Content drought and monthly subscription

[Cracked]

That is irrelevant, as are your responses to what else constitutes extra costs. Businesses don't charge based on costs. They charge based on what consumers will pay. It is $15 because that is the amount that Blizzard must believe will maximize their profit.

No one is disputing that Blizzard thinks charging $15 for sub is a good idea lol. I'm just wondering about the ethics of it when no one else really does it. They are taking that money because we love the game and cannot really play it without paying that, and at the same time $15 is not too much for anyone to pay, but their profits are through the fucking roof.

The point of this thread is that the profits are disproportionately high especially in times when they aren't actually providing any service for the sub, despite the "official" reasons for it.

[rda]

but did you get insane in the membrande on all your characters?

Have to do this on each server, because they are all different! :-)

[Vozzek]

Yes, that's what it is. But you were previously talking about "business is not a charity" and trying to make strange comparisons to other products which have lots of costs that Blizzard products don't have.

You are alternating between posting nonsense, getting a reply explaining that what you posted is nonsense, then posting something opposite to what you said (and true) like it was your point all along. Could you state your point clearly instead of jumping all over the place? Frankly, it doesn't seem like you have one.

My point with soda was an example of a product with a very high markup associated with it, similar to this situation (very low costs, very high markup). I'm sorry if you don't see the connection.

[rda]

My point with soda was an example of a product with a very high markup associated with it, similar to this situation (very low costs, very high markup). I'm sorry if you don't see the connection.

It's not terribly similar.

[Mirishka]

No.

I'm happily progressing in Antorus, there is no drought for me and there likely won't be for a couple of months.
When there is a drought is different for each player.

And your free to stop paying your sub instead of whining on a forum.

Pretty much the exact post I planned to make myself. Thanks.

[Cracked]

My point with soda was an example of a product with a very high markup associated with it, similar to this situation (very low costs, very high markup). I'm sorry if you don't see the connection.

You are just comparing apples to oranges. Like.. it's one thing to have a 50% markup on something that costs pennies, little less ok on things orders of magnitide more expensive. There are environmentalist bullshits that the manufacturers have to pay just for selling cans or PET bottles,.. yes, despite all of it, the markup is high, but not in absolute value.

[Deleted]

Is it really a content draught if you have not done all content. So do you have all pets, mounts, done all raids on hardest difficulty, gotten all achievements in the game.

[Vozzek]

No one is disputing that Blizzard thinks charging $15 for sub is a good idea lol. I'm just wondering about the ethics of it when no one else really does it. They are taking that money because we love the game and cannot really play it without paying that, and at the same time $15 is not too much for anyone to pay, but their profits are through the fucking roof.

The point of this thread is that the profits are disproportionately high especially in times when they aren't actually providing any service for the sub, despite the "official" reasons for it.

Sure, and I can agree with that. Blizzard could charge less, and it is unfortunate that we live in a world where a company seeks to maximize their profits when they don't need to. Those other games? They are trying to maximize their profits too. If they thought they could charge $15 a month, I believe they would. They don't because if they did, people wouldn't pay (at least not to the degree that Wow players do). Blizzard knows they have a captive audience, and they know they can charge what they do because people will pay. I don't know what else to say. I mean, that's sort of how capitalism works, right?

[rda]

Is it really a content draught if you have not done all content. So do you have all pets, mounts, done all raids, gotten all achievements in the game.

...and killed all mobs using all possible spell sequences wearing all possible outfits at every possible hour and minute while seeping all possible combinations of tea / coffee / bear / wine / vodka / water / nothing.

Your point is just a non-starter. "All content" cannot be defined universally. When someone says he has nothing to do, chances are, he really has nothing to do (bar forgetting something) and his complaint is totally valid and cannot be made invalid by saying "you didn't do X". He didn't do X because he is not interested in X, possibly because he did something very similar to that already a number of times.

[ethelfleda]

Not true at all. You had to play to get that gold in the first place, even if you paid for tokens with gold made in WoD form Garrison farming, it was still playing the game.

I've got three alts, that got through order hall campaign and legionfall campaign, and i log in on every one of them once a week for 15 min to redistribute order hall resources and blood of sargeras, and use an app once a day to send followers on mission. If you consider this "system" playing then i guess you are right.
P.S. And if by saying that I had to play in order to get that gold you mean time I've invested in levelling them, I think that if at this point you have only one main toon and no alts, you can't complain about content draught. How there can be one, if you have played only one class story, ignoring others eleven.

