you know im not exactly fond of AOC right now but good lord some of you I swear work for funcom's competition. why else would you guys viciously attack anything positive about AOC trying to find anyway to put it down or discredit it. You guys acts as if your jobs depend on if AOC fails.
you guys don't like it fine get off the AOC forum and go talk about the game you enjoy. its like me going to the WoW forum (a game which i despise) and blasting every positive post about it..
Try 1million x $10... the $50 price tag is rtail not trade price.
They make more than $10 a copy man. Probably $30-35.
Depends on the retailer and amount ordered. Companies will sell items cheaper to certain retailers based on quantity ordered and promisary buy backs. Where Gamestop might pay something like $30/unit Best Buy might pay $15/unit because they can dedicate more floor/shelf space to the item making more available to th shopper, unlike Gamestop who can only dedicate minimal shelf space.
Edit: Worked in retail ordering so I have seen it happen.
There are 3 types of people in the world. 1.) Those who make things happen 2.) Those who watch things happen 3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
Box sales are largely irrelevant. Shipped numbers are entirely irrelevant. Concurrent active subs is the number to look at. At launch they were quoting 700k shipped and then 400k players a week later.
Box sales are irrelevant? Do you have any idea how many millions of dollars just changed hands through these irrelevant box sales. Seriously, what a bunch of BS.
This was as expected in terms of shipped boxes. And also that the announcement hit this week especially after most people, even the super-slow levelers are reaching their 50's and finding lack of content. However with 400.000 subscribers now, I think that number will drop after the first month. I'm expecting 250.000 or so. I don't know what they were thinking with lack of content past level 50, and patching it at a later point seems to run the EQ2 route. And EQ2 was a decent game before and it was great after the big change, but still you cannot get back even 30% of the subscribers that left even after a miracle patch, people who leave have an visual image of how it was when they left and especially if they waited for a period for it to get fixed, but nothing happened.
Any company will trumpet whatever numbers it thinks will be newsworthy, AoC was also making a big noise about beta registrations, a company keeping quiet about that sort of thing or shipping 1m boxes is a marketing dept not doing their job. You've missed the entire point, well done.
Currently level 62 with a full quest book. There are a couple of sparse levels through the 50's in terms of quest availability but otherwise still having a blast.
How do you people come up with all these numbers? (not talking to anyone specifically)
Shipped Unit numbers have been posted on the web in FC press releases.
Last known copies sold was ~500k
Price per unit is estimates
Current player base has to be somewhere near the amount of copies sold (~500k) currently.
Units shipped to retailers for launch was 700k according to FC. Units sold ~500k, Units shipped to replenish stocks is 300k. Total units that would have shipped is 1 million (700k + 300k)
There are 3 types of people in the world. 1.) Those who make things happen 2.) Those who watch things happen 3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
The development and production cost of Age of Conan is $70 million dollars.
(49.99 * 400,000) - 70,000,000 = Whoops
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Not quite $20 million, yeah I would say funcom is in a spot of trouble soon.
They haven't even recouped 1/3 of their production cost yet. With the subs dropping like flies, it could take them close to a year or more to even break even on this game.
A company that has a recent history of stretching the truth to sell a product is not to be trusted. In Funcom's case, everything needs to be taken with a very large grain of salt. They may very well be glutting the market with boxes in a effort to make the announcement you are quoting here.
In my crystal ball, I see deep discounts within the next 60 days. Let's see.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II "People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift
The development and production cost of Age of Conan is $70 million dollars.
(49.99 * 400,000) - 70,000,000 = Whoops
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Not quite $20 million, yeah I would say funcom is in a spot of trouble soon.
They haven't even recouped 1/3 of their production cost yet. With the subs dropping like flies, it could take them close to a year or more to even break even on this game.
And do pray tell how you know the subs are "dropping like flies"?
even if sub counts are dropping (and I'm not saying they are) that wont be public knowledge until mid August
Nadia please do not take this the wrong way, but if you have been hopping around the net to find out the general census of what people are doing in regards to AoC. The sub count is dropping, and it is dropping very fast. You are in denial if you think AoC is on the rise.
