As for the text marked in red......i even remember blizzard promised housing and stuff in vanilla wow.....it never came.
I'll be waiting untill they actually implement these features.
Look at diablo3 now......the game is being stript down to make it ready for launch......so let's wait for launch and not just create more hype about GW2 ok.
Yeah, I hesitated to bring it up, but it's the notion that the promise is there. That they had the initial intention to give players a boat load of content for free. There's no evidence that they'll try to encroach on our wallets in some criminal way. But they have quite a few reasons to seeing as, like mentioned earlier, this game has no subscription fee, but looks a lot more expensive than Guild Wars 1 and all it's parts combined.
I don't mean to create more hype, but it's the fact that they're selling those 4 things listed that make up the vast majority of the game, and at launch for only $60(assumed price).
i have no doubt that arenanet will deliver us a game that will be really worth its money......that i think we can all agree on
To the OP: I was a big fan of Guild Wars, and played it for a long time. I also was a big fan of WOW, and played it a long time. I spent MUCH more money on Guild Wars than I ever did on WOW/month. It wasn't even close. WOW was price break for me to play for those years. So if you're concerned about getting so much for so little, just wait.
I've got money hidden away in swiss bank account for GW2.
Dafuq u spent your money on?
I for one bought Nighfall CE + regular Prohpecies for 30 Bucks(what kind of sorcery that was is beyond me tho)
Did you like buy three more character slots every month?? That's the only explanation I can think of.. Otherwise there is almost no way you could spent more than 150 Dollars on complete GW1 pack O.o
I think I actually spent way more time reading and theorycrafting about MMOs than playing them
ArenaNet only seems generous because most other companies seem like they are trying to pry every dollar out of your wallet using as few systems as possible and by using arbitrary limitations. The difference is the philosphy in the company itself. Each company has it's own design process and company motto.
These are my personal feelings on how each company faces development.
Blizzard (minus WoW) - Quality and Production Value.
They will pour millions into developing new technology in order to create the game they envisioned. Starcraft 2 is a beautiful example of the effort that goes into a (good) Blizzard game. They will not release products early just to get our money. Blizzard could have released Diablo III by now it seems but they have decided to keep it in house and work on it for just a little longer to make it absolutely stunningly beautiful and perfect.
EA - Minimum cost for mamimum profit.
If it has sold before it will sell again. That's not to say everything they produce is rubbish but the majority of the games seem like rehashed systems with slightly better graphics.
ArenaNet - Quality and Innovation.
ArenaNet is striving to make the best game they can possibly make while defying as many existing conventions and obstacles as possible. They do not have a strong foothold in the industry yet and I feel they are counting on this one product to establish them as a new 'big company'. From the website it seems NCSoft is so trusting of ArenaNet they have unlimited financial backing and no production limitations. NCSoft appears to recognize the quality and seems to let Arena do their own thing. They are passionate about their product to the point where most of the company enjoys playing their own product. They make a game THEY want to play and that in turn makes a game that WE want to play as well.
I agree with just about everything you said, with the exception of WoW. At least in the beginning, when Blizzard first entered the MMO arena, everything you wrote about them applied to WoW as well. It was only later patches and expansions that gave the perception that they failed, primarily because they catered to the lowest common denominator.
I think this is where it will be interesting to see how ANet follows up with their claims to strive for a different experience.
I have heard many good things about Vanilla WoW but got there a bit late and was only able to experience the point where everything broke down. Just before LK and just after CATA.
But good point. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed exporing the original continents and how epic some of those quests were. I'll never forget my Warlock horse quest. Good times.
Play for fun. Play to win. Play for perfection. Play with friends. Play in another world. Why do you play?
I think people are getting horizontal and vertical progression confused. o.o
Horizontal is the Guild Wars model, where new armor adds no numerical advantages. Vertical is the typical raiding framework, where content is gated by strength of players gear.
Yupp it's amazing what you can get for just the price of the box... And I really appreciate that friendly attitude (as opposed to "the customer is our enemy and we must fight him for every nickel... they're all a bunch of pirates anyway" attitude some OTHER companies I'm not going to mention choose to take).
First off, I doubt there will be expansions every three months. You can't fully test an expansion in three months, let alone design and test it in three months! They managed almost yearly with GW and I'm sure they will have a similar goal this time around.
So, why the B2P model?
