Again, back it up with official sources: You want to make a statement that Aion has only a few 100,000s subs? Then show me the NCSoft or gamenews confirming that, no fuzzy speculations.
You wanted to know where the 3.5 million subs were coming from? I showed you one of the news sources.
Now wasn't that nice of me? I'm actually expecting a 'thank you', but won't hold my breath for it.
The IGN article was never confirmed by NCsoft. Everyone who followed this knows this. it was a hype tric launched before the western launch.
Besides .... we are talking western based subscriptions here: not Chinese free to play.
Now the current western stats are above in the posts above. One reference from an ingame player and one showing the stats on each US server : http://na.aiononline.com/livestatus/server/
How much more accurate can we be ... by displaying the on server stats from Aion itself....
I wish devs would stop making games that are like WoW and make some interesting new games. If you look at a few "next big games" you'll see what happens to those kinds of games. Some people will try them out find out its almost exactly like WoW and then think to themselves, play this game from scratch or go back to WoW and have all types of cool gear. Of course they are going back to WoW, why would you want to play a game that copies WoW and have to start over again.
Yeah, that's the core of it. Developers need to offer some genuinely different-feeling gaming experience to compete.
Indeed... and so maybe we'll *finally* get back to the way MMOs were pre WoW, when to compete, developers tried to *stand out* from other MMOs.
It's a nice thought, anyway.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
I don't know much about Aion specifically, but I do have a pretty good idea of one thing:
All MMOs misrepresent their Asian subscription numbers.
As I understand them, "subscriptions" work differently in Asia.
Instead of buying the box, setting up an account, and paying for a flat amount of time with a subscription fee or game time card, they have another option. They can visit an internet café, set up an account, and pay for an hour of game time. And the MMO counts these as subscriptions, same as they count western subs.
The big question, (which has never been answered, as far as I know) is how long they continue to count these semi-inactive accounts. One month? .. Six? .. Forever? .. does the 3.5 million Aion subscriptions and 11 million WoW subscriptions figures include every asian gamer who has ever played the game?
No idea .. but it's a compelling reason for not taking sub numbers at face value.
Playing: EVE, Final Fantasy 13, Uncharted 2, Need for Speed: Shift
one problem with this chart !lot of game cant be factored in!why?lot of company dont care
check asia if you ask them how much they make they ll see you as rude if you ask them how much player they have same thing they ll feel slighted.there is no easy way of counting the amount of player in any given game in asia
but one thing we can relly on !blizzard the most successfull story of gaming had to change its model for asia and a lot
even then their number pale in comparison to lot of other game in asia.
the thing you got to remember is asia wasnt able to game for a long time because they couldnt
and console didnt even bother with those market so when f2p decided to give it a shot there it was embraced
and those company are gods there they made gaming possible in a market where no company wanted to go
so today these same gamer do the same they ll play your game but only if you adopt the model they ve been using for years
annoying for other market hell yes!its a possible 350 million gamer but those WILL ONLY PLAY F2P
and they have proven that many time ,they spend as much as the next joe but wont sub
and f2p is winning the battle check anywhere you go most publicity are for f2p game no company in the new world
have the financial strengh to put so many ads.so the list you showed is good only for the new world!
The big question, (which has never been answered, as far as I know) is how long they continue to count these semi-inactive accounts. One month? .. Six? .. Forever? .. does the 3.5 million Aion subscriptions and 11 million WoW subscriptions figures include every asian gamer who has ever played the game?
No idea .. but it's a compelling reason for not taking sub numbers at face value.
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums: Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Comments
The IGN article was never confirmed by NCsoft. Everyone who followed this knows this. it was a hype tric launched before the western launch.
Besides .... we are talking western based subscriptions here: not Chinese free to play.
Now the current western stats are above in the posts above. One reference from an ingame player and one showing the stats on each US server : http://na.aiononline.com/livestatus/server/
How much more accurate can we be ... by displaying the on server stats from Aion itself....
It is in accordance with the players view when he talks about the 1.3 average concurrent users he sees when he plays on his server. http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/271754/page/7
You may count up the number of characters. it ends up with 60K for US, just like my formula from the player's observations.
NCsoft has ... 52% of its revenu from ... one country South Korea (and 12% of the US but that includes all their games like GW, CoH etc..)
So it is very clear Aion is under 150 K subs in US/EU combined.
Want a real mmorpg? Play WOW with experience turned off mode and be Pve_Pvp King at any level without a rat race.
Indeed... and so maybe we'll *finally* get back to the way MMOs were pre WoW, when to compete, developers tried to *stand out* from other MMOs.
It's a nice thought, anyway.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
I don't know much about Aion specifically, but I do have a pretty good idea of one thing:
All MMOs misrepresent their Asian subscription numbers.
As I understand them, "subscriptions" work differently in Asia.
Instead of buying the box, setting up an account, and paying for a flat amount of time with a subscription fee or game time card, they have another option. They can visit an internet café, set up an account, and pay for an hour of game time. And the MMO counts these as subscriptions, same as they count western subs.
The big question, (which has never been answered, as far as I know) is how long they continue to count these semi-inactive accounts. One month? .. Six? .. Forever? .. does the 3.5 million Aion subscriptions and 11 million WoW subscriptions figures include every asian gamer who has ever played the game?
No idea .. but it's a compelling reason for not taking sub numbers at face value.
Playing: EVE, Final Fantasy 13, Uncharted 2, Need for Speed: Shift
one problem with this chart !lot of game cant be factored in!why?lot of company dont care
check asia if you ask them how much they make they ll see you as rude if you ask them how much player they have same thing they ll feel slighted.there is no easy way of counting the amount of player in any given game in asia
but one thing we can relly on !blizzard the most successfull story of gaming had to change its model for asia and a lot
even then their number pale in comparison to lot of other game in asia.
the thing you got to remember is asia wasnt able to game for a long time because they couldnt
and console didnt even bother with those market so when f2p decided to give it a shot there it was embraced
and those company are gods there they made gaming possible in a market where no company wanted to go
so today these same gamer do the same they ll play your game but only if you adopt the model they ve been using for years
annoying for other market hell yes!its a possible 350 million gamer but those WILL ONLY PLAY F2P
and they have proven that many time ,they spend as much as the next joe but wont sub
and f2p is winning the battle check anywhere you go most publicity are for f2p game no company in the new world
have the financial strengh to put so many ads.so the list you showed is good only for the new world!
This.
QFT.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."