[Cracked]

Sure, and I can agree with that. Blizzard could charge less, and it is unfortunate that we live in a world where a company seeks to maximize their profits when they don't need to. Those other games? They are trying to maximize their profits too. If they thought they could charge $15 a month, I believe they would. They don't because if they did, people wouldn't pay (at least not to the degree that Wow players do). Blizzard knows they have a captive audience, and they know they can charge what they do because people will pay. I don't know what else to say. I mean, that's sort of how capitalism works, right?

Not really. Consider if WoW came out today. Would it be able to charge the current sub and be successful? Highly doubtful. It's riding out the wave of its past success, and while they get more money from milking the subs they still have than from projected increase in box sales + micro transactions, they will do it, despite being bad for the game.

[Vozzek]

You are just comparing apples to oranges. Like.. it's one thing to have a 50% markup on something that costs pennies, little less ok on things orders of magnitide more expensive. There are environmentalist bullshits that the manufacturers have to pay just for selling cans or PET bottles,.. yes, despite all of it, the markup is high, but not in absolute value.

Sure, but my point was that companies charge based on what consumers will pay. How much it costs to make the product, or provide the service, is irrelevant. If people will pay $1 for a soda, then companies will charge $1. If people will pay $15 for a Wow subscription, then that it what Blizzard will charge. (Of course, it is more complex than that, but will leave it at though for the purposes of an online forum).

[rda]

Sure, but my point was that companies charge based on what consumers will pay.

The point that you aren't seeing is that Blizzard have been overdoing it for years and this has been costing them their good name and players and will be their end eventually. Ten years from now we might be reading an article about how "a former giant from the 2000s" barely scrambles about and then I'll point to this very year we are in (and like five years before it) and say "this is why they died while others blossomed". Faster than that if we are talking about WoW specifically.

[Super Kami Dende]

Considering during "Content droughts" many people are still able to find stuff to do. The simple fact of the matter is people that constantly complain about Content Droughts should just quit as there are still plenty of people willing to play.

Also, If you want it to be free so you can keep playing, doesn't that kind of directly go against you saying there is a Drought?

[Vozzek]

Not really. Consider if WoW came out today. Would it be able to charge the current sub and be successful? Highly doubtful. It's riding out the wave of its past success, and while they get more money from milking the subs they still have than from projected increase in box sales + micro transactions, they will do it, despite being bad for the game.

I'm not sure what you're saying 'not really' to, but I agree with the rest of your post.

[Super Kami Dende]

Not really. Consider if WoW came out today. Would it be able to charge the current sub and be successful?

Yes. It would.

[rda]

Yes. It would.

LOL, absolutely not. If WoW came out today it wouldn't have been able to charge for a box and for a sub, no way in hell. It wouldn't have been able to get much farther than 2-3 million players either. Quite possibly not even that.

[Vozzek]

The point that you aren't seeing is that Blizzard have been overdoing it for years and this has been costing them their good name and players and will be their end eventually. Ten years from now we might be reading an article about how "a former giant from the 2000s" barely scrambles about and then I'll point to this very year we are in (and like five years before it) and say "this is why they died while others blossomed". Faster than that if we are talking about WoW specifically.

I don't think Blizzard is relying on Wow to keep them profitable for the years to come. I think that is why they diversified to other games. I mean, their other games don't use a subscription model. If Wow where to die tomorrow, I think Blizzard would still be around.

That said, yeah, Wow will probably not be around (or at least not be as successful) in 10 years or so. But I think that has less to do with the subscription, and more to do with the fact that by then, it will be a 25+ year old game (which by most accounts, would be considered a tremendous success). The MMO market is dying (or has died). Maybe something else will come around between now and then that will revive it.

[Deleted]

Yes. It would.

No it wouldn’t. I’ve played for 11 years now and I’m sure as hell if the game came out today I wouldn’t pay for the box and sub.

It’s like with the “sub” on PS4 and Xbox

On steam it’s free to play as long as you got the game.

[Deleted]

No one is disputing that Blizzard thinks charging $15 for sub is a good idea lol. I'm just wondering about the ethics of it when no one else really does it. They are taking that money because we love the game and cannot really play it without paying that, and at the same time $15 is not too much for anyone to pay, but their profits are through the fucking roof.

The point of this thread is that the profits are disproportionately high especially in times when they aren't actually providing any service for the sub, despite the "official" reasons for it.

Ethics? In private business? If its government company, funded by our taxes, I would agree, but since its private one, hell no.
Local govenment electric distribution company ended last year with 1bil € profit and they just announced 7% price increase for electricity. Thats what Im pissed about.