The game is now officially running on it's last few remaining thin threads. What is actually left from the original dev team? Seeing what little they have accomplished since launch almost 10 months ago? They only swinged with the nerfbat here and there, from wich they focussed on the ranger class for over 6-7 months lol. They added ONE instance and that's it. Remember Richard Garriott talking about PAU's and NPC controllable squads as form of high level obtainable content last year november? It's just become vapourware and the whole game is now just put into the fridge on life support. Especially now the latest financial report has come out from NCSoft Austin. They're almost broke. Had to lay off many devs (Dungeon Runners ...another flop). And they sure don't have to expect any more $$ from NCSoft Korea. Not after what Richard Garriott has pulled of with this Tabula Rasa debacle that has costs them millions and millions of $$ loss in wasted investment. Tabula Rasa had great potential, but it launched with barely any content. Just like Age of Conan. Just like Vanguard. Just like so many other failed MMO's. Such a shame, as I really enjoyed the whole setting of Tabula Rasa and the ideas that unfortunately never made it into the game. It was a fresh different setting, trying to break the mold. Guill.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
The game is now officially running on it's last few remaining thin threads. What is actually left from the original dev team? Seeing what little they have accomplished since launch almost 10 months ago? They only swinged with the nerfbat here and there, from wich they focussed on the ranger class for over 6-7 months lol. They added ONE instance and that's it. Remember Richard Garriott talking about PAU's and NPC controllable squads as form of high level obtainable content last year november? It's just become vapourware and the whole game is now just put into the fridge on life support. Especially now the latest financial report has come out from NCSoft Austin. They're almost broke. Had to lay off many devs (Dungeon Runners ...another flop). And they sure don't have to expect any more $$ from NCSoft Korea. Not after what Richard Garriott has pulled of with this Tabula Rasa debacle that has costs them millions and millions of $$ loss in wasted investment. Tabula Rasa had great potential, but it launched with barely any content. Just like Age of Conan. Just like Vanguard. Just like so many other failed MMO's. Such a shame, as I really enjoyed the whole setting of Tabula Rasa and the ideas that unfortunately never made it into the game. It was a fresh different setting, trying to break the mold. Guill.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
The game is now officially running on it's last few remaining thin threads. What is actually left from the original dev team? Seeing what little they have accomplished since launch almost 10 months ago? They only swinged with the nerfbat here and there, from wich they focussed on the ranger class for over 6-7 months lol. They added ONE instance and that's it. Remember Richard Garriott talking about PAU's and NPC controllable squads as form of high level obtainable content last year november? It's just become vapourware and the whole game is now just put into the fridge on life support. Especially now the latest financial report has come out from NCSoft Austin. They're almost broke. Had to lay off many devs (Dungeon Runners ...another flop). And they sure don't have to expect any more $$ from NCSoft Korea. Not after what Richard Garriott has pulled of with this Tabula Rasa debacle that has costs them millions and millions of $$ loss in wasted investment. Tabula Rasa had great potential, but it launched with barely any content. Just like Age of Conan. Just like Vanguard. Just like so many other failed MMO's. Such a shame, as I really enjoyed the whole setting of Tabula Rasa and the ideas that unfortunately never made it into the game. It was a fresh different setting, trying to break the mold. Guill.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
You are so wrong. Im telling you, there are 2 expansions in the works (one full planet in the first and destroyed earth in the other). There are only 4 servers, but they are packed full of players. Just download the trial and see by yourself, and stop guessing here about the number of sub.
The game is now officially running on it's last few remaining thin threads. What is actually left from the original dev team? Seeing what little they have accomplished since launch almost 10 months ago? They only swinged with the nerfbat here and there, from wich they focussed on the ranger class for over 6-7 months lol. They added ONE instance and that's it. Remember Richard Garriott talking about PAU's and NPC controllable squads as form of high level obtainable content last year november? It's just become vapourware and the whole game is now just put into the fridge on life support. Especially now the latest financial report has come out from NCSoft Austin. They're almost broke. Had to lay off many devs (Dungeon Runners ...another flop). And they sure don't have to expect any more $$ from NCSoft Korea. Not after what Richard Garriott has pulled of with this Tabula Rasa debacle that has costs them millions and millions of $$ loss in wasted investment. Tabula Rasa had great potential, but it launched with barely any content. Just like Age of Conan. Just like Vanguard. Just like so many other failed MMO's. Such a shame, as I really enjoyed the whole setting of Tabula Rasa and the ideas that unfortunately never made it into the game. It was a fresh different setting, trying to break the mold. Guill.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
You are so wrong. Im telling you, there are 2 expansions in the works (one full planet in the first and destroyed earth in the other). There are only 4 servers, but they are packed full of players. Just download the trial and see by yourself, and stop guessing here about the number of sub.
