Are MMOs a Dead Genre?

[Kelimbror]

I love the words put into my mouth by you

I think you may want to look at your post history and how you responded to someone challenging that exact claim that I mentioned. This is an example of logically assessing your statement, not putting words in your mouth. You should have had a V8 today. The boy who cried wolf and all...

[melodramocracy]

Well ONE Thing is SURE.

Apart from WoW and EvE the subcription based game IS dead.

The rest had to resort to free to play in order to even HAVE players left.

Once again, factually and completely incorrect.

- - - Updated - - -

If that was true, SWTOR would have absolutely decimated WoW. EA's marketing budget for SWTOR was probably similar to Blizzards marketing budget over the past 5 years.

Tell your marketing professor he's full of pondwater. There are a ton of reasons for WoW's huge growth, and while smart (not big) marketing is definitely one of them, it's far from being one of the primary reasons.

While I doubt that Blizzard has spent 'billions' on advertising, I certainly don't ever recall large scale tv campaigns featuring Ozzy and various other celebrities touting SWTOR. Nor did EA have several years in which to actually generate said advertising.

[Afrospinach]

If that was true, SWTOR would have absolutely decimated WoW. EA's marketing budget for SWTOR was probably similar to Blizzards marketing budget over the past 5 years.

While I think that prof may have missed the mark I do believe he is fundamentally correct. One aspect of WoWs success has got to be timing, there was definitely a before and after WoW MMO market and as such is a phenomenon that I honestly do not think can be matched again in the genre, at least not without offering something truly special. Alas WoW and Blizz in general is a self propelled marketing machine, they have a cult similar to apple that means that anything they do is going to have huge notoriety, and you cannot deny that it has a lot do with the companies success in this day and age. While it won't fall under the "pumping billions" category it will fall under the marketing umbrella.

No thanks. I'd like to get my degree at the end of next year. I'll ask him about SWToR though, but I'm quite sure he'll deny it having spend as much money... Uni profs don't tend to be open for criticism.

Bollocks Profs like to know their students are thinking(well all the ones I had anyway), you are not there to be a parrot.

[Fencers]

If that was true, SWTOR would have absolutely decimated WoW. EA's marketing budget for SWTOR was probably similar to Blizzards marketing budget over the past 5 years.

Tell your marketing professor he's full of pondwater. There are a ton of reasons for WoW's huge growth, and while smart (not big) marketing is definitely one of them, it's far from being one of the primary reasons.

Ha! There is no way SWTOR's advertising rivaled Blizzard. That isn't to say that SWTOR marketing budget was likely larger than any other MMO released since Warcraft. Though in sheer exposure Warcraft's marketing is & was far more vast.

SWTOR's advertising kinda stopped one day.

[Edge-]

SWTOR's advertising kinda stopped one day.

It stopped when their funds dwindled.

It may be because I was still a little babby Edge back when WoW was release, but I don't remember a marketing presence for WoW anywhere near what SWTOR achieved.

[Remilia]

It stopped when their funds dwindled.

It may be because I was still a little babby Edge back when WoW was release, but I don't remember a marketing presence for WoW anywhere near what SWTOR achieved.

WoW's advertising was pretty out there, on TV channels, lots of website ads, persisting for a long while, especially with high budget ones like these (getting these famous people) for WotLK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqJE5TH5jhc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT8maUTzE48
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXeyYdGoLCU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKaIlT_lK1s

I more or less remember the ones back in 2004~, it was pretty big back then too if memory serves me correct. They really pushed it.

[Ferocity]

It stopped when their funds dwindled.

It may be because I was still a little babby Edge back when WoW was release, but I don't remember a marketing presence for WoW anywhere near what SWTOR achieved.

Just an example. I remember visiting PC-shop in my country and seeing WoW trailers running in a loop on all monitors in there. All trailers from what I saw ever saw in our PC-shops were usually movies or some Blizzard game. Either Bioware didn't have advertisement on such a large scale, or Blizzard had more money than them to make sure it's their trailers will be shown on demo-monitors, not some other game company's.

Another example. Before I started to use various NoScript plugins, I remember seeing lots of various WoW ads everywhere on Internet. Advertisement of other games were much more rare, so they didn't even stick in memory at all.

