How is Rift doing?

[Migey]

Hey.

I played Rift on launch and at end of Beta, and while it had a fair few bad things, i was very impressed - it was certainly an interesting game and has come closer to any other MMO i have played to capturing the 'magic' feeling i got when i played my first MMO (WoW). Not for as long of course, or as strongly, but that it did so at all is unusual. I was quite impressed with the effort put into the game and Trion in general, however, i did quit due to lack of time to raid (due to exams).

However, the sense i get is that Trion is despesrate - i see the game being offered for £5 on 'weekend specials' that seem to be active every weekend and most weeks. It was a very good game in alot of ways, and playing SWTOR now (which is brilliant, and i admit i prefer due to the levelling experience alone), i realise how good Rift was in many ways - brilliant talent system, difficult dungeons (before nerfs But i left i think before they added the hardest mode of 5mans) and some innovative ideas - for example the introduction of support as a fully playable, fun and indeed necessary role. Boss design was impressive - bosses like Anrak in guilded prophecy and the last bosses in Abyssal Precipe and Charmers Caldera particuarly impressed me - interesting mechanics, a great challenge, etc. I felt more pushed on Anrak then i had for ages in World of Warcraft (no i did not play hardmodes) - dps requirements were fairly high, and as a healer i had much less reaction time then i am used to for things like the eyebeams.

But what i wanted to ask is how is Rift going - for a game that is so good in many ways, it would be a shame to see it die and fail. Is new content being released on a regular basis? Is the game still alive?

Thanks for reading - sorry if it was a bit meandering.

[Shintani]

I recently started playing Rift after WoW just wasn't fun for me anymore. I've heard there are some servers with population issues, but mine (Wolfsbane) has pretty good representation. I can't say for sure, but it seems like Trion's doing a good job with it as far as regular content releases. As far as them being desperate? Well, I don't completely blame them. SW:TOR is in full swing now and GW2 is on the horizon as well. From what I've heard and, please, correct me if I'm wrong, but I've sounds like many players leaving WoW, so why not make Rift a little more attractive and lower the price? It will be interesting to see over the next few months, but I think Rift definitely has some staying power.

[Zych]

I don't get the feeling they're desperate. They're getting showered with awards & have enough people paying a monthly fee to play, it makes sense to lower the initial cost as much as possible to suck people in.

I think the worst thing you can say about Trion is they're not great businessmen, since they're not milking every last possible cent out of their customer base, but I guess only time will tell if they will be successful.

[nikat]

Well they are a private company.

I would say obviously a year later there sales are no where what they were near release.

But I think Trion is going with a different model, as a private company they have more incentive to grow the customer base then price people out of it. My guess is the original release paid for most of the initial dev work on the game, now they are dependant on sub's to keep it going, so it's more important to get that new sub via a cheaper game, then get the initial price of a game.

They also realize I think with all the other MMO's out there, that pricing the initial game gives people good insentive to try out Rift, I mean hell I don't know many games that could give you 1 month of enjoyment that rift does for 15-20 bucks/euro.

[ukrainium]

They also realize I think with all the other MMO's out there, that pricing the initial game gives people good insentive to try out Rift, I mean hell I don't know many games that could give you 1 month of enjoyment that rift does for 15-20 bucks/euro.

This 110%. There is just so much to do in Rift when you first start out its ridiculous.

They were releasing content patches like it was going out a style a while ago, adding more content for free than some companies charge for an expansion pack.

The game is still very much alive and kicking and probably won't be going anywhere for a while.

[DDazzle]

imo the cheap box price is due to them recouping the initial costs. they made their money back on initial development costs and are now just wanting to increase the player base. the sub money they get is what's keeping them going and keeping the content patches flowing.

[Fencers]

Trion said part of their initial strategy was aggressive marketing and pricing. Like when the game was in beta 4. Few companies offered as many sales as Trion in the first year, they were quick to offer free trials (again, quicker than most MMOs offer them), sent out emails for weekend passes, had lots of viral marketing, had one of the longest & largest open beta periods of a major MMO, etc.

That's kind of one of the things that sets Trion apart as a new MMO developer and was apparent before the game even launched. There is no EA or Activision in their backpocket. Keep that in mind when speculating on their business practice.

Game seems pretty fine in population. Settling into the type of player base interested primarily in a raid focused endgame and deep theorycraft. The base systems of Rift's gameplay appeal to what I would say is a "veteran MMO player".

MMOs don't really "die". Kind of a myth. Many can chug along for years & years with a perfectly stable core player base. Because, you see, different games appeal to different players. Some MMOs people foolishly and ignorantly deem as failures are quite profitable and successful- not 11 million subs, but really only a singe game can claim such.

[Krolikn]

I haven't played since the early days. Good game, just not enough different for someone jaded by MMO's. Anyway, how are the rift battles in leveling zones? Are they still active or while leveling is there too few around to do them? It was lots of fun when it was new.

[Fencers]

Not as frequent due to less players in lower level zones. Rift events happen regardless of anyone being there though.

