Alternative Distribution Schemes For The MMO?

Thanks to The Adrenaline Vault for its editorial discussing ways the MMO and online gaming industry can evolve beyond its current saturation levels. The author argues: "The structure of MMOGs all but requires consumers to choose one title to the exclusion of all others... so, how can game makers continue to use this business model without collectively suffocating?" Therefore, a solution is suggested: "Scale projects back and use episodic content instead. Under the drip feed model, users pay for gameplay in small chunks rather than a periodic access fee. For example, Resident Evil: Outbreak would have translated perfectly into this type of game because its scenarios are encapsulated and self-sufficient... This approach... requires much less in the way of maintenance costs and initial investment [and] provides entertainment in digestible bursts... which means more room in the marketplace for everyone to sell their wares."

Comments

Re:Won't work.

[Snowmit]

Pay per play is less appealing to the houses running the games, because there's not the potential for residual income from people who sign up, lose interest, and forget to cancel for a few months.

I think that if your business model involves relying on people to forget to stop paying for your product after they're done with it, then you are NOT WORKING HARD ENOUGH.

Re:What incentive for the developers?

[popcultureicon]

When I was a teenager, I wasted countless hours playing RPG's to all hours of the night. Now that I have a full time job, I just don't have the time necessary to devote to one of these massive games, and I therefore simply can't justify the subscription price. If content were episodic in nature, I would most likely be able to play some of these games again without worrying about the time commitment. If I bought it and didn't play it for more than 4 hours, it wouldn't matter as much.
Now I appreciate your assertion that this is a much less attractive revenue model from the producer's point of view, however, I'd be willing to bet there'd be a much larger audience for this.
Hell, don't the stats say that most game players are in their mid twenties now anyway? That demographic may have a lot more disposible income than teenagers, but they have a lot less time!