You are obviously not a business major or an adult. You know nothing about how a business is run or the costs involved. TR Devs have not admitted to any expansions let alone 2. I played the game from December 2007 until April and then I rejoined in July so yes I have played and know the servers are not packed full of players.
My guess at subs is taken directly from their revenue report and as such is an educated guess and close to the actual number. Your remarks are not educated or accurate in any way. I notice your big rebuttal to my argument and potential costs was "you are so wrong". If that is the best you can do, do not bother to try again.
Do you even realize the number of people that would need to be involved to be working on two expansions? Do you really think 30k subs is supplying enough income to support that? I am sorry your beloved game has been a finacial failure, but the facts are it will never turn a profit between initial costs and current continued costs.
I play the game nightly, central US time, -6GMT. All four servers are medium load when I log in about 5 PM. They have been medium load nightly for several weeks now.
They may not be jam packed full but, they are quite busy. Also there is no shortage of people atleast on Pegasus server. I'm running into people all the time.
As for the expansions, never heard anything. There was a thread on planettr forums but no dev chimed in to answer. One Dev did say that RG always wanted to take the battle back to earth (New D11 login), so something may be on the cooker for earth who knows.
I play the game nightly, central US time, -6GMT. All four servers are medium load when I log in about 5 PM. They have been medium load nightly for several weeks now. They may not be jam packed full but, they are quite busy. Also there is no shortage of people atleast on Pegasus server. I'm running into people all the time. As for the expansions, never heard anything. There was a thread on planettr forums but no dev chimed in to answer. One Dev did say that RG always wanted to take the battle back to earth (New D11 login), so something may be on the cooker for earth who knows.
There has been discussion and the devs even have a name for the planet they have in the plans, but it has never been confirmed as an expansion. Steel has no idea about costs and was making assumptions that an MMO can turn a profit at 10k subs. It can not be done with a dev team of 60 people, end of story.
Tr having 30k or more subs is not horrible, obviously they are still adding to the game with their current base so it must be enough to warrant continued development and operation. We can debate relative business of the servers all we want, but NCSofts own revenue report tells you what TR brought in over a 3 month period and that number can then be divided by $15 a month to come to a close idea of the subscription number. Of course that number will raise and lower over time but until TR adds enough and advertises I doubt the upswing will be very high.
You are obviously not a business major or an adult. You know nothing about how a business is run or the costs involved. TR Devs have not admitted to any expansions let alone 2. I played the game from December 2007 until April and then I rejoined in July so yes I have played and know the servers are not packed full of players.
My guess at subs is taken directly from their revenue report and as such is an educated guess and close to the actual number. Your remarks are not educated or accurate in any way. I notice your big rebuttal to my argument and potential costs was "you are so wrong". If that is the best you can do, do not bother to try again. Do you even realize the number of people that would need to be involved to be working on two expansions? Do you really think 30k subs is supplying enough income to support that? I am sorry your beloved game has been a finacial failure, but the facts are it will never turn a profit between initial costs and current continued costs.
Give me a break, Im not gonna continue this discussion. Keep your guesses about my job and my age. It actually makes you look like a kid and most of the people won't really read the whole paragraph if it starts with an insult, including me.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
But Tabula Rasa not only lacks the nessary content to support end-game content it also lacks the nessary support and features nessary to make it a respectable home for a guild. This was the reason why I couldn't enjoy it and why I'll never go back.