Only 4 classes in Rift and it takes like 2 days to hit 50. Not really a lot of low level players. Most create their 4 alts, gear them and play in the L-capped zones- which are still quite active. There are almost too many invasions sometimes... I just want to mine some damn carmintum...

[Sobek]

rift is very much alive. I play every day and see hundreds of other people playing. it may seem underpopulated, like 1 or 2 people questing in zone before 50. most players are level 50 now, its easy to get there. the game really begins at 50. I didn't enjoy questing, I tried to avoid it, I did dungeons, warfronts, rifts, invasions, holiday events, anything I could to avoid running back and forth grabbing quests. rift questing isn't bad, theres a lot of cool ones, but its about the same as wow's quests. I didn't like it in wow either. so you'll see most people at level 50 doing pvp or invasions, or several other things that everyones talking about. there's a lot to do. I could name some things but theres a ton of threads on that.

I don't think trion is desperate, I think they're trying to make a quality game and care about players. there's a lot of game competition now, star wars, guild wars, league of legends, skyrim, etc... they offer different play styles, but they all compete over players time and money.

I think trion does want rift to grow, and they want to increase their player base, because this allows them to have more funding for more development and reach their content goals. they have a lot of features they're developing for rift, more players also helps them test and improve the game. I think they want quality not quantity, as they said after the anti-wow ads, "we don't want to kill wow, we just want to make a great game and pay our bills" I think they also see the wow community and dont want the trolls joining rift and ruining it, and at least I don't

rift has excellent designers and they put out new ideas (level progression after max level - planar attunement, instant adventures, immersive environment (sound - hearing your heartbeat pounding when you're low health, character wheezing when you run far, combat and event soundtrack, lights dim during sunset, entering a cave, approaching a rift) expanded dungeons and more bosses for hard modes, rifts, invasions, onslaught, in game puzzles, all these systems function really smoothly and with no issues)

they keep expanding the game and I'm interested in what they come up with next. other games just add more dungeons or a quest hub, I'm happy to give rift my money so they can create a completely new game feature and stuff to play with.

honestly, I wouldn't care even if they were desperate for players, I enjoy the game for what it is, if others dont like it, thats fine, I think they're missing out, but I'm not going to stop enjoying everything they give players because they're "desperate". content speaks for itself, and its far superior to other games. I do want to see them do well, and would be nice if more players join, but either way it wont affect my fun at all. I think they can do more if they generate more income, so I'm happy to give my money, they haven't let me down yet.

really, the game isn't dying at all, players have so much on their plate trying new games, but I dont think the other games will last. the hardest part of releasing a game is seeing how buggy it is, or if its fun. rift passed the test, star wars still has to prove itself, whether it can last the first month. skyrim is cool, I liked the addons for oblivion, more game content, its single player though, and though has replay value, didn't last more than a few months for me. they had hundreds of dungeons and caves in oblivion, good game, that will be rift's competition for player time I think. guild wars has yet to prove itself, the dynamic quest world seems iffy. hopefully they make it work, but usually these games over hyped too much and disappointing. diablo will fail. doesn't look great, players are sick of it already. regardless of what people say about wow, if it will die or not, its been steadily losing customers that blizzard had to make annual passes to commit players to subscribe for a year. that's desperate.

well, long story short, I think rift is very much alive, even if server populations are lower and most players are playing level 50, zones may look empty. has great features, keeps putting out nice content, new patch coming in week or so. I'm impressed with rift. I think it will be growing until it has enough content to keep all new players interested and busy, that takes time. players go through content fast and quickly catch up to content, rift is the only game producing fast, excellent content, so they can't be dying. other games stagnate.

I think trion wants a good game and good players, and to give players more than they ask for. they have been exceeding my expectations and I think a lot of people are pleased with rift that it will be around for years.

edit: sorry so long! I just wanted to be clear, rift is alive and doing great, will be around for years, enjoys making quality content and players are happy.

[Migey]

No problem for long post! It's what i wanted.

It's great to hear that such a good game is doing well, and i like the fact that they are a private company. I might rejoin it if i get bored of SWTOR.

One thing id imagine helps contribute to a live feeling world is what i think its both a major strength and weakness of Rift - the small world. It's not so small it feels constricting but i imagine that it being so small helps contribute to it always feeling active.

[Maelle]

I have been playing just over a week, not putting in huge hours or aggressively levelling like a maniac... I am at level 39. You probably can hit 50 in a short space of time, but it would be an unholy grind fest imo as the quests are 90% kill 10 of X mob, turn in, repeat. This is fine by me in a way - I am breaking it up with doing the events that come up, and the instances available at each level.

I have met a few other "newbs" who bought rift in the steam sale like me trying it out. I am seriously considering subbing for longer after the free month as I can't commit to a raid schedule possibly due to work - and I doubt WoW can fill enough time for me in a week if I'm not doing any serious raiding.

Having a lot of fun, met some nice people, enjoying the newness and not having a darn clue what I am doing half the time - it's half the fun! Does not seem to be dying out from what i can see... a lot of people are not fans of SWOTOR (I love sci fi, but not really a lover of star wars). So i guess the bargain pricing is working if they can net new customers like me who would not have shelled out 40 quid to take a chance on a game.