Look at the MMO industry post WoW. Retention rates are horrible and all those $$$ publishers see when they dream about subscription fees pretty quickly dwindle to numbers that may, or may not, be profitable, but certainly disappoint the hopes and dreams of many an MMO publisher's Executive.
It's more than just having typical one year subscription revenues being much lower than expected.These subscription fees also drive away players who bought the box and might have remained players and fans, if not for the fact that they came to find that the game just wasn't worth $15/month.
We see some proof of that in the occassional success that has occured when a once subscription based AAA MMO has switched to a F2P model. However, these titles have already burned so many bridges to so many fans that they never recover many of those who left, even when there is no longer a subscription fee.
The GW2 Buy to Play model burns no bridges and never forces a player to make a monthly decision of whether or not the game is still worth $15/month. I would still be playing SWTOR if it was B2P. I would have played Rift much longer if it had been B2P. Same with Warhammer Online and several other games I have long since abandoned.
How does this translate into profit? Well, one can assume that they may manage a lot more box sales with people understanding the game is B2P, since that box price has a lot more value when there is no subscription fee attached. By keeping fans as fans, even if a fan's interest waxes and wanes over the months following launch, they still are likely to provide positive word of mouth on the game. Also, with no subscription fee, you can never lose subscribers. The number of registered accounts will continue to grow over time in a way that is impossible for most subscription based MMOs in the post WoW era.
Fans buy expansions. Fans convert friends into fans. General word of mouth drives new business and if you can achieve any sort of momentum, the snowball effect can produce some pretty impressive sales numbers. (I'm sure they also hope that some fans will like the game enough to show their appreciation by making purchases in the cash shop).
GW2 is a much more impressive game than GW1. It may just be one of the most impressive MMORPGs made in quite some time. Coupled with the B2P business model this game should sell millions of boxes by the time the one year anniversary of release hits. Compare that to box sales and overall subscription revenues for most post-WoW MMOs and the business model will show exactly why Arenanet has chosen it.
In Summary: Total volume of box sales and millions of loyal customers, (many of whom will buy expansions and cash shop items), trump subscription fees.
Expansions will be out every 3-4 months to offset the subscription lost.
It will work out the same as a subscription way if you want to keep up with the game and stay competative.
So rather than take your money by subs they will get if from expansions.
Looking forward to it though, eyes wide open.
You'll never fall out of competetiveness. Maybe you'll be missing out on some sweet armor designs, but the PvE and PvP in this game are not carrots on a stick. Max statistical value gear is easily obtainable in PvE at max level of 80, which they have no reason to raise with each expansion. And in PvP, you get everything you need the moment you enter the PvP lobby, even right after tutorial. :O
So what your saying is there is no progression lol I really don;t get wtf u pvp for in guild wars 2 if not for gear what can u offer me that would make me wanna do pvp if it's not gear? I think alot of people are going to really displeased wiht the pvp side of things it' s being limited way to much so they can be lazy and not have to balance much. Also no raids so whats the point of gearing up in a regular dungeon sorry but wihtout somesort of progression nobody is going to hang around long after max lvl. RThe reason they get away wiht no trinity is becasue there is no progression at max lvl or the content is super easy.
A clear troll post. Even if you arent looking at GW2 this is a troll post. You have no clue how hard or easy the content will be. Why will people continue to play? For fun I would guess. Not everyone needs a shiney new piece of armor every time they look at a mob or kill a person like you clearly do. Infact I bet there are more people out there who just play games if they are having fun than because they "got a cool piece of gear". People actually PvP for the competition as well. Its people like you that WOW clearly ruined with the "carrot on a stick" crap. And dont tell me you never played WOW. You would be lieing and thats not nice.
Been a while since I posted so why not,
In his defense the content in GW2 cannot be difficult due to how the games dynamic events are set up, which from what I have seen they are more akin to pugs then anything, also unlike WoW or RIFT fights can't be all too complex due to the aggro mechanics (Who evers standing closer).
As for the carrot on the stick, I actually agree. Whats wrong with horizontal progression? it keeps people playing longer and was because of the lack of it is why I gave up GW1. If you're playing the (end) game from start then you've already done most of what you'd do anyways.
Am I the only one that sees the flaw in GW2's design? If this game where p2p would any of you be supporting this?