So when you say that you can only enjoy Tabula Rasa for a few months out of the year, thats just plain sad... You NEED to find a game you enjoy more than that otherwise you are just wasting your time and money on TR.
hopefully when darkfall releases (doesnt look much like vaporware anymore) it will show all the MMO devs that something that gets released in full actually works...who woulda guessed?
then again, maybe the darkfall team will have a shitty launch too, but you never know
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
But Tabula Rasa not only lacks the nessary content to support end-game content it also lacks the nessary support and features nessary to make it a respectable home for a guild. This was the reason why I couldn't enjoy it and why I'll never go back.
So when you say that you can only enjoy Tabula Rasa for a few months out of the year, thats just plain sad... You NEED to find a game you enjoy more than that otherwise you are just wasting your time and money on TR.
This is why I say TR makes for a fine secondary MMO. If you like to have a couple games going TR fits the rotation, if you like to play one game at a time for most MMO players TR will fall short.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
I can't agree with you. I get bored by any MMORPG after a few months. I get bored by playing the same char and I get bored by the environment even if i roll an alt so I take 2-3 month break and switch 3 mmo's in a periodic waves.
Currently it's DDo, Tabula Rasa and Lotro. And it works perfectly, the few months is enough time for devs to bring new content into the game and Im practically never bored or forced to rerun things and do the same things over and over. And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Tabula rasa has great atmosphere, funny combat, nice environments, and beatiful music in the background (by Chris Vrenna). I don't need repeatable end-game content to like a game and I don't think it's a measure for a good MMO.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
I can't agree with you. I get bored by any MMORPG after a few months. I get bored by playing the same char and I get bored by the environment even if i roll an alt so I take 2-3 month break and switch 3 mmo's in a periodic waves.
Currently it's DDo, Tabula Rasa and Lotro. And it works perfectly, the few months is enough time for devs to bring new content into the game and Im practically never bored or forced to rerun things and do the same things over and over. And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Tabula rasa has great atmosphere, funny combat, nice environments, and beatiful music in the background (by Chris Vrenna). I don't need repeatable end-game content to like a game and I don't think it's a measure for a good MMO.
MMOs need a constant population to make money and continue operation. High level content is needed for that to happen. While you may be happy without it, the average gamer is not. Do the math you pay $15 a month over a year that $180 dollars to play a game that is the same from day 1? That makes no sense at all. MMOs are supposed to keep growing to justify the payments every month. Consumers like you are the reason games come out too soon. You will buy anything they sell you and not complain.
I am sorry you do not like seeing TR get negative credit, maybe this is not the place for you.
Originally posted by Steelrose And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Cycling MMORPGs does happen with some players but it's unlikely to be as widespread as you suggest. MMORPG players have tradionally been shown to be very loyal to their chosen game - you just need to see games like UO and EQ that are still going with the same players for proof of that. Generally a MMOPRG churn cycle is more than 3 months.
As for Richard Garriott's TR getting negative credit here, it has nothing to do with people expecting it to last them decades, it has to do with people expecting a stable, complete game when they bought it.
The backlash is also what happens when you hype the holy heck out of a game and fail to deliver on promises. TR has dug itself into a very, very deep hole and it will take a lot of work for them just to get back to square one in the community's eyes. Meanwhile Richard Garriott is busy playing Major Tom.
Originally posted by Steelrose And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Cycling MMORPGs does happen with some players but it's unlikely to be as widespread as you suggest. MMORPG players have tradionally been shown to be very loyal to their chosen game - you just need to see games like UO and EQ that are still going with the same players for proof of that. Generally a MMOPRG churn cycle is more than 3 months.
As for Richard Garriott's TR getting negative credit here, it has nothing to do with people expecting it to last them decades, it has to do with people expecting a stable, complete game when they bought it.
The backlash is also what happens when you hype the holy heck out of a game and fail to deliver on promises. TR has dug itself into a very, very deep hole and it will take a lot of work for them just to get back to square one in the community's eyes. Meanwhile Richard Garriott is busy playing Major Tom.
Its not just the hype that causes backlash. It was features talked about at release that were supposedly in the works and nearly a year later it has been nothing but balancing and fixing with a couple of instances thrown in, while the stuff that sounded so good they never bothered to do.
