 (while supplies last) and as a standalone game for $49.99. The game will also ditch the pay-to-play model for online play, as used in Japan, in favor of free online functionality. Additionally, GameStop pre-orderers will receive a demo disc on March 8. Additionally, GameStop will offer free demo discs starting March 8 and those who pre-order will get themselves a card with 500 Wii Points on it. Considering Capcom was beating itself up over whether or not to charge for online play, we're glad the publisher finally came around and went with the option that requires us to spend less money. Just imagine -- with all the money we'll save, we can import even more delicious ramen! %Gallery-86439%
The Daily Grind: Do you vote with your wallet?
There are certain changes, usually big ones, that don't exactly produce... positive reactions. In fact, they generally produce screaming rants and huge doses of rage at how they were handled and implemented. You know the sorts we're talking about. Star Wars Galaxies and the Combat Upgrade. Ultima Online and Trammel. Final Fantasy XI and the nerfs to Beastmaster "catch and release" tactics. All loathed changes, many of which led to an exodus of players. Really, leaving a game can be the best way to express displeasure with a change. It's the surest way to send a company the message that they've done something that will no longer justify your monthly subscription. On the flip side, your individual impact is small, you once loved the game... a lot of players will choose to rough it out, in hopes that things will improve or with the knowledge that the changes can't be all that bad. And for games where you have a lifetime subscription or are experiencing it free-to-play, your absence isn't really a deterrent at all. So, do you vote with your wallet? When you're fed up with what's been done, do you head off for greener pastures? Or are you of the mind that it's not even worth the bother, that they might well not even tie your departure to the change, even if you say so?
Nearly three-fifths of users buy items in free-to-play games
There's a strong sense in most free-to-play games that the playerbase consists of two people: those who refuse to pay any money unless absolutely necessary, and those who will happily part with their income on a voluntary basis. This is largely true. What's apparently less true is the notion which goes hand-in-hand, that there are a decided minority of players forking over cash for in-game perks. As it turns out, according to a recent survey, 58% of users in free-to-play games have bought items through the in-game store. On average, users who did pay apparently dropped around $75 over the period of one year. Traditional pay-to-play MMOs have a significantly lower amount in terms of both revenue generated by in-game purchases and average amount spent. Of course, the debate that could be brought up is the question of how much of the money in free-to-play games went toward purchasing content that, in a subscription game, would have been included in the price. Those with an inclination toward math might also note that the monthly price for such a game comes out to just over eight dollars a month, versus the larger and more regular distribution of subscriptions. Still, it starts to raise questions about how accurate the image of the paying minority in free-to-play games really is, especially as the business model picks up steam. [ via Gamasutra ]
Activision pursuing 'online monetization models' for Call of Duty franchise
For quite some time now, Activision execs have been hinting at the idea of MMO monetization being implemented in games other than Blizzard's behemoth World of Warcraft. Speaking at the BMO Capital Markets Conference this past week, another Activision exec – CFO Thomas Tippl – was tasked with the question of whether or not WoW's "successful online business model" (read: monthly subscription fees) would end up in other Activision properties. "It's definitely an aspiration that we see potential in, particularly as we look at different business models to monetize the online gameplay," Tippl says, according to an IGN report. "I think it's been mutually beneficial, and you should expect us to test and ultimately launch additional online monetization models of some of some of our biggest franchises like Call of Duty." He also notes that "there is demand from the core gamers to pay up for that," which likely means that many of you who got Activision's survey back in June supported this. Shame on you. [Via CVG]
Massively interviews Jon Van Caneghem about the SCI FI Channel MMO
Trion World Network is quite a company -- without releasing a single game, they've put together millions of dollars in venture capital and compiled a staff list that's got team members from across the history of MMO games, from EverQuest and Ultima Online to World of Warcraft and City of Heroes.This week, they sent waves through the MMO community by announcing that not only were they working on a fantasy MMO to be helmed by Jon Van Caneghem (original creator of the Might and Magic series of RPG strategy games and co-founder of the company along with Lars Buttler), but that they were forming a groundbreaking partnership with the SCI FI Channel to develop and publish and MMO to live alongside a television show. Finally, we had a small glimpse of just what Trion, with all of their money and experience, were up to.To find out more, Massively sat down with Van Caneghem (a busy man since the news dropped on Monday) to chat about both the fantasy MMO and the SCI FI project, and what Trion's been working on since they formed. Van Caneghem told us why Trion wants to make a different kind of MMO, and how they'll balance an online game with a television series from the network that's running Battlestar Galactica. The interview starts right after you click the link below.
Hardcore gamer builds Chinese empire
In the months leading up to the Summer Olympics in Beijing, with world events being what they are, it's not often that foreigners residing in the mainland turn to China Daily's English pages for the news. This little gem is an exception, however. When you picture the man who's fast becoming a leading light in China's expanding online gaming industry, who do you see? Maybe you picture a slick twenty-something entrepreneur from Hong Kong, decked out in a $5000 suit and shuffling between calls on a few wafer-thin cell phones. Or do you envision a middle-aged bureaucrat turned businessman from Beijing, using his network of connections and riding the tide of interest in online games? Stereotypes aside, no matter how you picture Shi Yuzhu, that aforementioned 'leading light,' you're probably wrong. The 46-year-old CEO of Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA) is more outwardly eccentric than most would guess. Shi, who prefers tracksuits over 3-piece-suits, is reportedly the first CEO ever to ring the NYSE bell in anything but formal attire... much less athletic wear.
The Agency to let players buy-a-spy [update]
Update: Added source -- this press release, which vaguely implies that Live Gamer's RMT service, called Live Gamer Exchange, will allow players to "customize their characters through attire, weaponry, gadgets, vehicles, gear and aliases that tailor their game play." However, Massively's Kyle Horner spoke last night with The Agency lead designer Hal Milton who said that no weapons will be sold. The team is currently discussing the sale of low-level operatives (analogues to low-level equipment), but currently, everything planned to be sold will be purely cosmetic and not gameplay affecting.Original: Remember all the hoopla over virtual arms dealing in Battlefield: Bad Company? Sony Online Entertainment's not hearing it. In fact, it announced today that its upcoming espionage MMO FPS, The Agency, will feature real money trading (RMT) of everything from clothing and gear to vehicles and weapons. SOE has yet to declassify its business model for The Agency, so this could go in one of two directions. If it's free-to-play (a la Battlefield: Heroes) the cash-for-guns program would be (slightly) easier to swallow. Since The Agency is a PC and PS3 title, we're laying a bet on a free model given the latter platform's already free online gaming service and today's announcement, which provides a means for SOE to subsidize free play with a cut of player trades. If it's subscription-based? Someone best send some fire-retardant undergarments to SOE brass.FPS players -- console ones specifically -- are used to earning their way to the top and into better weapons and gear, as seen in Call of Duty 4. The idea of playing a game where they're at an immediate disadvantage based on cash money is unlikely to sit well. At least trade works both ways; those who take the route of being skilled players -- and not payers -- can profit from their homegrown skills by selling stuff to noobs (and people with dead presidents lighting fires in their trousers).%Gallery-3830%
