[EQ2 and WoW]Is it important to be the first one to launch?

[sukaraka]

I have a hunch that an open beta from one camp will coincide with the p2p launch of the other .. a cock block of sorts.

[Merauk]

Originally posted by Staberinde
To say that whichever game is released first will not impact the success of either game is simply naive.

Asherons Call 2, Horizons, Earth & Beyond all beat WOW and EQ2 out of the gate by a long shot, it didn't appear to help their success. Making a good product is more important then being out first, especially when your revenue stream is heavily dependent upon monthly subscriptions and user retention.

MMORPG's generate their revenue by monthly fee's and expansions, not in initial box sales. If you rush your production cycle and sour your customers initial impression (Shadowbane), no amount of fan boi flag waving is going to get it back (Shadowbane), nor will any amount of improvements (Shadowbane).

[Morb]

I'd say it's an issue of whether the games are good or not, not when they're released.

Personally, I'm hoping that EQ2 is going to be a more hardcore game than WoW, therefore releasing first wouldn't be as big of a deal as people here make it out to be because the hardcore people would go out and buy it regardless. WoW is way too easy and arcady for my style (potions, the food/drink system, and race wars have no place in a MMORPG imo). After my beta experiences with WoW, the only reason I'd buy it is if there was nothing else worth playing.

Either way the release date argument is pretty moot; obviously, EQ2 is going to be released first. Blizzard really has to hope that EQ2 is another shitty SOE product like SWG, because if it's another hit like EQ1, a lot of people including myself aren't even going to give WoW the time of day.

[Aurard]

According to Gamespy they are both coming out November 15.

Amazon shows WoW out October 15, and EQ2 out November 15 as well.

I was initially hoping they would go up against each other head to head on the same day.

[Staberinde]

Originally posted by Merauk
[b]Asherons Call 2, Horizons, Earth & Beyond all beat WOW and EQ2 out of the gate by a long shot, it didn't appear to help their success.

But it did, it helped them a lot. their success may not have been great but it was much better than it would have been had they been forced to compete with the likes of WoW or EQ2.

COH isnt that great a game, but its come out at a time when theres not much else new on the market. I myself even bought the game and subscibed for a few months, something i would not have done had EQ2 or WoW been out.

Like i said, timing wont guarantee some kind of "victory" people are talking about. But it will definately have an effect on revenue. Id be surprised however if anyone here cares which game "wins" in the popularity stakes. The most popular game does not automatically make the better game. FFXI for instance has a larger player base than EQ according to the last stats. I would doubt many here take that as a confirmation of FFXI's superiority.

[masteen]

Originally posted by Staberinde
SOE have said the average lengh of time of a subscriptionin EQ is about a year. EQ has been going for 5 years not because everyone has stayed with it for 5 years but because its done very well in bringing new players to the game over the years.

One thing I think you are forgetting is that many of the new players are drawn into the game by sites like this. People who played EQ for a year and then quit don't post their latest acquisitions from POT.

So trying to say that EQ is tops because it keeps bringing in new blood is kinda misleading. The new players were drawn in by the existing community, at least in part.

[Sylas]

SOE have said the average lengh of time of a subscriptionin EQ is about a year. EQ has been going for 5 years not because everyone has stayed with it for 5 years but because its done very well in bringing new players to the game over the years.

actually if you look at the Box sales # and total subscription rates you will see that EQ did a very poor job of bringing in new players over the years. In the beginning they did well but over time it gets harder to bring new players into a pre-existing MMO. They did a good job of bringing back customers who had quit (reactivations), but not bringing in new players for very long periods at all. I'd wager that the average of 1 year is the result of early life churn accounts (new players/reactivating players who cancel in months 1-3) and old school players who have 4/5 years under their belts. Very very few people played for only 1 year, about half of all players who've ever bought EQ play only for the free month (new players who quit) and half have played since they started 3/4/5 years ago through current, either still playing now or are part of the exodus thats been going on since GoD.

[Witoubo]

I would think that SoEs push for an expansions every 6 months plus aggressive repackaging and marketing of old content would point towards box sales being a significant source of revenue. If you take the 1 year average subscription figure as fact, that is 1 initial box sale and 2 expansions as well as 12 months of fees.

$100 for the boxes ($40 for old content, $30 for each expansion)

$143 in yearly fees ($13 for 11 months, 1 month free)

Box sales are creeping up on half of their revenue in that example. Maybe my numbers are off but even if they are I don't think you can say MMOs do not generate their revenue with box sales.

EDIT: Just noticed after a browse on Amazon that the boxed sets haven't been up to date with current expansions. So add in another expansion or 2 for a new player to catch up after buying the current boxed set.

[Jooka]

actually if you look at the Box sales # and total subscription rates you will see that EQ did a very poor job of bringing in new players over the years.

got a source for this?

[Brutul Tarew Marr]

Originally posted by Merauk
Asherons Call 2, Horizons, Earth & Beyond all beat WOW and EQ2 out of the gate by a long shot, it didn't appear to help their success. Making a good product is more important then being out first, especially when your revenue stream is heavily dependent upon monthly subscriptions and user retention.

I think both of these games have a very good chance of being "good". If this is true then it is very important which comes out first. Obviously if one or the other turns out to be a pile of crap, then it won't be a problem for the other, presumably much better, game. But with 2 competing games of equal or similar quality then which comes out first is very important, and it looks as though these two games will be coming out within a week or two of one another at whatever state of readiness they manage to achieve before someone pulls the trigger.

[Brutul Tarew Marr]

Originally posted by Jooka
got a source for this?

You must be new here. This board is strictly for talking out of your ass. Please see the FAQ.

[Staberinde]

Go to this link for subscription numbers. Dont know a place to look for box sales though.

[The Bog]

I just logged onto EQ for 20 minutes.
I insulted a few people.
I told another one that he was a big soggy vagina.

I then logged.

I threw my cd's in the bin outside. It's full of maggots.

The moral of the story?

No matter how many people tell you "it's great fun," EQ1 is not interesting once you have played WoW.

[Itzena]

Originally posted by The Bog
I just logged onto EQ for 20 minutes.
I insulted a few people.
I told another one that he was a big soggy vagina.

So you joined serverwide.sk then?

[Ukerric]

Originally posted by Witoubo
$100 for the boxes ($40 for old content, $30 for each expansion)

$143 in yearly fees ($13 for 11 months, 1 month free)

The only thing wrong with this picture is that boxes don't generate the same revenue that fees do.

100% of the fee goes into SOE's pocket.

For expansions, that depend a lot on where you get them. At one end of the spectrum, digital downloads give 100% to SOE. At the other end, the $30 box you buy at your retailer translates into about $10 revenue for SOE (typical breakdown of a box sale is 1/3 for the publisher, 1/3 for the distribution channels, 1/3 for the retailer). Mail order straight from SOE squeezes out the retailer part (SOE = publisher + retailer in that case).

It used to be important that you'd get boxes on retailer's shelves - a new expansion stimulates sales of the base game. I'm not sure SOE still considers important to push EQ1 on the retailer's shelves, hence the switch to digital downloads / direct sales for the new expansions (might as well squeeze out more, if the expansion aren't fulfilling their secondary function, which is to attract new players to the basic game).