I would have been happy if the game started with 6 months of content but honestly is was about 2 months worth.
I don't think I've seen one title on this site be talked about positivly. Every title has its issues. Just like I have nothing good to say about AoC, but i see enough negativity on those boards I don't even bother. Every title has its pluses and minuses, just play what you enjoy...if in doubt try it out.
I don't think I've seen one title on this site be talked about positivly. Every title has its issues. Just like I have nothing good to say about AoC, but i see enough negativity on those boards I don't even bother. Every title has its pluses and minuses, just play what you enjoy...if in doubt try it out.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
I don't think I've seen one title on this site be talked about positivly. Every title has its issues. Just like I have nothing good to say about AoC, but i see enough negativity on those boards I don't even bother. Every title has its pluses and minuses, just play what you enjoy...if in doubt try it out.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
You have 80+ posts, all negative TR. You're entitled to post what you want, but I can't spend that much time being negative on a game, maybe one or two posts and I move on.
I don't think I've seen one title on this site be talked about positivly. Every title has its issues. Just like I have nothing good to say about AoC, but i see enough negativity on those boards I don't even bother. Every title has its pluses and minuses, just play what you enjoy...if in doubt try it out.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
You have 80+ posts, all negative TR. You're entitled to post what you want, but I can't spend that much time being negative on a game, maybe one or two posts and I move on.
Thats simply not true. I have told the good of the game and have even told people asking if they should try it to buy the game and give it a shot. If you have time to read all my posts you have time to post all the glories of the game. The facts remain that TR has a small population and has had a poor retention rate since release. These things do not bode well for a game that has not sold millions of copies.
If TR sold 4 million copies and lost 3 million of the people who tried it they would have a million subs and be a huge hit financially. That has not happened and never will.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
For an MMO the combat is amazing, but Planetside was just about as good and that was a few years ago. TRs combat is actually fun enough to outweigh a few flaws for a couple of months, but the lack of content and lack of things to do outside of combat catch up with you after a while.
Until the newer weapons started showing up I was unimpressed with most of the ones TR had. They were pretty much basic on the soldier side but the specialists got a couple of real cool ones. TR needed epic battles that felt like the war was really happening and to me it needed even better crafting than what it is due to get in upcoming patches.
Thats simply not true. I have told the good of the game and have even told people asking if they should try it to buy the game and give it a shot. If you have time to read all my posts you have time to post all the glories of the game. The facts remain that TR has a small population and has had a poor retention rate since release. These things do not bode well for a game that has not sold millions of copies. If TR sold 4 million copies and lost 3 million of the people who tried it they would have a million subs and be a huge hit financially. That has not happened and never will.
All I'm saying is your entire post history is negative TR. I just can't spend that much time being negative on a game. I disliked AoC and Wow, but I'm not in there raking the coals post after post someone makes on the game telling them how much I dislike the game. We get the point.
And I never cared how many copies TR sold or how many subscribers it has. By your standards it failed, big whoop, not my job, I don't work for NCSOFT. I wouldn't play the game if it wasn't fun nor would I pay the monthly sub.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Pro- I enjoy playing the game. Pro enough to get me to subscribe.
If they're going to shut down TR, they better do it soon. With Guild Wars 2 releasing as their next title and Aion picking up steam, it'd be a shame if they couldn't support these deserving titles.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Pro- I enjoy playing the game. Pro enough to get me to subscribe.
That response is a cop out, and I say this with all due respect. Try thinking objectively, remember, you are not the only person that was intended to play TR. TR is an MMO, were many people come together to game and interact. In MMO games if the Developers are not keeping to their promises people will leave en mass, and your fun little MMO game goes boom. Lets see how much enjoyment you will have when the servers are closed due to cancelled subs.
The fact is other than some interesting combat, TR has nothing to offer the MMO gamer. MMO gamers tend to like depth content and if they are so inclined PVP with good balancing and rewards. TR has neither. The crafting is lamness personified, the instances are lackluster, the itemization is null (you look the same from level 15 to 50) and there are no measurable rewards for anything you embark upon. Content at higher levels = ZERO. No one is gonna pay $15 bucks a month for nothing and if they do it won't be for long.
