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EverQuest "Next" will most likely open with "Free to Play" model.
SkillCosby
Member Posts: 684
So I emailed John Smedley. Why? I have no idea. I didn't think he'd actually reply. I wish I asked something more worthwhile. lol
My email in orange. His reply in yellow.
Being nickel & dimed to death is where the MMO is heading, e.g., cross-promotional items, cash shops, real money auction houses, etc. It's being done by everyone; it's getting old.
Bring it back, John. A person who purchases the game and pays the monthly fee should be able to obtain any item in the game though hard work.
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Reply |Smedley, John to me
show details 9:37 PM (11 hours ago)
fromSmedley, John jsmedley@soe.sony.com
dateMon, Sep 5, 2011 at 9:37 PM
subjectRe: SOE's EQ "Next" needs to reinvent loyalty.
mailed-bysoe.sony.com
Important mainly because of your interaction with messages in the conversation.
hide details 9:37 PM (11 hours ago)
I mostly agree with you. However there is a new reality out there for companies that run online games. That reality is that f2p seems to be the new norm in business models.
- Show quoted text -
Comments
*crossing EQ Next from my possible-to-play-games list*
Prefer to not play mmorpg's at all than play item shopped game. Don't care will find something else to do if I cannot find good mmorpg without cash shop / f2p .
Don't know why, but I laughed. Sorry
scribble scribble scribble
Depending on the success of another highly-anticipated mmo, the model may actually become B2P, not f2p. I have no issues buying the 'box'. It's the monthly subs or pay to win cash shops that are barriers to many gamers.
If Everquest Next opens up to work anything like Extended, then the free version will be far too restrictive, IMHO
it will be a massive shame if its coems out f2p with a cash shop..
The pay monthly system is the best option for any AAA MMORPG has been for a long time, only failing or cheap ass mmos should go f2p.. this seems to be the case at the moment only crappy and old dying MMOs are going f2p.. this is the way it shold stay.
How the guys behid GW2 are going to be able to afford to keep the game running i dont know, i guess they will have some kind of item shop as well but i aint really looked into it too much..
Honestly if eqnext is free to play I am so not interested. I cant believe you got that response from Smedley because right now the free to play eq2 server might be large, it is just one server compared to the 9 live servers that we have for the regular eq2.
SOE already know that their play base really does not like free to play, and if they did they would have more than one server dedicated to it. Free to play is not a viable business model for SOE.
That go that route, and not one sole from EQ, or EQ2 live is going to jump on that bandwagon. You might get 100k folks who are currently playing the eq2-extended (free to play) server jump on it. However the hard core eq2 player is not going to do that. Not a one of them.
In fact eq2 live just recently started the 14 day free trial on live again, and you don't have to ask why. While free to play got some players they are not getting many new ones to fill up the drop off ones.
So more ineptitude from Smedley, if you email is true. LoL I just linked this to feldon, I will let her probe it further, if anybody can find the truth the folks over at eq2wire can.
GW1 was B2P and successful but no one really adopted it then. Which ever way makes the most money will be the prefered method and F2P with cash shop will most likely do that for a while. Unless companies start caring for the game more than money.
I don't mind the f2p option, so long as the restrictions aren't insane.
If I'm not forced to pay anything over 15 per month for crap to enjoy the game, then what's the difference? A larger population?
Maybe that's the reason ... the existing EQ/EQ2 player base is small, Smed wants millions of people on their games. More and more games are becoming FTP, or some other variant other than a standard monthly pay system, and with every game available that way it lessens the chance new/past players will choose a monthly fee game (especially in this economy).
i seriously really doubt that...SOE will not release a huge title like this and suddenly decide not to make a huge profit from it ..really dont see it happening..not ever
Smed is saying that F2P will most likely bring in more money.
Also note that F2P doesn't really mean Free to Play. You will have pay money for abilities you are not used to paying for, e.g., browsing the auction house, holding certain teir weapons, being able to level past 10, using the email service, paying for items, being able to trade with other players, etc.
If you were to play one of these AAA "ftp" games and not spend a dime, you would be pillaged.
And who exactly would eqnext be aimed at. The already shrinking base of eq and eq2 players. This is already a problem. Throwing more money at a broken games hoping folks will be willing to jump. This is a recipe for disaster.
It's not going to be called EverQuest. Moreover, it's gameplay is said to be much different from most recent AAA MMOs.
It's going for the blend of Sandbox & Theme Park: Gigantic Worlds with World Housing etc.
It will pick up a lot of attention just because it's different.
Is eq2-extended a success. If it was they would have taken vanguard that way, swg and other titles. Right now as it stands the free to play service is separate, but there have been talk of merging eq2-extended with eq2 live. They took potbs that way you never hear anything about that game any more. If free to play was working for soe you would be seeing a lot more of it, and right now your not. Oh well more bad decisions from a guy who should have been fired years ago.
That example is completely irrelevant. We're talking about a game that launched in what? 2003? You can't expect to revive an old game with "ftp" and compete with games like SWTOR, RIFT, etc.
FTP, from what I've heard, has done very well for games like LoTRO, AoC, EQ2X, etc.
