I went back to World Of Warcraft recently, the road back has been a slow one but I’m now firmly back playing. One path on the road to return was the free to play option whereby you can play for free up to level 20, this was how I first returned to the fold. Getting to level 20 these days doesn’t take long and there are some other restrictions on the account, but it took me back to Azeroth and from there I was hooked enough to subscribe again.
The Elder Scrolls Online launches tomorrow, in what is called an early access stage. Those who have purchased the correct version of the game start five days ahead of the official launch. There are some who will start three days ahead of the official launch. The game comes with a 30 day subscription and then the monthly subscription costs are :
- $14.99/30 days
- €12.99/30 days
- £8.99/30 days
This is hardly extortionate but comes in an era when more and more titles offer a free to play option. The thing that oft gets forgotten with free to play options is that there are payment models included, some offer a monthly subscription with perks.
I started and subscribed to Age Of Conan, Star Trek Online and Star Wars, so I’m familiar with subscription models. However the times have changed and yet, World Of Warcraft is still going strong, with a largely subscription only model. This is the game that many cite as an example of how the subscription model works and they use it as an example of Zenimax making the right choice in going subscription only with The Elder Scrolls Online. However there are some gaping flaws in this theory.
World Of Warcraft will be ten years old in November this year, when it was launched, there were not a lot of other MMO’s offering a free to play option, indeed there were not a lot of MMO’s full stop. However even allowing for that, World Of Warcraft has enjoyed amazing success, by 2010 reports suggested that the game had over 12 million subscribers. Today that total is less than 8 million, which is still pretty damn impressive.
There will be various reasons for the loss of subscribers, people who played WoW and have moved on, some got bored, some found other things to do, but the game is still thriving and that’s the issue that The Elder Scrolls Online faces.
When I go back to WoW, even with changes, I know the place, I meet people I have met before, I can find people to team up with, it’s an easy title to return to because despite the loss of subscribers, there are still more than enough people around to make it easy for you to enjoy the multiple part of this MMO. Having the people, as I’ve mentioned before, is absolutely crucial and is something game developers simply can’t buy.
The Elder Scrolls Online will launch with a lot of fanfare, a lot of happy customers and a lot of good publicity but where it is in three, six, nine and twelve months time is a different issue. Players will tear through the content, many subscribers will fall by the wayside. In terms of longevity, their business model is extremely risky in this day and age. However initially, it is surely going to be a success, if they can’t get the initial numbers to the game then it really is in trouble but I would expect them to have amazingly good figures at launch.
The problem lies after launch, after people have tore through the content, when people are being asked to subscribe for a third, fourth and fifth month because that’s where many titles find themselves up a certain creek without a paddle.
The issue isn’t just about how good the game is, that’s only part of the battle. Another issue lies with retention and that’s where subscription only titles have struggled over the last few years, which is why so many of them end up turning free to play.
The Elder Scrolls Online faces a real struggle, history is not on its side but maybe, just maybe, it will be the chosen one and prosper, time will tell, but if I were placing bets, I’d bet that their subscription model will be radically different within 18 months.
I would like ot play TESO but the subscription really puts me off. I would rather buy the game outright, as in the case of Skyrim, and then buy extra DLC, or be billed for the number of hours played.
Say they were to charge $15 for 40 hours? That would mean I don’t need to make excuses to mother, who wants to visit me at the weekend, or turn down invitations to go out with friends … etc!
Also, I assume the company has an idea of how long each additional content package they add takes, so it would be much easier for them to work out how much they needed to add to make a 40 hour deal seem attractive.
The way it is now, I feel I am constrained by time, and it’s no wonder people become addicted to games like these, if they are paying a flat rate for a period of time, rather than time in-game!
Time based would have its own challenges but would reflect usage better, the more you played the more you’d pay.
The upfront cost and the subscription is off putting, these sort of games do become addictive, very addictive, you just want to do one more quest .. then one more etc.
Fun but definitely a time sink.