The game will survive don't get me wrong, it is going to have it's players. Just not a large number, I am still expecting it to land somewhere next to Lord of the Rings in subs, maybe a tad less if they don't get a handle on the things that need fixed faster than what they are going. It will survive tho.
We will see by the end of the year once all the more polished non rushed games hit the shelves how it's sub counts hold up. Hopefully enough to keep it going and not tank the company.
A company that has a recent history of stretching the truth to sell a product is not to be trusted. In Funcom's case, everything needs to be taken with a very large grain of salt. They may very well be glutting the market with boxes in a effort to make the announcement you are quoting here. In my crystal ball, I see deep discounts within the next 60 days. Let's see.
I agree with you 100% bro,myself i think funcom lied through there teeth about the state of there game and all never give them one penny ever from now on
Stupid on there part because am pretty forgiving when it comes to games , am a slow leveler . Dont laugh but it took me 173 days played to get my Rogue to 60 in WOW lol. But anyways if they would have told me the truth i might have tryed it,as it sits now all never play a funcom product ever, all because i feel i was been lied to and treated like an idiot
Aye, theres no way to tell how subs are doing at the moment. The only way you will know which way subs are going is when servers start being added en mass a few months after the free month ends, or the servers become ghost towns.
There are 3 types of people in the world. 1.) Those who make things happen 2.) Those who watch things happen 3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
even if sub counts are dropping (and I'm not saying they are) that wont be public knowledge until mid August
Nadia please do not take this the wrong way, but if you have been hopping around the net to find out the general census of what people are doing in regards to AoC. The sub count is dropping, and it is dropping very fast. You are in denial if you think AoC is on the rise.
The game will survive don't get me wrong, it is going to have it's players. Just not a large number, I am still expecting it to land somewhere next to Lord of the Rings in subs, maybe a tad less if they don't get a handle on the things that need fixed faster than what they are going. It will survive tho.
We will see by the end of the year once all the more polished non rushed games hit the shelves how it's sub counts hold up. Hopefully enough to keep it going and not tank the company.
And if you think the forums are a general census of what the majority of aoc players think, then you are the one who is delusional.
Just because a minority of people are whining about aoc on the forums doesn't mean that most people aren't enjoying it.
Seriously, everybody I know who plays it, are having a blast. Yes, there are numerous bugs and issues, but nothing that has stopped them from enjoying it.
Perspective is key. From one perspective, 1 million boxes 'shipped', seems impressive and WoWesque. But, from another perspective and being kind, if Funcom actually sold 1,000,000 copies total to retailers at $30 a pop that is $30,000,000 (actual amount total is probably around $20,000,000 with buybacks for unsold copies). Even now AoC hasn't been profitable yet even when being kind and considering the $30 mil total.
In the most probable scenario at around $20 million they are still $10 million to $30 million in the hole depending on total investment. Couple this with the fact that customer service, hosting, maintenance, dev team and marketing all cost added money they need to sustain a healthy subscription number to eat away at that extra $10 million to $30 million.
Before people start throwing out $15 a month per subscriber goes towards making up the rest of the development costs they have to consider that (depending on subscriber numbers) that probably half that or more goes towards the above expenses.
For AoC, we'll be kind, and say they retain 400,000 subscribers after the initial month and operational costs is $5.00 per subscriber. 400,000 x $10.00 = $4 million a month. ( NOTE: If endgame is as bad as people are saying it is then they will be lucky to retain 200,000). Understand something. If that subscription number drops to 200,000 the cost per subscriber goes up. If that number drops to 100,000 then you are probably looking at $10 per subscriber in operational costs.
So let us look at the worse case scenario after a few months the subscriptions hit 100,000. That would be 100,000 x $5 = $500,000 a month. Though, the actual numbers maybe different depending on how good a companies financial managers are overall it gives a general idea of WHY subscriptions are paramount in MMOs.
Ultimately, 1 million units shipped for an MMO isn't something to base your success on. In truth, Funcom could sell 2 million total copies then drop to 100,000 copies and be a failure. Though, they may turn a small profit (for many investors a small profit is a failure).
tell someone who leaves a perfectly legit review post and say the cancel or they cancel for now and will wait 6 months to try again. These post now across all boards are in the Thousands.