[Gurluas]

I wish some companies would start to innovate and actually make the gameplay fun, not grindy as shit.
"Kill 12 x and bring 4 x" back is NOT fun gameplay.

The Genre is not dying, but declining because players gets tired of grinding, and every new MMO is essentially the same in a new package with some fluff.

A turd with cherry toppings or ice cream topping is still a turd.

[Ausr]

I think you may want to look at your post history and how you responded to someone challenging that exact claim that I mentioned. This is an example of logically assessing your statement, not putting words in your mouth. You should have had a V8 today. The boy who cried wolf and all...

Didn't know a simple question challenged my opinion but ok there, slick.

[BenBos]

Maybe in some instances, but most went F2P simply because they could make more money as a F2P title than as a P2P title. Financials, bro, they matter.



Considering it's a very profitable business model that isn't inherently negative (though it can be), I don't see the issue. We've had F2P games with decent models around for years now and they're showing now indication that they're having problems.



World of Tanks isn't a MMO, it's a F2P online shooter.



What about them? There is nothing inherently wrong with having loading screens between zones. They can be a bit annoying, but that's about it.



Everquest Next says hello, so does WildStar IIRC, and a few other MMO's. Glad to know you're talking with Blizzard about Titan though, drop some knowledge bombs on us about it!

Read the NEWS.

Morhaime stated that Titan will not have a subscription .... BUT it won't be an MMORPG either anymore.

Source: latest press conference.

It is this simple: free to play in MMORPG 's don't bring in the much needed steady money stream.

---

So welcome World of Tanks and all the other loading screen instances in the future as "MMO line games"

Because it takes 3 times more resources to create open ended continents and worlds instead of having boxed up and locked instances and sell these as so called MMO's.


So it is pretty clear: WoW is the last of the Mohicans with seamless open world play design as a backdrop.

Even Blizzard says it now.

[CarlingBlackLabel]

Compared to current WoW? you could take the total player count of some games (pre-WoW) and it wouldn't even compare to the number of night elves logged in at off peak hours (current day).

I dont recall seeing many games having anywhere near the number of active players we see randomly in games today.

edit: I'd like to see a real MMO show up again. Something like Eve... but you know... without the players who've been around for 10 years sitting in their personal stations with a fleet of mooks to throw at their problems.... Who now also fund fps gamers in their planetary game of galactic monopoly....

Yes I feel uncomfortable about knowing there are some players like that out of the tens of thousands of other eve pilots.

If you are waiting for something like EvE to come around again, perhaps this will pique your interest? https://robertsspaceindustries.com/about-the-game

Sounds promising but still a long way off.

[Deleted]

I think that they are definitely declining since most of them are such crap

Since Bobby Kotick dickfeed Ghostcrawler.

[Edge-]

Read the NEWS.

Morhaime stated that Titan will not have a subscription .... BUT it won't be an MMORPG either anymore.

And while we can’t talk about the details yet, it is unlikely to be a subscription-based MMORPG.

That's the quote. That doesn't mean it's not a MMO (there are MMO's that aren't RPG's believe it or not), and it's not completely ruling out RPG elements. Also, these aren't absolute statements, they still leave room open for them to go that direction (either sub-based or MMORPG) if they want.

It is this simple: free to play in MMORPG 's don't bring in the much needed steady money stream.

Do you have a shred of evidence to back up this assertion?

So welcome World of Tanks and all the other loading screen instances in the future as "MMO line games"

I'm glad you like to focus on World of Tanks, but it's not a MMO. It's a F2P lobby based multiplayer game, just as games like Blacklight Retribution, Alliance of Valliant Arms, and a handful of other shooters are (hell, Vindictus, C9, and Dragon Nest basically falls into this category). Please stop using it as an example of MMO's as it's not a MMO.

Because it takes 3 times more resources to create open ended continents and worlds instead of having boxed up and locked instances and sell these as so called MMO's.

Well, EQ Next will have a seemless world and so will WildStar (excluding housing and the starting zones as far as I know), so it's not like MMO's with seemless worlds won't be coming back. Again, that's a personal gripe you have, not anything that's required for MMO's or is a poor design decision.

So it is pretty clear: WoW is the last of the Mohicans with seamless open world play design as a backdrop.

See my previous statement for what you are incorrect.

Even Blizzard says it now.

When did they say anything about Titan having or not having a seemless world?

Do you even pay attention to what you're typing?