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MMORPG Subscription Economics Discussed

Posted by simoniker on from the why-should-you-pay-to-play? dept.

Thanks to GamePro for their article discussing why MMORPGs charge a monthly subscription fee, discussing the "extra developer attention and player community" a monthly payment allegedly brings. It quotes a Blizzard spokesman as saying "running a massively multiplayer game like Blizzard's upcoming World of WarCraft costs about three times as much as running an online server like Battle.net, because MMO games require constant maintenance, 24/7 customer support, and an ongoing dedicated development team", and NCSoft's Robert Garriott, brother of Richard, says: "Think of it as running a small city. Many of these games have hundreds of thousands of 'citizens.' NCsoft operates the 'government' that builds new roads, puts criminals in jail, and digs new caverns for citizens to explore and enjoy. All of that costs real money."

5 of 37 comments (clear)

  1. There is ONE problem with the MMORPG model by ymgve · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...you pay for the goods TWICE!

    It's OK that you have to pay a monthly fee, due to the amount of content and such. I've got no problem with that.

    But I've got a problem with all the MMORPG developers that ALSO CHARGE FOR THE GAME DISK! And it's not just some small fee to cover the cost of the disk/manuals, the cost is right up there with any other game!

    And don't even talk about the expansions. HELLO, I AM ALREADY PAYING $10 A MONTH SO YOU CAN CREATE CONTENT, I WILL NOT PAY YOU FOR ANOTHER CARDBOARD BOX!

    It's sad that most MMORPG developers seem to be bent on profit and refuse to let go of this obsolete payment model. Either go for monthly supscriptions or go for a one time fee. NOT both.

  2. What annoys me by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 3, Insightful
    What annoys me is that when a new MMORPG comes out, it inevitably has a higher monthly fee than its predecessors. What then happens is that all the other MMORPGs feel they need to raise their price. Yes I could understand a price raise to match inflation. However, some of them are ridiculous. The maintenance costs for those existing games did not increase. They are just able to charge more to match the other prices in the field. It is absolutely disgusting. And people keep paying. Thats why I'm done with MMORPGs for a long time until something worth the extra cost comes out.

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  3. Re:I disagree completely by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Actually, were Project Entropia more publicized and a bit more stable, they would make a ton of profit. PE is actually a Bank in the disguise of an MMO, and all money invested by the players is traded to make interest, which is where all the developer profit comes from.

  4. One thing I don't understand... by feidaykin · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Is why, when we are paying a monthly fee, do we still have to go buy the damn CD for $50?

    I think that new MMORPGs should either be a free download, or start at something more reasonable, like $20-$30. The price of a full game doesn't make sense, because after I buy it, I still cannot play the game until I fork over a credit card number.

    Other than that, I think the monthly fees are, for the most part, understandable.

    --

    "To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human spirit." -Stephen Hawking

  5. Re:I disagree completely by ameoba · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ..but within a year, GTA:VC or Madden is going to sitting on the shelves for $10/copy while everquest is going to keep pulling in that revenue.

    It's the same as how MSFT wants subscriptions; constant revenue streams are better than selling somebody software that you -hope- they upgrade.

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    my sig's at the bottom of the page.