If running around and shooting stuff up makes you completely happy with a game, your standards may need some revaluating. But if you have some other Pros you would like to bring to the floor for objective discussion, we are waiting. Please know that all of us here wanted TR to be sucessful, we bought the game and paid for several months of subs, hoping daily that the game would deliver. As of now, It has not.
Originally posted by Sevenwind Pro- I enjoy playing the game. Pro enough to get me to subscribe.
That response is a cop out, and I say this with all due respect. Try thinking objectively, remember, you are not the only person that was intended to play TR. TR is an MMO, were many people come together to game and interact. In MMO games if the Developers are not keeping to their promises people will leave en mass, and your fun little MMO game goes boom. Lets see how much enjoyment you will have when the servers are closed due to cancelled subs.
The fact is other than some interesting combat, TR has nothing to offer the MMO gamer. MMO gamers tend to like depth content and if they are so inclined PVP with good balancing and rewards. TR has neither. The crafting is lamness personified, the instances are lackluster, the itemization is null (you look the same from level 15 to 50) and there are no measurable rewards for anything you embark upon. Content at higher levels = ZERO. No one is gonna pay $15 bucks a month for nothing and if they do it won't be for long.
If running around and shooting stuff up makes you completely happy with a game, your standards may need some revaluating. But if you have some other Pros you would like to bring to the floor for objective discussion, we are waiting. Please know that all of us here wanted TR to be sucessful, we bought the game and paid for several months of subs, hoping daily that the game would deliver. As of now, It has not.
That response isn't a cop out, it is the only opinion that matters in how I view the game. I could list a few things that I consider pro for the game, but I doubt it would change your mind. And it is the only opinion a person should make when they try the game. Is the game fun for them?
I played AC2 almost up to the end which I quit in the summer before college began back and was going to pick it back up winter break. I was dissapointed, but I didn't cry in my beer so to speak. It was a great game and awesome community.
I think the instances are for the most part pretty good, they tell a pretty good story if you bother to read the mission screen rather than accept mission and follow the icon. Crafting I'm fine with, could use improvement sure, but I don't have to spend side hours harvesting rare nodes for uber gear.
Your standards and my standards are just a matter of opinion. I think, with the upmost respect your standards need evaluating to understand people like different things. Which is what I argue all the time... Play what you find fun. Just because you did not find the game fun or think certain stuff is fun does not mean someone else will.
Comments
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
You are so wrong. Im telling you, there are 2 expansions in the works (one full planet in the first and destroyed earth in the other). There are only 4 servers, but they are packed full of players. Just download the trial and see by yourself, and stop guessing here about the number of sub.
That's not very logical. No matter how much they payed for the development, currently even 40-60k subs is enough to make money each month if you subtract the maintaince cost for the dev team and servers. Hell, even 10k subs would be enough.
I actually enjoy the game to play for a month every 2-3 months. It is unique and very atmospheric no matter what some of the people say here. For me it's the best sci-fi mmorpg out there.
Ok lets take the costs of the dev team alone. TR has around 60 people working on the game. Lets say between them they make 300k a month. Now add in benefits like health and all that and you can almost double that. Lets go 500k a month between benefits and salary. Now add in server costs and whatever else they have each month. TR does not have 40-60k in subs.
Still think 10k subs turns a profit? Sure if TR dumped down to no development and just kept some people to maintain the servers 20k subs might be survival.
Of course it is logical to include development costs. The idea is to make that money back as well. It is not like they can just ignore those costs.
You are so wrong. Im telling you, there are 2 expansions in the works (one full planet in the first and destroyed earth in the other). There are only 4 servers, but they are packed full of players. Just download the trial and see by yourself, and stop guessing here about the number of sub.
You are obviously not a business major or an adult. You know nothing about how a business is run or the costs involved. TR Devs have not admitted to any expansions let alone 2. I played the game from December 2007 until April and then I rejoined in July so yes I have played and know the servers are not packed full of players.
My guess at subs is taken directly from their revenue report and as such is an educated guess and close to the actual number. Your remarks are not educated or accurate in any way. I notice your big rebuttal to my argument and potential costs was "you are so wrong". If that is the best you can do, do not bother to try again.
