Is this the fate of WoW Challengers?

Trevorion

This morning amongst the hundred of MMO related newsletters I recieve, I got one from Codemasters concerning DDO:

COME BACK & PLAY FOR FREE

"We appreciate you may have closed or cancelled your subscription to Dungeons & Dragons Online(tm): Stormreach(tm) and therefore please accept our apologies for this interruption. However, we wanted you to know that you can now come back to DDO for FREE to sample all the new and exiting content we recently added."

It is really a pity that one of the greatest RP realms, this that had to be a 'WoW-killer' ends up pleading like this.  Guess we will be seeing likewise in other wannabe giant killers unless they give us something really new.

AddaUK

Was it really ever penned as a "wow killer" ? no comparisson needed as it is a different type of MMO.



IP aside though it just wasn't very good, and free trials offered to past subscribers come out from some of the biggest MMO's.



Don't really see this as something new but I'm glad that companies do this as gives you a chance to test the water again after major updates etc or even if your just bored.

flood950

I dont really understand the point of the post.  Many games do this after they have been out for a while.



I dont recall DDO ever being labeled a WoW-killer either.  The game tried some very different ideas, which unfortunately for the company were not received very well by the gaming community. 

diarheasauce

Turbine offically suks as a developer



after playin lorto and ddo, they might be as bad as dark and light



but thats what my invisable friend just said so i thought id share

xPaladin

Originally posted by Trevorion


This morning amongst the hundred of MMO related newsletters I recieve, I got one from Codemasters concerning DDO:
COME BACK & PLAY FOR FREE
"We appreciate you may have closed or cancelled your subscription to Dungeons & Dragons Online(tm): Stormreach(tm) and therefore please accept our apologies for this interruption. However, we wanted you to know that you can now come back to DDO for FREE to sample all the new and exiting content we recently added."
It is really a pity that one of the greatest RP realms, this that had to be a 'WoW-killer' ends up pleading like this.  Guess we will be seeing likewise in other wannabe giant killers unless they give us something really new.

It's a matter of perspective and bias whether that is "pleading for accounts" or merely good salesmanship.

GreenChaos

Originally posted by diarheasauce

Turbine offically suks as a developer



after playin lorto and ddo, they might be as bad as dark and light



but thats what my invisable friend just said so i thought id share

That's a bit harsh.  lotro is a good game - may not be for everyone, may not be a WoW killer, but it's in no way a bad game.

quaiky

like mentioned before nearly every company does these come back and test game changes for free specials. Usually these happen first time after  1-2 years  and after  they did some major changes to the game. 

And i#m not defending ddo I personally never liked ddo, i played it short in beta and then once for a few days in trial and it was nothing for me. I also don't think ddo was meant to be a wow killer, lotro is turbines try at wow like gameplay.

Trevorion

To be honest I don't see a lot of difference besides the story and huge fan base between DND & LotRO.  And I won't be surprised at all if LotRO will end up with the same plea.  Well I do remember people awaiting DND with high expectations and labeling it as a possible wow-killer and again I saw the same being redone for LotRO and now a new cycle began for warhammer.

The more people build up expectations about an upcoming new game the more they risk disappointment and ruining the game experience itself.  Accept it people whether you hate it or love it WoW is the best out their and no poll can change that.

Flyte27

D&D made a few big mistakes IMO.  First they didn't create a complete world.  The game was done like PnP D&D which is to have little adventures here and there that were all instances.  Nice idea, but not for a MMO IMO. 

The next problem was they didn't use the most popular setting which is Forgotten Realms.  They could have built a complete world with little work regarding the story since most of the world has been written about in books and mapped out by other people. 

This game only appeals to the hardcore D&D IMO who want to roleplay and do their little campeigns.

LOTRO is very differnt because it is a complete world of middle earth for the most part.  You can go adventure and see other people doing the same. 

Timzilla

I think the OP should just get a dark room and a warm sock. You won't have to try nearly as hard to feel good about what you are playing.

ladyattis

It's called marketing, so please stop reading into it. When Meridian 59, The Realm, UO, and EQ 1 came out, there was literally nothing like them on the market, so they flourished by being radically different from each other, even AOL's NWN was different from the four MMOs I referenced prior. So, what I'm saying is that such things like marketing, customer service, and public relations are going to be more key to the management of MMOs than just the coding of them. Unfortunately, this makes MMOs less games and more communities, which then that itself poses the question, "If they're communities why don't the owners of said games listen to the community members (aka the customers)?" But that's tangental to my point though. :-P

-- Brede

Isane

Uhm nothing wrong with trying to sell what is basically a very playable game. It's a free taster not free forever just a taster of the advances and changes made over time. I'll go back have a look I think...

swallace

Blizzard recently sent me a package with TBC trial... free 10 day trial key, even an installation disc.  This is nothing new and definitely has nothing to do with "challenging WoW."

Aseenus

naa dude ddo was never intended the wow killer..



War is intended the wow killer

retrospectic

Originally posted by Trevorion


This morning amongst the hundred of MMO related newsletters I recieve, I got one from Codemasters concerning DDO:
COME BACK & PLAY FOR FREE
"We appreciate you may have closed or cancelled your subscription to Dungeons & Dragons Online(tm): Stormreach(tm) and therefore please accept our apologies for this interruption. However, we wanted you to know that you can now come back to DDO for FREE to sample all the new and exiting content we recently added."
It is really a pity that one of the greatest RP realms, this that had to be a 'WoW-killer' ends up pleading like this.  Guess we will be seeing likewise in other wannabe giant killers unless they give us something really new.

My friend who quit WoW before the burning crusade hit was given a free 10-day trial of THE BURNING CRUSADE.  Every company tries to lure old customers back with a taste of what their missing.