I see your point but still I would argue that the vast majority of players never visit -any- game forum
(reading or posting)
they see a game in the store or heard about it from their friends - and rest is history
Comments
Try 1million x $10... the $50 price tag is rtail not trade price.
______________
Mark E. Cooper
AKA Tohrment
Proud member of Damned Souls since 2007.
http://www.damnedsouls.eu
you know im not exactly fond of AOC right now but good lord some of you I swear work for funcom's competition. why else would you guys viciously attack anything positive about AOC trying to find anyway to put it down or discredit it. You guys acts as if your jobs depend on if AOC fails.
you guys don't like it fine get off the AOC forum and go talk about the game you enjoy. its like me going to the WoW forum (a game which i despise) and blasting every positive post about it..
When an MMO ships one million copies within 3 weeks of release it is a big deal whatever may follow.
Try 1million x $10... the $50 price tag is rtail not trade price.
They make more than $10 a copy man. Probably $30-35.
Playing: WoW,
Played: Aion, AoC, Eve, EQ, EQ2, LOTRO, Runescape, Guild Wars, DAoC, Planetside, SWG, WAR, Darkfall
Wanting to try: DCU Online
Waiting For: Star Wars The Old Republic, Guild Wars 2.
Try 1million x $10... the $50 price tag is rtail not trade price.
They make more than $10 a copy man. Probably $30-35.
Depends on the retailer and amount ordered. Companies will sell items cheaper to certain retailers based on quantity ordered and promisary buy backs. Where Gamestop might pay something like $30/unit Best Buy might pay $15/unit because they can dedicate more floor/shelf space to the item making more available to th shopper, unlike Gamestop who can only dedicate minimal shelf space.
Edit: Worked in retail ordering so I have seen it happen.
There are 3 types of people in the world.
1.) Those who make things happen
2.) Those who watch things happen
3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
The development and production cost of Age of Conan is $70 million dollars.
(49.99 * 400,000) - 70,000,000 = Whoops
How do you people come up with all these numbers? (not talking to anyone specifically)
Currently level 62 with a full quest book. There are a couple of sparse levels through the 50's in terms of quest availability but otherwise still having a blast.
Shipped Unit numbers have been posted on the web in FC press releases.
Last known copies sold was ~500k
Price per unit is estimates
Current player base has to be somewhere near the amount of copies sold (~500k) currently.
Units shipped to retailers for launch was 700k according to FC. Units sold ~500k, Units shipped to replenish stocks is 300k. Total units that would have shipped is 1 million (700k + 300k)
There are 3 types of people in the world.
1.) Those who make things happen
2.) Those who watch things happen
3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Not quite $20 million, yeah I would say funcom is in a spot of trouble soon.
They haven't even recouped 1/3 of their production cost yet. With the subs dropping like flies, it could take them close to a year or more to even break even on this game.
A company that has a recent history of stretching the truth to sell a product is not to be trusted. In Funcom's case, everything needs to be taken with a very large grain of salt. They may very well be glutting the market with boxes in a effort to make the announcement you are quoting here.
In my crystal ball, I see deep discounts within the next 60 days. Let's see.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II
"People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift
what a huge waste of money.
Spoils of War - The quickest way of ending a war is to lose it.
even if sub counts are dropping (and I'm not saying they are)
that wont be public knowledge until mid August
EQ2 fan sites
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!
Not quite $20 million, yeah I would say funcom is in a spot of trouble soon.
They haven't even recouped 1/3 of their production cost yet. With the subs dropping like flies, it could take them close to a year or more to even break even on this game.
And do pray tell how you know the subs are "dropping like flies"?
Read this:
http://www.funcom.com/funcom/frontend/files/CONTENT/Funcom_2007_Annual_Report.pdf
It's all in there and it has awesome pictures, too.
edit: broken link
Nadia please do not take this the wrong way, but if you have been hopping around the net to find out the general census of what people are doing in regards to AoC. The sub count is dropping, and it is dropping very fast. You are in denial if you think AoC is on the rise.
The game will survive don't get me wrong, it is going to have it's players. Just not a large number, I am still expecting it to land somewhere next to Lord of the Rings in subs, maybe a tad less if they don't get a handle on the things that need fixed faster than what they are going. It will survive tho.