But he is giving you no answer about EQ next on this email. You make your own conclusions looks like Smedley said them.
Smart companies never put all their bucks in one bet. Free to play can be perfectly a working model and pay to play too. Thats why there are 2 diferent EQ2 services.
I don't know how much $$ EQ2X is making them, but I can tell you the one server is very active. I play, got the wife and kid in too .. each on a silver account and all just bought some station cash because of the current promo. And i'm a super cheap person! I imagine others are spening much more than I do. My point is the server is FULL and ... EQ2 is not a great game, yet it's full. Does any other SoE game have a full server? How did DCUO do ? How many players are playing and paying for that? SoE simply can't deliver a great game that more that a few hundred K are willing to pay for. If EQnext comes out with a FEE and bombs, then i think that would be it for SOE as a company. Of course you will have to buy the box for EQnext, but I would be surprised if it comes out with the standard old-school monthly fee.
As I read it Smedley said "We will use the model that will give us most cash".
If TOR becomes the next big game then it will be P2P with cashshop.
If GW2 becomes the next big it will be B2P with cashshop (but I am sure they will sell more useful stuff than ANET, EQ2s P2P already do that).
If the F2P games will take most of the players and continue to grow in popularity like they have the last 2 years then the game will be F2P.
Smed wait to see how the market will look when the game actually releases and I guess that is the smartest thing to do in his position.
So you think games like LOTRO and AoC converted because it would earn them les money?
Both companies doubled their income fast. I am not saying that it will stay like that of course but there is currently plenty of money in F2P.
I beg to differ, Eq2-extended was about a year ago based of the same live version. Vanguard was launched about a year before lotro, and AoC. So from those examples you used it is still relevant. And its going to be based of the Everquest brand that's been around for 12 years. Just eqnext is an alternate reality of what is live.
[quote]Originally posted by precious328
[b][color=#fff]So I emailed John Smedley. Why? I have no idea. I didn't think he'd actually reply. I wish I asked something more worthwhile. lol
My email in orange. His reply in yellow.
Being nickel & dimed to death is where the MMO is heading, e.g., cross-promotional items, cash shops, real money auction houses, etc. It's being done by everyone; it's getting old.
Bring it back, John. A person who purchases the game and pays the monthly fee should be able to obtain any item in the game though hard work.
---------
Reply |Smedley, John to me
show details 9:37 PM (11 hours ago)
fromSmedley, John [email=jsmedley@soe.sony.com]
dateMon, Sep 5, 2011 at 9:37 PM
subjectRe: SOE's EQ "Next" needs to reinvent loyalty.
mailed-bysoe.sony.com
Important mainly because of your interaction with messages in the conversation.
hide details 9:37 PM (11 hours ago)
I mostly agree with you. However there is a new reality out there for companies that run online games. That reality is that f2p seems to be the new norm in business models.[/color]
- Show quoted text -
[/b][/quote]
Then it should be B2P and the item shop should only have cosmetic items. These cosmetic items should also be acquirable in the game through considerable effort.
or maybe its time we all realize mmos are not for us anymore. I would NEVER buy anything from a cash shop. ever.
heck the only times ive bought things from the AH are when I needed 1 more iron bar or something and was a little lazy. farming mats is fun, going out and getting items is fun. bouncing from quest hub to quest hub is like watching grass grow.
LFD tools are great for cramming people into content, but quality > quantity.
I am, usually on the sandbox .. more "hardcore" side of things, but I also do just want to have fun. So lighten up already
Problem is that Smedley really invented the cashshop in P2P games, even if most other games have followed now.
If he think something can give him a little more money he will do it. Not that Morhaime wouldn't do the same.
Firsly, I'd like to say that email could have been easily faked. Granted, you might have got a reply but you might have edited or completely changed it. But if what you say is true, I hope then...
* Adds EQ:Next to my ever growing list of free-to-play games to try out *
I would love it but I'm not sure all the original EQ fans might aswell. I don't understand the pure hatred for the free-to-play model. now knowone has an excuse for not trying it out...
PS: Never even knew EQ: Next existed. Cheers
FEEL THE FULL
FREE-TO-FLAME
FANTASY.
This line of reasoning is probably invalid and IMHO needs to die on this thread at this time.
General consensus from what I have seen (WIDELY) is that SOE/et all currently retains-and-lets-die Vanguard simply because any effort into the game -AT ALL- would be a pyrric victory at best ( a lot of the potential dollars garnished from a vanguard refurbish would come from potential EQ2 dollars).
This line of reasoning also includes SWG (everyone knows Old Republic will coup-de-gras SWG, hence IMHO SWG completely shutting doors before release)
In FACT IMHO the fact that EQ2 has been updated multiple times, given a lot of work, and generally kept in a singular frontal role is a *good* indication that EQ2 is doing well in the opinion of SOE. If EQ2 was NOT doing well then IMHO SOE Would make SWG, Vanguard, ect F-2-P in an attempt to salvage their market share.
In any event, there is a LOT of data to suggest that f2p or f2p"ish" models are the new vogue. Just look at the market.