No your aren't. It is one of my biggest concerns too. I don't really see what will keep people (PVE) playing after the first month or so if there isn't constant PVE material being added. Dynamic events seem alright, but who wants to do them over and over after you've seen how they play out. I can see people just running by or intentionally losing trying to get it to go a different way to see something different. I am not too keen on scaling as it does remove that sense of progression though I can understand how it is necessary because of the way this game is set up.
I am concerned with PvE difficult too and if you can fail dynamic events but remember dynamic events are suppose to be casual content. Dungeons are a step up in difficulty from dynamic events and still their are exploration mode dungeons. We still have not seen anyone do a explorable mode dungeons yet and since gear progression is horizontal you can expect them to be very difficult.
In WoW the first version of the raiding instance Molten Core was impossible to beat. Guilds even had full fire resist for Ragnoros and was still getting destoryed. It was not until Blizzard nerfed the boss that guilds were able to kill him. Blizzard has overtuned boss for multiple Raiding instance to stop progression at the final bosses C'Thun, Lady Vashi, M'uru, etc. I am expecting the explorable mode dungeons to be similiar in difficult but their will be no need to nerf a boss when gear is not an issue. So they should be HARD and require organized groups of players.
I've been realizing lately that, for some reason, ArenaNet is allergic to money...
Here, we have a massive triple-A game with an extensive system of over 1500 scalable, chainable, branchable, cooperable, and repeatable dynamic events at launch, spanning 25 incredibly large zones that also hold 6 capital cities and 8 dungeons that each have a story version then 3 challenging explorable mode versions (that's roughly 32 unique dungeon experiences, 24 of them very difficult)...
Astride that is a personal storyline with branching decisions and more voice acting than any other MMO not named Star Wars: The Old Republic...
A massive form of 3 faction PvPvE complete with castle sieges, guild owned keeps, supply lines and mercenary camps...
Completely equalized competetive PvP with hot joinable matches, custom made matches, automated tournaments and a ladder system...
I mean, seriously, it seems to me each one of the things listed here could be it's own game! But they're not. It's all one game, and it'll likely be sold for $60 for the standard edition.
Where I'm going with this is, there's no subscription fee. We know this. There's something that was in Guild Wars 1 that I was soo positive would be in GW2 though, and would've had no qualms about it. Skill and item unlock packs for PvP. They could've been gotten through the PvE or PvP through the investment of time, and it didn't take very long either, but nope! In Guild Wars 2, you get EVERYTHING you'll need for competetive PvP right off the back. Then there's server transfers. On most other subscription MMO's, you also have to pay some ridiculous charge to the tune of about $25 or so just to move servers and play with your friends. Not in Guild Wars 2 though, which is something I'm sure they could've gotten away with(you still need to pay to change your home server to play wuv wuh). They even changed their stance on transmutation stones! They're available through karma vendors instead of the cash shop.
They've also promised us there will be free content updates after the game is released, such as added dynamic events to older areas, guild halls & personal housing, and possibly some of those other things they've mentioned during game conventions that they were meaning to implement but aren't focused on pre-release, such as an observation mode for competetive PvP like the first game.
I don't want to sound like I'm hyping them up to be "good guy ArenaNet" or something, but seriously? And where is NCSoft in all of this? The initial content you're getting in this game looks to be so extremely satisfying for just $60. And everything I listed at the top will only ever have costed you $60... so I reitterate my quandry, is ArenaNet allergic to money?
As for the text marked in red......i even remember blizzard promised housing and stuff in vanilla wow.....it never came.
I'll be waiting untill they actually implement these features.
Look at diablo3 now......the game is being stript down to make it ready for launch......so let's wait for launch and not just create more hype about GW2 ok.
There's nothing wrong with a wait and see attitude. Makes perfect sense. But I've been watching ArenaNet since day one of GW1 and they tend to keep their promises. That or they don't make them to start with. Also, in the time that it took Blizzard to release a single expansion, ArenaNet delivered three. I always thought it was because Blizzard was content to sit on their laurels and collect the monthly subscription revenue, confident that since their players were already on a hook, they could let them dangle for a while. ArenaNet though, needed to keep the content coming to make sure that players stayed interested. And they did.
I think for GW2, ANet will need to be even more aggressive with new content releases given the competition and the fact they need to prove to many that investing their time in the game will continue to be worthwhile. Personally, I'm confident of that, but most have a reason not to be. Other developers in this industry have often been completely full of sh*t so it's hard to trust any of them. I think ArenaNet will be able to change that perception for a lot of people.
