So i was browing the SWTOR forums and I came across the Q and A that said Bioware was working on letting people copy characters to the test server...
First of all, it obviously should have been there on release, but this raises a bigger question...
There have been tons of people asking for their server to be merged or transfered because frankly, their servers are dead. So taking the above into account, does Bioware want to merge servers but are simply UNABLE to because they don't have the ability to copy/transfer characters?
Server mergers are tricky. They are ALWAYS a sign of a dying game. If the game were thriving, you wouldn't need to merge servers. Now it may be a risk you have to take. but the amount of press generated would be MASSIVE, and none of it would be good press. Might be tough to attract newer players when you hear about merging servers.
that is because for the most part, people leave because it is a bad game, not because there aren't enough people to play a bad game with. So you have the mergers. People like it for a few weeks because there are more people. Then all the trouble starts poking its head back again about how it is so broken and flawed. Then more people leave, neccessitating more server mergers.
Now none of this would be neccessary had they not stupidly made 120 servers, and done the mechanics right. It would also scare the living hell out of investors if they did this.
So while the "logic" might be there for merging servers, one has to pay attention to certain realities on the ground.
I have to say Iceman, your logic completely espcapes me. Mostly because almost every MMO ever to be released has merged servers at some point. Normally it has nothing to do with the actual "health" of the game, and certainly is not a designator of a dying game. It's done because while most MMOs have a huge population at start, that population thins out fast (6 to 9 months). That is because many people like to get in at the beginning of a game, but many also never stay around long for any game, MMO or otherwise.
Servers are merged because rather than having people complain about not being able to get on the game, it is easier to set up too many servers and then shut some down at a later date. It doesn't look good, at least for the doomsayers, but it not actually a measure of game health. As a matter of fact, for many games, it actually leads to a healthier game that grows again faster thanks to better word of mouth, and thereby means more servers open again down the road.
As for the OP. BioWare already announced that people wishing to move characters over to the Oceanic Servers in March when they opened would be allowed to do so. That tells me that BioWare has the ability to merge servers if they want as well as copy characters over to the test server. They just have not chosen too and considering how young this game is, that is really not surprising at all.
In the subscription based market, how many times was server mergers a sign of a thriving game? How many went on to grow their playerbase after merging servers? How many avoided becoming F2P? Now you might like F2P, yet when a subscription based game changes to F2P, it isn't because they are turning profits.
But what games had big server conslidations, that led to better word of mouth, increased subs, and even opening more servers down the road in the subscription based market? Give me actual names and examples.
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In the subscription based market, how many times was server mergers a sign of a thriving game? How many went on to grow their playerbase after merging servers? How many avoided becoming F2P? Now you might like F2P, yet when a subscription based game changes to F2P, it isn't because they are turning profits.
But what games had big server conslidations, that led to better word of mouth, increased subs, and even opening more servers down the road in the subscription based market? Give me actual names and examples.