Dreamagram

This "game A will kill game B" silliness has been going on since EQ became a big hit. I choose to believe most MMOG developers enjoy a market with variety and to see that many games can survive and make a profit, and feel with those unfortunate to have a game go under.



No MMOGs are made/meant to kill WoW. They're made to draw and keep as big an audience as possible, regardless of other games in the market. If they happen to draw a player-base the size of WoW, all power to them, but I don't think any serious developer have as an aim or wish do "kill" any other MMOG.



Edit: oh, and on the actual topic; this has been done by most MMOGs, even some (most?) of the bigger ones. Nothing dramatic, really.

seabass2003

That's funny didn't wow just give out free trials recently to past subscribers? They must be tanking big time.

BTW I didn't read all the posts just the OP. Sue me I am lazy.

Charlizd

Originally posted by Trevorion


To be honest I don't see a lot of difference besides the story and huge fan base between DND & LotRO.  And I won't be surprised at all if LotRO will end up with the same plea.  Well I do remember people awaiting DND with high expectations and labeling it as a possible wow-killer and again I saw the same being redone for LotRO and now a new cycle began for warhammer.
The more people build up expectations about an upcoming new game the more they risk disappointment and ruining the game experience itself.  Accept it people whether you hate it or love it WoW is the best out their and no poll can change that.

And can you tell me Why it is that WOW  is the best out there is it because they have 7 million subscribers (not players but subscribers) because if that is what you are basing this off you are so wrong... did you know that Scions of Fate has 14 million subscribers so does that make this game shit all over WOW? I don't think so every one has there own opinion on what is the best game and i can tell you now it aint WOW

I think the Best out there is FFXI but hey that is my opinion so does that make it true?

LouiseK

I got this mail too. I actually enjoyed my time playing DDO and coincidently i did start playing after i abandoned the two years of my life that was all about WoW. It was mainly because i was pissed off at WoW though and it was the first game a spotted, not because i thought DDO was the next big game.



I'm tempted to take them up on their offer, just to kill some time until something new comes out if nothing else.

flakes

Originally posted by Trevorion


This morning amongst the hundred of MMO related newsletters I recieve, I got one from Codemasters concerning DDO:
COME BACK & PLAY FOR FREE
"We appreciate you may have closed or cancelled your subscription to Dungeons & Dragons Online(tm): Stormreach(tm) and therefore please accept our apologies for this interruption. However, we wanted you to know that you can now come back to DDO for FREE to sample all the new and exiting content we recently added."
It is really a pity that one of the greatest RP realms, this that had to be a 'WoW-killer' ends up pleading like this.  Guess we will be seeing likewise in other wannabe giant killers unless they give us something really new.

I had this type of mail for dark age of camelot , star wars galaxies , city of heroes , eve online , archlord , planetside , asherons call2 and many many more.This is normal behaviour for companies to try and get you back after a major update or a new expansion so sorry but to point this one out as to be  a "beggarsnote" is not right.

And to the fact you are saying it was meant to be as a wow-killer : that's what most people on mmorpg.com-type of  websites make off of it.Go into any gameforum here that is released after wow or in the next half year and they all have a topic saying :" is this the next wow-killer".Gamecompanies don't tell us this...the trolls do over and over and over and i'm getting sick of it.

Trevorion

Guess you are right flakes.

ASmith84

this post is useless and pointless.  plus wow will die over time its inevitable.

Jupsto

Originally posted by ASmith84

this post is useless and pointless.  plus wow will die over time its inevitable.

yeah but then they'll release wow 2.

bahamut1

Originally posted by Trevorion


This morning amongst the hundred of MMO related newsletters I recieve, I got one from Codemasters concerning DDO:
COME BACK & PLAY FOR FREE
"We appreciate you may have closed or cancelled your subscription to Dungeons & Dragons Online(tm): Stormreach(tm) and therefore please accept our apologies for this interruption. However, we wanted you to know that you can now come back to DDO for FREE to sample all the new and exiting content we recently added."
It is really a pity that one of the greatest RP realms, this that had to be a 'WoW-killer' ends up pleading like this.  Guess we will be seeing likewise in other wannabe giant killers unless they give us something really new.

I've gotten this exact same email from every game I've played, INCLUDING WoW, so yeah, way to read between the lines.  BTW, most game developers have lists of canceled accounts and an auto-email goes out to everyone after X days or months after being canceled, or when a new major update or expansion comes out.

Ciredric

This MMO was completely designed to be a niche market game.  Turbine knew from the outset that the ruleset they were required to maintain would limit their ability to create a game that attracted a large audience.

It is not a bad game and they are still adding new content.    Turbine adds much more content than even Blizzard does.

Gameloading

Originally posted by charlizd

Originally posted by Trevorion


To be honest I don't see a lot of difference besides the story and huge fan base between DND & LotRO.  And I won't be surprised at all if LotRO will end up with the same plea.  Well I do remember people awaiting DND with high expectations and labeling it as a possible wow-killer and again I saw the same being redone for LotRO and now a new cycle began for warhammer.
The more people build up expectations about an upcoming new game the more they risk disappointment and ruining the game experience itself.  Accept it people whether you hate it or love it WoW is the best out their and no poll can change that.

And can you tell me Why it is that WOW  is the best out there is it because they have 7 million subscribers (not players but subscribers) because if that is what you are basing this off you are so wrong... did you know that Scions of Fate has 14 million subscribers so does that make this game shit all over WOW? I don't think so every one has there own opinion on what is the best game and i can tell you now it aint WOW

I think the Best out there is FFXI but hey that is my opinion so does that make it true? 1: WoW has 7 million active accounts, While Scions of Faith has 17 million accounts created, and thats the difference.