It may seem generous, and Anet does look like they actually care about their game and their fans, however the reason why they put in so much stuff for such a price is eventually because they expect that will earn them a lot of money.
The only way for them to make money off of their content at launch in a manner that's not completely assholish and a complete disregard to their previous mode of business would be to make large content packages or expansions and sell them.
It's up to you as a player to decide if their content is worth your money, but if you've already fallen in love with their game, you'll definitely be inclined to get more of it, I'm sure. They're making content that people would want to buy, and if people complain about that, then they're just being greedy or selfish or something. I have no other way of describing them.
For me it depends on how its priced.
10$ for what would have been a content patch in a P2P MMO? Sure, 5$ for a dungeon or two? NTY.
People paid $20+ for a mount so i'm sure they could sell small content for $5
I never paid a dime towards that kinda stuff.
one of the reasons I dislike B2P model, sure its not as bad as F2P but the fact that its still there annoys me. Also since GW2 is an actually MMO its goign to require more money to add more content, and you can only get so much from box sales.
You actually expect the game to be given to you, for free? You actualy think the cash shop is going to compensate them for the MILLIONS they have spent?
The mentality of gamers today just amazes me! Gimme Gimme Gimme Gimme!!
First off, NCsoft is the publisher. Meaning they are fronting the money and agree with the b2p business model. Secodly, there is a lot of money to be made with 1) released full priced expansions which will come often, 2) Item and account purchases.
Just having a sub fee does not equal more profit to be made. Guild Wars 1, which would have failed as a p2p rpg (entirely instanced) was a huge success as a b2p with many xpacs type of product. That same line of success dictates they would need to continue the process to stay competetive and keep with the business model which they are known for.
I would not say Arenanet and NCsoft are being generous...I would rather say they are being SMART and consistent with the franchise.
Expansions will be out every 3-4 months to offset the subscription lost.
It will work out the same as a subscription way if you want to keep up with the game and stay competative.
So rather than take your money by subs they will get if from expansions.
Looking forward to it though, eyes wide open.
This.
Not that this is bad, or certainly not an equivalent to a sub based model. Instead of them just getting $15 a month automagically, they will have to "reconvince" me that their game is worth dumping more money into, and that their expac is worth however much it costs. This means there's more of an incentive to make each expac worth the money.
However, where this COULD lead, is to expacs that give people what they want in a very superficial sort of way. Like McDonalds succeeds in making hi cal low nutrition food quickly and conveniently, Anet could make the Xpacs appeal to the more superficial wants of gamers: More powerful gear, new level caps, etc.. Basically providing things in the xpacs that are essential to be competitive in the game.
Hard to say how the model will be used at this point, but I'm interested in the game.
Why would you need to buy new expansions in order to stay competitive? The most important skills are tied to your weapon and I doubt they will add new weapons with each expansion. They've experienced the game-breaking number of 1500 skills in GW1 and learned from their mistake(s). Obviously.
Unlike blizzard who charge you a sub and then fool people into spending 25 dollars on a stupid sparkley pony.
Sorry but what you just said sounds foolish. No one is forced or tricked into buying cosmetic items in any game. If someone wants to blow money on them, its their choice and they are responsible for that choice. You make it sound like Blizzard is trying to trick you to make your own choices as to what you want to buy. Furthermore, if that upsets you, i would recommend avoiding mass effect 3 at all cost (literally when I mean "costs")
Expansions will be out every 3-4 months to offset the subscription lost.
It will work out the same as a subscription way if you want to keep up with the game and stay competative.
So rather than take your money by subs they will get if from expansions.
Looking forward to it though, eyes wide open.
This.
Not that this is bad, or certainly not an equivalent to a sub based model. Instead of them just getting $15 a month automagically, they will have to "reconvince" me that their game is worth dumping more money into, and that their expac is worth however much it costs. This means there's more of an incentive to make each expac worth the money.
However, where this COULD lead, is to expacs that give people what they want in a very superficial sort of way. Like McDonalds succeeds in making hi cal low nutrition food quickly and conveniently, Anet could make the Xpacs appeal to the more superficial wants of gamers: More powerful gear, new level caps, etc.. Basically providing things in the xpacs that are essential to be competitive in the game.
Hard to say how the model will be used at this point, but I'm interested in the game.
I dont see any reason why they wouldnt continue with the exact same model they used in the original - very large expansion packs every 6 months for the price of a new game.