Do you even realize the number of people that would need to be involved to be working on two expansions? Do you really think 30k subs is supplying enough income to support that? I am sorry your beloved game has been a finacial failure, but the facts are it will never turn a profit between initial costs and current continued costs.
I play the game nightly, central US time, -6GMT. All four servers are medium load when I log in about 5 PM. They have been medium load nightly for several weeks now.
They may not be jam packed full but, they are quite busy. Also there is no shortage of people atleast on Pegasus server. I'm running into people all the time.
As for the expansions, never heard anything. There was a thread on planettr forums but no dev chimed in to answer. One Dev did say that RG always wanted to take the battle back to earth (New D11 login), so something may be on the cooker for earth who knows.
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Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.
There has been discussion and the devs even have a name for the planet they have in the plans, but it has never been confirmed as an expansion. Steel has no idea about costs and was making assumptions that an MMO can turn a profit at 10k subs. It can not be done with a dev team of 60 people, end of story.
Tr having 30k or more subs is not horrible, obviously they are still adding to the game with their current base so it must be enough to warrant continued development and operation. We can debate relative business of the servers all we want, but NCSofts own revenue report tells you what TR brought in over a 3 month period and that number can then be divided by $15 a month to come to a close idea of the subscription number. Of course that number will raise and lower over time but until TR adds enough and advertises I doubt the upswing will be very high.
Give me a break, Im not gonna continue this discussion. Keep your guesses about my job and my age. It actually makes you look like a kid and most of the people won't really read the whole paragraph if it starts with an insult, including me.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
But Tabula Rasa not only lacks the nessary content to support end-game content it also lacks the nessary support and features nessary to make it a respectable home for a guild. This was the reason why I couldn't enjoy it and why I'll never go back.
So when you say that you can only enjoy Tabula Rasa for a few months out of the year, thats just plain sad... You NEED to find a game you enjoy more than that otherwise you are just wasting your time and money on TR.
The History of the Order of The Golden Shields
hopefully when darkfall releases (doesnt look much like vaporware anymore) it will show all the MMO devs that something that gets released in full actually works...who woulda guessed?
then again, maybe the darkfall team will have a shitty launch too, but you never know
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
But Tabula Rasa not only lacks the nessary content to support end-game content it also lacks the nessary support and features nessary to make it a respectable home for a guild. This was the reason why I couldn't enjoy it and why I'll never go back.
So when you say that you can only enjoy Tabula Rasa for a few months out of the year, thats just plain sad... You NEED to find a game you enjoy more than that otherwise you are just wasting your time and money on TR.
This is why I say TR makes for a fine secondary MMO. If you like to have a couple games going TR fits the rotation, if you like to play one game at a time for most MMO players TR will fall short.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
I can't agree with you. I get bored by any MMORPG after a few months. I get bored by playing the same char and I get bored by the environment even if i roll an alt so I take 2-3 month break and switch 3 mmo's in a periodic waves.
Currently it's DDo, Tabula Rasa and Lotro. And it works perfectly, the few months is enough time for devs to bring new content into the game and Im practically never bored or forced to rerun things and do the same things over and over. And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Tabula rasa has great atmosphere, funny combat, nice environments, and beatiful music in the background (by Chris Vrenna). I don't need repeatable end-game content to like a game and I don't think it's a measure for a good MMO.
That may be true (for you) but thats hardly the measure of a good MMO. I suspect I would also "enjoy" Tabula Rasa if I only played it for a few weeks at a time, once every quarter of a year. But MMOs are supposed to be game you would enjoy playing every day, for several months at a time. Some people stick with the same game for YEARS without getting bored or dropping their subscriptions once. For me, this happens most often when I'm in a good guild/clan/group/whatever that I enjoy playing with atleast several times a week.
I can't agree with you. I get bored by any MMORPG after a few months. I get bored by playing the same char and I get bored by the environment even if i roll an alt so I take 2-3 month break and switch 3 mmo's in a periodic waves.