We will see by the end of the year once all the more polished non rushed games hit the shelves how it's sub counts hold up. Hopefully enough to keep it going and not tank the company.
ive seen the forums - in fact im one of the cancelled subscribers
but I also know that *most* players do not visit forums
EQ2 fan sites
I agree with you 100% bro,myself i think funcom lied through there teeth about the state of there game and all never give them one penny ever from now on
Stupid on there part because am pretty forgiving when it comes to games , am a slow leveler . Dont laugh but it took me 173 days played to get my Rogue to 60 in WOW lol. But anyways if they would have told me the truth i might have tryed it,as it sits now all never play a funcom product ever, all because i feel i was been lied to and treated like an idiot
Nadia, canceled players aren't players, they are former players.
They cancel then go to a forums and bitch about the game and say they canceled.
You can trust that most of the "I quit post" are real or true, most not all. Some do it just to screw with the game.
But you can tell someone who leaves a perfectly legit review post and say the cancel or they cancel for now and will wait 6 months to try again.
These post now across all boards are in the Thousands.
Aye, theres no way to tell how subs are doing at the moment. The only way you will know which way subs are going is when servers start being added en mass a few months after the free month ends, or the servers become ghost towns.
There are 3 types of people in the world.
1.) Those who make things happen
2.) Those who watch things happen
3.) And those who wonder "What the %#*& just happened?!"
Nadia please do not take this the wrong way, but if you have been hopping around the net to find out the general census of what people are doing in regards to AoC. The sub count is dropping, and it is dropping very fast. You are in denial if you think AoC is on the rise.
The game will survive don't get me wrong, it is going to have it's players. Just not a large number, I am still expecting it to land somewhere next to Lord of the Rings in subs, maybe a tad less if they don't get a handle on the things that need fixed faster than what they are going. It will survive tho.
We will see by the end of the year once all the more polished non rushed games hit the shelves how it's sub counts hold up. Hopefully enough to keep it going and not tank the company.
And if you think the forums are a general census of what the majority of aoc players think, then you are the one who is delusional.
Just because a minority of people are whining about aoc on the forums doesn't mean that most people aren't enjoying it.
Seriously, everybody I know who plays it, are having a blast. Yes, there are numerous bugs and issues, but nothing that has stopped them from enjoying it.
Perspective is key. From one perspective, 1 million boxes 'shipped', seems impressive and WoWesque. But, from another perspective and being kind, if Funcom actually sold 1,000,000 copies total to retailers at $30 a pop that is $30,000,000 (actual amount total is probably around $20,000,000 with buybacks for unsold copies). Even now AoC hasn't been profitable yet even when being kind and considering the $30 mil total.
In the most probable scenario at around $20 million they are still $10 million to $30 million in the hole depending on total investment. Couple this with the fact that customer service, hosting, maintenance, dev team and marketing all cost added money they need to sustain a healthy subscription number to eat away at that extra $10 million to $30 million.
Before people start throwing out $15 a month per subscriber goes towards making up the rest of the development costs they have to consider that (depending on subscriber numbers) that probably half that or more goes towards the above expenses.
For AoC, we'll be kind, and say they retain 400,000 subscribers after the initial month and operational costs is $5.00 per subscriber. 400,000 x $10.00 = $4 million a month. ( NOTE: If endgame is as bad as people are saying it is then they will be lucky to retain 200,000). Understand something. If that subscription number drops to 200,000 the cost per subscriber goes up. If that number drops to 100,000 then you are probably looking at $10 per subscriber in operational costs.
So let us look at the worse case scenario after a few months the subscriptions hit 100,000. That would be 100,000 x $5 = $500,000 a month. Though, the actual numbers maybe different depending on how good a companies financial managers are overall it gives a general idea of WHY subscriptions are paramount in MMOs.
Ultimately, 1 million units shipped for an MMO isn't something to base your success on. In truth, Funcom could sell 2 million total copies then drop to 100,000 copies and be a failure. Though, they may turn a small profit (for many investors a small profit is a failure).
splat
(reading or posting)
they see a game in the store or heard about it from their friends - and rest is history
EQ2 fan sites