What Should Blizzard do about Low Pop/"Dead" Servers?

[rulk]

Serious question. I know some of us enjoy the Low pop servers at times, and CRZ's has been a bandaid fix for them, but the fact remains, there are just too many servers in this game. I play on US Scilla, and that server is about as dead as it can get. So my question to you is what should Blizzard do, if anything, about all the low pops? Free transfers off of low pop to medium? Free transfers from medium/high to low pop? Absolutely nothing?

I have to admit as a player on said server it's extremely frustrating to log on and see the same 5 people on everytime because the server is so dead.

[PrairieChicken]

They won't merge it for a while because it's indirectly admitting reduction in subscription

[Saphyron]

My stance on this have always been to merge the servers.

[Deleted]

Grow a pair and merge them. But as said, it's an admission of a tail-off in subscriptions. Get their PR department to come up with a positive spin on it, and do it.

[Synstir]

I really think they need to give free transfers to any servers players want. In this way slowly take out some servers and give players the chance to join their friends's servers.

---------- Post added 2012-12-04 at 10:37 AM ----------

Grow a pair and merge them. But as said, it's an admission of a tail-off in subscriptions. Get their PR department to come up with a positive spin on it, and do it.

Why would admitting loss of subs an issue at all?
I mean they provide the numbers every quarter, don't they? So I assume they are not keeping it a secret.
It doesn't make sense to think that they don't want to admit decline of subs.

[Alvito]

They won't merge it for a while because it's indirectly admitting reduction in subscription

Not really all it means is that or a few servers are low pop. Now if all of a sudden all servers were mid to low pop it would be something different. Seeing how we still have a few servers with log in queue times that is not the case. I know some ppl are resistant to the idea of them merging servers but i think it would be great. I have seen it happen in other games and it greatly improved things for the player base.

[rulk]

Not really all it means is that or a few servers are low pop. Now if all of a sudden all servers were mid to low pop it would be something different. Seeing how we still have a few servers with log in queue times that is not the case. I know some ppl are resistant to the idea of them merging servers but i think it would be great. I have seen it happen in other games and it greatly improved things for the player base.

The only problem I can think of with merging servers would be what happens if there's conflicting guild names, player names, etc? Granted no one will shed any tears for the xsephirothx's of the world losing their name, but that could create A LOT of problems.

[Deleted]

I really think they need to give free transfers to any servers players want. In this way slowly take out some servers and give players the chance to join their friends's servers.

---------- Post added 2012-12-04 at 10:37 AM ----------



Why would admitting loss of subs an issue at all?
I mean they provide the numbers every quarter, don't they? So I assume they are not keeping it a secret.
It doesn't make sense to think that they don't want to admit decline of subs.

Even if subs aren't decreasing, server merges have often been the first sign of a dying MMO, and would be perceived as the death throes of WoW, even if it wasn't because of a decreasing number of players. I remember the server merges of Warhammer Online, it wasn't a good time.

[Arganis]

They won't merge it for a while because it's indirectly admitting reduction in subscription

This, the only thing to do is merge but pride is still in the way for now.

[Rapti]

Do Xrealm zones as they did and continue to make money of people who migrate away from them.

[cFortyfive]

Free transfers of course. If necessary permit transfers to stupidly high population realms.

[Neave]

maybe some sort of (minor) server wide dynamic buff that adjusts weekly on popullation. +2% Damage and healing. cant think of anything else.

or merge and make server tags permanent for ones that end up that way

---------- Post added 2012-12-04 at 10:55 AM ----------

Free transfers of course. If necessary permit transfers to stupidly high population realms.

guilds with hundreds of people, thats not realstic imo :/

[Deleted]

Merge them. It's the only option. Right now it's like they have a broken machine and they're adding ductape with the CRZ.

[Kevyne-Shandris]

Grow a pair and merge them. But as said, it's an admission of a tail-off in subscriptions. Get their PR department to come up with a positive spin on it, and do it.

Anymore delays is just denying the inevitable. CRZ gives the impression of more players in a zone, but none of the benefits of being on a more populated realm.

If anything Blizzard should've done that was radical was merging realms (and in an orderly manner like RIFT did it, with free choice of players to switch from A list of servers to the B list of servers, 30 day advance warning so guilds could settle business and move wholesale, too).

[Synstir]

This, the only thing to do is merge but pride is still in the way for now.

Why do you think admitting reduction in subs is of any importance when it comes down to dealing with low-pop servers?
They are publishing their sub-numbers every quarter, aren't they? It doesn't seem they want to keep that a secret.

[Deleted]

Even if subs aren't decreasing, server merges have often been the first sign of a dying MMO, and would be perceived as the death throes of WoW, even if it wasn't because of a decreasing number of players. I remember the server merges of Warhammer Online, it wasn't a good time.

If they merge 8 and create 2 new servers they could say they decided to make 2 new servers since they know there's people who want to start fresh, but to do that they had to merge some existing servers because there was a bad horde/alliance ratio. And done. In the end, this is kind of true too.

[Tehgypsy]

"what should they do?", sort them out thats what, free transfers off, merging, something anything...

"what will they do?", nadda. people continue to pay for migrations, so the model is still working as intended.

[Deleted]

Sharing AH would be great.

[Synstir]

Even if subs aren't decreasing, server merges have often been the first sign of a dying MMO, and would be perceived as the death throes of WoW, even if it wasn't because of a decreasing number of players. I remember the server merges of Warhammer Online, it wasn't a good time.

Last year, quarter after quarter they released their hugely decreasing sub-numbers...... that was okay? 300K sub loss, 800K subloss, 900K sub-loss etc etc etc.
But merging servers would have people believe that subs are declining therefor wow is dying?

Somehow that doesn't sound logical.

[Deleted]

I really think they need to give free transfers to any servers players want. In this way slowly take out some servers and give players the chance to join their friends's servers.

---------- Post added 2012-12-04 at 10:37 AM ----------



Why would admitting loss of subs an issue at all?
I mean they provide the numbers every quarter, don't they? So I assume they are not keeping it a secret.
It doesn't make sense to think that they don't want to admit decline of subs.

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