Currently it's DDo, Tabula Rasa and Lotro. And it works perfectly, the few months is enough time for devs to bring new content into the game and Im practically never bored or forced to rerun things and do the same things over and over. And im pretty sure im not the only one that plays like this. Im sure there's a lot more people like that, much more than how many people play Tabula Rasa now. And I don't like to see tabula rasa getting so negative credit here, because apparently people here think each game must have enough content to entertain them for decades.
Tabula rasa has great atmosphere, funny combat, nice environments, and beatiful music in the background (by Chris Vrenna). I don't need repeatable end-game content to like a game and I don't think it's a measure for a good MMO.
MMOs need a constant population to make money and continue operation. High level content is needed for that to happen. While you may be happy without it, the average gamer is not. Do the math you pay $15 a month over a year that $180 dollars to play a game that is the same from day 1? That makes no sense at all. MMOs are supposed to keep growing to justify the payments every month. Consumers like you are the reason games come out too soon. You will buy anything they sell you and not complain.
I am sorry you do not like seeing TR get negative credit, maybe this is not the place for you.
Cycling MMORPGs does happen with some players but it's unlikely to be as widespread as you suggest. MMORPG players have tradionally been shown to be very loyal to their chosen game - you just need to see games like UO and EQ that are still going with the same players for proof of that. Generally a MMOPRG churn cycle is more than 3 months.
As for Richard Garriott's TR getting negative credit here, it has nothing to do with people expecting it to last them decades, it has to do with people expecting a stable, complete game when they bought it.
The backlash is also what happens when you hype the holy heck out of a game and fail to deliver on promises. TR has dug itself into a very, very deep hole and it will take a lot of work for them just to get back to square one in the community's eyes. Meanwhile Richard Garriott is busy playing Major Tom.
Cycling MMORPGs does happen with some players but it's unlikely to be as widespread as you suggest. MMORPG players have tradionally been shown to be very loyal to their chosen game - you just need to see games like UO and EQ that are still going with the same players for proof of that. Generally a MMOPRG churn cycle is more than 3 months.
As for Richard Garriott's TR getting negative credit here, it has nothing to do with people expecting it to last them decades, it has to do with people expecting a stable, complete game when they bought it.
The backlash is also what happens when you hype the holy heck out of a game and fail to deliver on promises. TR has dug itself into a very, very deep hole and it will take a lot of work for them just to get back to square one in the community's eyes. Meanwhile Richard Garriott is busy playing Major Tom.
Its not just the hype that causes backlash. It was features talked about at release that were supposedly in the works and nearly a year later it has been nothing but balancing and fixing with a couple of instances thrown in, while the stuff that sounded so good they never bothered to do.
I would have been happy if the game started with 6 months of content but honestly is was about 2 months worth.
I don't think I've seen one title on this site be talked about positivly. Every title has its issues. Just like I have nothing good to say about AoC, but i see enough negativity on those boards I don't even bother. Every title has its pluses and minuses, just play what you enjoy...if in doubt try it out.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
You have 80+ posts, all negative TR. You're entitled to post what you want, but I can't spend that much time being negative on a game, maybe one or two posts and I move on.
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Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.
People have mentioned the positives of TR on this site. Just when you compare the pros and cons side by side the cons list is longer.
Again, matter of opinion. Some of us think the pros are stronger than the cons.
You have 80+ posts, all negative TR. You're entitled to post what you want, but I can't spend that much time being negative on a game, maybe one or two posts and I move on.
Thats simply not true. I have told the good of the game and have even told people asking if they should try it to buy the game and give it a shot. If you have time to read all my posts you have time to post all the glories of the game. The facts remain that TR has a small population and has had a poor retention rate since release. These things do not bode well for a game that has not sold millions of copies.
If TR sold 4 million copies and lost 3 million of the people who tried it they would have a million subs and be a huge hit financially. That has not happened and never will.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
For an MMO the combat is amazing, but Planetside was just about as good and that was a few years ago. TRs combat is actually fun enough to outweigh a few flaws for a couple of months, but the lack of content and lack of things to do outside of combat catch up with you after a while.
Until the newer weapons started showing up I was unimpressed with most of the ones TR had. They were pretty much basic on the soldier side but the specialists got a couple of real cool ones. TR needed epic battles that felt like the war was really happening and to me it needed even better crafting than what it is due to get in upcoming patches.
