Here are signs that a MMO will fail or sucks

Orthaos

So, from my experience the last couple years of MMO releases...this is how I know a MMO will fail or suck or no where near ready for launch

 

1. Pay to be in beta...wait...what? Yeah, Aion did this as the most recent MMO (that I know of)...and plenty of others have done it

2. (this a little less so, but still a good sign its not ready for launch) one isn't allowed to talk about beta until the very last day of release. And I think one was even lame enough to have that past release...but I forgot which one (or if it was just a dream I had that disguised itself as a memory)

3. Pre-order to get a bunch of free stuff to make sure you pay before you actually have a chance to play (unless you already played and know you like it), and this partly goes back to needing to pre-order to play in beta (and Aion even called it a open beta rofl)

And I had more, but now my brain shut down...but those are the most obvious ones

 

Feel free to add more

pojung

Of late, only LOTRO immediately strikes my mind as a noteworthy 'recent release' that's even worth mentioning in AAA circles. This is noteworthy because drawing conclusions based on current market practices and their results are still not quite as tied as one might want them to be in order to start drawing up conclusions.

1. I agree with. Having to pay to test an unfinished product is bad publicity in my book, if nothing else.

2. This is everyone. Because you're working with unfinished content, *EVERY* publishing house will require that you sign an NDA to access the content. Movie prescreenings carry many parallels with this, as another example.

3. Pre-ordering is nothing more than good market practice. Offer incentive for a playerbase to become involved early, while securing a cash flow for the studio. This has absolutely no correlation with how good or bad a product will potentially be.

Vaske1984

Originally posted by Orthaos


So, from my experience the last couple years of MMO releases...this is how I know a MMO will fail or suck or no where near ready for launch
 
1. Pay to be in beta...wait...what? Yeah, Aion did this as the most recent MMO (that I know of)...and plenty of others have done it
2. (this a little less so, but still a good sign its not ready for launch) one isn't allowed to talk about beta until the very last day of release. And I think one was even lame enough to have that past release...but I forgot which one (or if it was just a dream I had that disguised itself as a memory)
3. Pre-order to get a bunch of free stuff to make sure you pay before you actually have a chance to play (unless you already played and know you like it), and this partly goes back to needing to pre-order to play in beta (and Aion even called it a open beta rofl)
And I had more, but now my brain shut down...but those are the most obvious ones
 
Feel free to add more

 

4.making MMO based of fail teenager movie <_<

5.F2P MMO go B2P

6.Making MMO in same old theme....seriously why the feck do i need to slash things with my sword in every MMO?

7.Gmaes made by NCSoft?=epic fail bfore they even made it <_<

Kyleran

When the developers brag that their game incorporates the 'best' features of WOW and improves on them.

When fans of the game claim it will be the "best thing evah"

When detractors of the game are constantly labeled as 'trolls' rather than dissenters.

When the apologies start before the game even launches, especially if its an indie developer.

When major features promised at launch are pulled at the last minute.

When release dates are extended again and again.

 

 

sanders01

 When Developers make a headline about releasing for mac :P

Cutting features before release

Adding those features in a paid-for 'expansion'

No official forums

 

haratu

Whether an MMO will fail is extremelly hard to know, generally there are a few warning signs pre-launch:

1) If they offer access to beta by pre-order, plus lots of bonuses that seem really tempting then you have to question if the game is good at launch... although this does not say if it will be good in future.

2) If they release on time. An online game should ALWAYS be released late, if it releases on time then it is not finished. (it may be finished in a year after launch though).

3) The website is badly designed and i not kept up to date during beta is a sign they either cut corners or do not have a budget to maintain a shaky launch.

4) Advertise lots, and lots, and lots, and lots. Usually because they need the hype. (saying this, there are exceptions to this)

5) They do not beta test the end-game content.

6) There is an expectation from the company here will be lots of people, indicating they want a large population to meet their budget. (very risky).

7) Finally... they use the word "innovative".

haratu

Originally posted by Kyleran


When the developers brag that their game incorporates the 'best' features of WOW and improves on them.
When fans of the game claim it will be the "best thing evah"
When detractors of the game are constantly labeled as 'trolls' rather than dissenters.
When the apologies start before the game even launches, especially if its an indie developer.
When major features promised at launch are pulled at the last minute.
When release dates are extended again and again.


 

Note that release dates were extended repeatedly for WoW, it was claimed to be the best thing ever, and there were lots of trolls. There even were features promised that never got into the game (even to this day). Yet despite all these issues it still was highly successful. People often forget that WoW was not as perfect to begin with as everyone thinks.

 

 

Kyleran

Originally posted by haratu

Originally posted by Kyleran


When the developers brag that their game incorporates the 'best' features of WOW and improves on them.
When fans of the game claim it will be the "best thing evah"
When detractors of the game are constantly labeled as 'trolls' rather than dissenters.
When the apologies start before the game even launches, especially if its an indie developer.
When major features promised at launch are pulled at the last minute.
When release dates are extended again and again.


 

Note that release dates were extended repeatedly for WoW, it was claimed to be the best thing ever, and there were lots of trolls. There even were features promised that never got into the game (even to this day). Yet despite all these issues it still was highly successful. People often forget that WoW was not as perfect to begin with as everyone thinks.

 

 

Forcing me to defend WOW.  The irony.

The release dates were not pushed ad nauseum, it sort of did turn out to be the best thing ever (certainly the most financially successful) , and notice, I never said there couldn't be trolls, just that detractors shouldn't be instantly labeled as one.  While some features were delayed at launch, the core gameplay was delivered (outside of some end game raiding) and no, the lack of hero classes does not constitute failure.

 

Lizard_SF

One simple thing:

Releasing before it's ready.

It's better to push back the release date year after year after year than to just ship because some arbitrary date passed and pray you can fix everything that's broken before the 30 day 'free' period is over. You won't. NOTHING is worse for a game than buggy release, because it's almost impossible to recover from it today -- too many new games grabbing for attention, you either hook AND KEEP your initial players, or you die a long, slow, lingering death.

As an addendum, if you have features which work absolutely right, and some which, well, don't... then, YES, you DROP FEATURES. Eight things that work beats eight things that work and two things that don't, because people will only remember the ones that don't.

Other good signs of failure:

• Fanboys have web pages, fan sites, and guild recruitment posts up more than a year before the FIRST announced ship date -- never mind the final date.
• Promising features much larger companies have failed to deliver, and showing no sign that they are doing anything different.
• Insisting the game will appeal "to everyone".
• Switching game engines mid-development.
• Producer, lead developer, lead designer, or anyone else with actual authority reacts to  critics or questions with profanity, insults, rants, or other unprofessional actions. If you can't even manage to be professional when dealing with the outside world, I have no faith you can run your company professionally.
• Not listening to beta testers when they tell you something doesn't work.
• Being "different" just to be different, not because you've done something actually better.
• Copying the surface of WoW with no understanding of what makes it work below the surface.
• No high-end content at relase, presuming you'll have time to 'add it' later.
• "PVP is the endgame!"[1] or "Players make their own content!"

[1]Either you make PVP the focus from the earliest parts of play, or you make it a sideline. You can't make a well-designed, well-balanced, game that keep players in PVE until they hit "endgame" and then says "Cool, now you fight each other!"