The original GW1 expansions were standalone adventures (but connected if you owned more than one), not sure if that will continue, although it is possible. Players with any one of the expansions were competitive in PvP, as progression was horizontal rather than vertical.
ArenaNet is very wary of making any expansions or purchases compulsary to remain competitive because they know that just pisses their customers off, something other developers havent quite grasped yet (I am looking at you SoE).
Expansions will be out every 3-4 months to offset the subscription lost.
It will work out the same as a subscription way if you want to keep up with the game and stay competative.
So rather than take your money by subs they will get if from expansions.
Looking forward to it though, eyes wide open.
Please dont make things that are not gonna happen sound like facts.
They tried to have 2 teams working on expansions and bring em out in 6 month intervals. It didnt work. 1 year from PROP to FAC and 1,5 years from that to NF. I also doubt they want to fragment the population on every server even further. If there s gonna be paid expansions they ll be big and world changing. Zhaitan is only one of the 5 dragons. Everything else (updates, new events, new small areas) ll be free. Yes they r that generous!
Then again they ve also expanded the cash shop to keep money flowing between expansions.
Well, I think that if GW2 had no competitors, they could easily make more money with a sub fee than without one. Just look at the revenue of NCSoft's sub games like Aion or Lineage 2 vs. GW1. That said though, I wouldn't confuse GW2's pricing model with altruism. It's definitely a business strategy...and believe me, I'm sure they spent a lot of time analyzing alternatives before they decided on their pricing model.
IMO, when a company makes a product that many consider to be on par with, if not better than the industry leader, and then offer this product at a lower price point, they do this for only one reason. Aggression. I think that ANet is trying to aggressively position GW2 against WoW and break its stranglehold on the market. They are doing this by trying to make a superior product and then offer it for less money.
ANet has even said at a few points that they want to make the "best MMORPG out there" and well, this can interpreted to mean that they want GW2 to be better than WoW, since WoW is by a far margin the most successful MMORPG. And when you think about it, even though the game is B2P, they will STILL make mad money if they succeed at attracting the multi-million player levels that WoW has.
So basically, I think the pricing model is an aggressive attempt to dethrone WoW. I'm not saying GW2 is the WoW killer, but I'm saying that's probably ANet's goal.
Made a mistake. Forgot how short the time was between FAC and NF. They did say they abandoned this model though and focused more on MT.
They did. They said the 6-month model just wasn't working for them, and they'd end up having to cut out or reduce content ideas just to hit the 6-month dev mark.
Guild Wars: Eyes of the North and Guild Wars 2 were both originally part of the expansion to be released after Nightfall, called Utopia. They ended up dropping the 6-month model during development of it, then separated Utopia up and re-worked it into Eyes of The North, while also starting work on Guild Wars 2.
So no, there isn't going to be some 2-3 month expansion packs, 6 months is more than likely not going to occur either.
Comments
i have no doubt that arenanet will deliver us a game that will be really worth its money......that i think we can all agree on
Dafuq u spent your money on?
I for one bought Nighfall CE + regular Prohpecies for 30 Bucks(what kind of sorcery that was is beyond me tho)
Did you like buy three more character slots every month?? That's the only explanation I can think of.. Otherwise there is almost no way you could spent more than 150 Dollars on complete GW1 pack O.o
I think I actually spent way more time reading and theorycrafting about MMOs than playing them
I have heard many good things about Vanilla WoW but got there a bit late and was only able to experience the point where everything broke down. Just before LK and just after CATA.
But good point. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed exporing the original continents and how epic some of those quests were. I'll never forget my Warlock horse quest. Good times.
Play for fun. Play to win. Play for perfection. Play with friends. Play in another world. Why do you play?
It's all about quality gaming time. GW gives that time with fun and friendly players.
I think retitle this post to: ArenaNet just isn`t greedy.
I think people are getting horizontal and vertical progression confused. o.o
Horizontal is the Guild Wars model, where new armor adds no numerical advantages. Vertical is the typical raiding framework, where content is gated by strength of players gear.
Yupp it's amazing what you can get for just the price of the box... And I really appreciate that friendly attitude (as opposed to "the customer is our enemy and we must fight him for every nickel... they're all a bunch of pirates anyway" attitude some OTHER companies I'm not going to mention choose to take).
And that's why I'll happily buy shit like this:
http://store.penny-arcade.com/products/charr-plush
First off, I doubt there will be expansions every three months. You can't fully test an expansion in three months, let alone design and test it in three months! They managed almost yearly with GW and I'm sure they will have a similar goal this time around.
So, why the B2P model?
Look at the MMO industry post WoW. Retention rates are horrible and all those $$$ publishers see when they dream about subscription fees pretty quickly dwindle to numbers that may, or may not, be profitable, but certainly disappoint the hopes and dreams of many an MMO publisher's Executive.
It's more than just having typical one year subscription revenues being much lower than expected.These subscription fees also drive away players who bought the box and might have remained players and fans, if not for the fact that they came to find that the game just wasn't worth $15/month.
We see some proof of that in the occassional success that has occured when a once subscription based AAA MMO has switched to a F2P model. However, these titles have already burned so many bridges to so many fans that they never recover many of those who left, even when there is no longer a subscription fee.
The GW2 Buy to Play model burns no bridges and never forces a player to make a monthly decision of whether or not the game is still worth $15/month. I would still be playing SWTOR if it was B2P. I would have played Rift much longer if it had been B2P. Same with Warhammer Online and several other games I have long since abandoned.
How does this translate into profit? Well, one can assume that they may manage a lot more box sales with people understanding the game is B2P, since that box price has a lot more value when there is no subscription fee attached. By keeping fans as fans, even if a fan's interest waxes and wanes over the months following launch, they still are likely to provide positive word of mouth on the game. Also, with no subscription fee, you can never lose subscribers. The number of registered accounts will continue to grow over time in a way that is impossible for most subscription based MMOs in the post WoW era.
Fans buy expansions. Fans convert friends into fans. General word of mouth drives new business and if you can achieve any sort of momentum, the snowball effect can produce some pretty impressive sales numbers. (I'm sure they also hope that some fans will like the game enough to show their appreciation by making purchases in the cash shop).
GW2 is a much more impressive game than GW1. It may just be one of the most impressive MMORPGs made in quite some time. Coupled with the B2P business model this game should sell millions of boxes by the time the one year anniversary of release hits. Compare that to box sales and overall subscription revenues for most post-WoW MMOs and the business model will show exactly why Arenanet has chosen it.
In Summary: Total volume of box sales and millions of loyal customers, (many of whom will buy expansions and cash shop items), trump subscription fees.
Want to know more about GW2 and why there is so much buzz? Start here: Guild Wars 2 Mass Info for the Uninitiated
I am concerned with PvE difficult too and if you can fail dynamic events but remember dynamic events are suppose to be casual content. Dungeons are a step up in difficulty from dynamic events and still their are exploration mode dungeons. We still have not seen anyone do a explorable mode dungeons yet and since gear progression is horizontal you can expect them to be very difficult.
In WoW the first version of the raiding instance Molten Core was impossible to beat. Guilds even had full fire resist for Ragnoros and was still getting destoryed. It was not until Blizzard nerfed the boss that guilds were able to kill him. Blizzard has overtuned boss for multiple Raiding instance to stop progression at the final bosses C'Thun, Lady Vashi, M'uru, etc. I am expecting the explorable mode dungeons to be similiar in difficult but their will be no need to nerf a boss when gear is not an issue. So they should be HARD and require organized groups of players.
There's nothing wrong with a wait and see attitude. Makes perfect sense. But I've been watching ArenaNet since day one of GW1 and they tend to keep their promises. That or they don't make them to start with. Also, in the time that it took Blizzard to release a single expansion, ArenaNet delivered three. I always thought it was because Blizzard was content to sit on their laurels and collect the monthly subscription revenue, confident that since their players were already on a hook, they could let them dangle for a while. ArenaNet though, needed to keep the content coming to make sure that players stayed interested. And they did.
I think for GW2, ANet will need to be even more aggressive with new content releases given the competition and the fact they need to prove to many that investing their time in the game will continue to be worthwhile. Personally, I'm confident of that, but most have a reason not to be. Other developers in this industry have often been completely full of sh*t so it's hard to trust any of them. I think ArenaNet will be able to change that perception for a lot of people.
Time will tell though.
You actually expect the game to be given to you, for free? You actualy think the cash shop is going to compensate them for the MILLIONS they have spent?
The mentality of gamers today just amazes me! Gimme Gimme Gimme Gimme!!
First off, NCsoft is the publisher. Meaning they are fronting the money and agree with the b2p business model. Secodly, there is a lot of money to be made with 1) released full priced expansions which will come often, 2) Item and account purchases.
Just having a sub fee does not equal more profit to be made. Guild Wars 1, which would have failed as a p2p rpg (entirely instanced) was a huge success as a b2p with many xpacs type of product. That same line of success dictates they would need to continue the process to stay competetive and keep with the business model which they are known for.
I would not say Arenanet and NCsoft are being generous...I would rather say they are being SMART and consistent with the franchise.
What a blatant viral thread.
Unlike blizzard who charge you a sub and then fool people into spending 25 dollars on a stupid sparkley pony.
This.
Not that this is bad, or certainly not an equivalent to a sub based model. Instead of them just getting $15 a month automagically, they will have to "reconvince" me that their game is worth dumping more money into, and that their expac is worth however much it costs. This means there's more of an incentive to make each expac worth the money.
However, where this COULD lead, is to expacs that give people what they want in a very superficial sort of way. Like McDonalds succeeds in making hi cal low nutrition food quickly and conveniently, Anet could make the Xpacs appeal to the more superficial wants of gamers: More powerful gear, new level caps, etc.. Basically providing things in the xpacs that are essential to be competitive in the game.
Hard to say how the model will be used at this point, but I'm interested in the game.
Why would you need to buy new expansions in order to stay competitive? The most important skills are tied to your weapon and I doubt they will add new weapons with each expansion. They've experienced the game-breaking number of 1500 skills in GW1 and learned from their mistake(s). Obviously.
Sorry but what you just said sounds foolish. No one is forced or tricked into buying cosmetic items in any game. If someone wants to blow money on them, its their choice and they are responsible for that choice. You make it sound like Blizzard is trying to trick you to make your own choices as to what you want to buy. Furthermore, if that upsets you, i would recommend avoiding mass effect 3 at all cost (literally when I mean "costs")
I dont see any reason why they wouldnt continue with the exact same model they used in the original - very large expansion packs every 6 months for the price of a new game.
The original GW1 expansions were standalone adventures (but connected if you owned more than one), not sure if that will continue, although it is possible. Players with any one of the expansions were competitive in PvP, as progression was horizontal rather than vertical.
ArenaNet is very wary of making any expansions or purchases compulsary to remain competitive because they know that just pisses their customers off, something other developers havent quite grasped yet (I am looking at you SoE).
I hope we can expect the same deals in Guild Wars 2 as the ones from Guild Wars, like 50% off different items during each sale.
NightFall was released 6 months after Factions.
Muphry's Law.
Hmmm...
Well, I think that if GW2 had no competitors, they could easily make more money with a sub fee than without one. Just look at the revenue of NCSoft's sub games like Aion or Lineage 2 vs. GW1. That said though, I wouldn't confuse GW2's pricing model with altruism. It's definitely a business strategy...and believe me, I'm sure they spent a lot of time analyzing alternatives before they decided on their pricing model.
IMO, when a company makes a product that many consider to be on par with, if not better than the industry leader, and then offer this product at a lower price point, they do this for only one reason. Aggression. I think that ANet is trying to aggressively position GW2 against WoW and break its stranglehold on the market. They are doing this by trying to make a superior product and then offer it for less money.
ANet has even said at a few points that they want to make the "best MMORPG out there" and well, this can interpreted to mean that they want GW2 to be better than WoW, since WoW is by a far margin the most successful MMORPG. And when you think about it, even though the game is B2P, they will STILL make mad money if they succeed at attracting the multi-million player levels that WoW has.
So basically, I think the pricing model is an aggressive attempt to dethrone WoW. I'm not saying GW2 is the WoW killer, but I'm saying that's probably ANet's goal.
Are you team Azeroth, team Tyria, or team Jacob?
They did. They said the 6-month model just wasn't working for them, and they'd end up having to cut out or reduce content ideas just to hit the 6-month dev mark.
Guild Wars: Eyes of the North and Guild Wars 2 were both originally part of the expansion to be released after Nightfall, called Utopia. They ended up dropping the 6-month model during development of it, then separated Utopia up and re-worked it into Eyes of The North, while also starting work on Guild Wars 2.
So no, there isn't going to be some 2-3 month expansion packs, 6 months is more than likely not going to occur either.
60 dollars for a quality video game? Yea, that sounds about right. You're just used to developer stealing your money.