All I'm saying is your entire post history is negative TR. I just can't spend that much time being negative on a game. I disliked AoC and Wow, but I'm not in there raking the coals post after post someone makes on the game telling them how much I dislike the game. We get the point.
And I never cared how many copies TR sold or how many subscribers it has. By your standards it failed, big whoop, not my job, I don't work for NCSOFT. I wouldn't play the game if it wasn't fun nor would I pay the monthly sub.
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Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Pro- I enjoy playing the game. Pro enough to get me to subscribe.
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Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.
If they're going to shut down TR, they better do it soon. With Guild Wars 2 releasing as their next title and Aion picking up steam, it'd be a shame if they couldn't support these deserving titles.
Go ahead, Seven. List the Pros. I dare you. But if the only pros you can come up with sound like you are describing the features of a single player FPS (great combat system, cool weapons, etc.), I won't be impressed. This is supposed to be a pay-to-play MMORPG after all.
Pro- I enjoy playing the game. Pro enough to get me to subscribe.
That response is a cop out, and I say this with all due respect. Try thinking objectively, remember, you are not the only person that was intended to play TR. TR is an MMO, were many people come together to game and interact. In MMO games if the Developers are not keeping to their promises people will leave en mass, and your fun little MMO game goes boom. Lets see how much enjoyment you will have when the servers are closed due to cancelled subs.
The fact is other than some interesting combat, TR has nothing to offer the MMO gamer. MMO gamers tend to like depth content and if they are so inclined PVP with good balancing and rewards. TR has neither. The crafting is lamness personified, the instances are lackluster, the itemization is null (you look the same from level 15 to 50) and there are no measurable rewards for anything you embark upon. Content at higher levels = ZERO. No one is gonna pay $15 bucks a month for nothing and if they do it won't be for long.
If running around and shooting stuff up makes you completely happy with a game, your standards may need some revaluating. But if you have some other Pros you would like to bring to the floor for objective discussion, we are waiting. Please know that all of us here wanted TR to be sucessful, we bought the game and paid for several months of subs, hoping daily that the game would deliver. As of now, It has not.
Current Games: WOW, EVE Online
That response is a cop out, and I say this with all due respect. Try thinking objectively, remember, you are not the only person that was intended to play TR. TR is an MMO, were many people come together to game and interact. In MMO games if the Developers are not keeping to their promises people will leave en mass, and your fun little MMO game goes boom. Lets see how much enjoyment you will have when the servers are closed due to cancelled subs.
The fact is other than some interesting combat, TR has nothing to offer the MMO gamer. MMO gamers tend to like depth content and if they are so inclined PVP with good balancing and rewards. TR has neither. The crafting is lamness personified, the instances are lackluster, the itemization is null (you look the same from level 15 to 50) and there are no measurable rewards for anything you embark upon. Content at higher levels = ZERO. No one is gonna pay $15 bucks a month for nothing and if they do it won't be for long.
If running around and shooting stuff up makes you completely happy with a game, your standards may need some revaluating. But if you have some other Pros you would like to bring to the floor for objective discussion, we are waiting. Please know that all of us here wanted TR to be sucessful, we bought the game and paid for several months of subs, hoping daily that the game would deliver. As of now, It has not.
That response isn't a cop out, it is the only opinion that matters in how I view the game. I could list a few things that I consider pro for the game, but I doubt it would change your mind. And it is the only opinion a person should make when they try the game. Is the game fun for them?
I played AC2 almost up to the end which I quit in the summer before college began back and was going to pick it back up winter break. I was dissapointed, but I didn't cry in my beer so to speak. It was a great game and awesome community.
I think the instances are for the most part pretty good, they tell a pretty good story if you bother to read the mission screen rather than accept mission and follow the icon. Crafting I'm fine with, could use improvement sure, but I don't have to spend side hours harvesting rare nodes for uber gear.
Your standards and my standards are just a matter of opinion. I think, with the upmost respect your standards need evaluating to understand people like different things. Which is what I argue all the time... Play what you find fun. Just because you did not find the game fun or think certain stuff is fun does not mean someone else will.
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Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate.