I'd say hovering around 230k, maybe less now. They wanted 490k best scenario, prepared for a age of conan scenario around 300k. They actually said they're falling short of that and I got my numbers by extrapolating from xfire graphs of a couple other MMORPGs, then used that to estimate TSW.
Outside of a genric "there are not as many people playing as they wanted" we really don't have any accurate means of gauging the current, active, player population. Pulling available numbers from Xfire just doesn't cut it. You can't even fairly speculate off of those figures based on other games as the user base isn't consistent. I doubt Funcom will release hard numbers anytime soon and are liable to make a F2P announcement before then leaving us with nothing but a blanket "account" total anyway. It is what it is. Unknown...
I don't think going F2P will even save it tbh (like it probably will with swtor). The style of the game just hasn't appealed to many people at all. It's still not clear who exactly their target audience was supposed to be.
had 5 in my guild actually purchase. they are all done with it and cancelled, but none of them said it was a bad game. i actually asked tonight and they agreed it was worth the play through.
I see this a lot. I also understand it since I played in the CB and it is a good game for the most part. But it does not really warrant a sub for me and for many. Should have been f2p or b2p to increase their population and at least have a chance at a bigger community to keep the game going because the content is just not enough.
Had 20 of the 21 in my cabal quit for now, until a few months down the line. We'll all resub for a month then.
Don't know how to judge the numbers on the servers. Agartha has plenty of Nightmare mode requests, to the point spamming has become the norm.
Kingsmouth seems to get plenty of new players, even outside the free weekends but look for a group in egypt and it becomes VERY lonesome.
Not sure what that means. It could just show a fractured playing base, the rushers grinding purple gear, the RP people still in Kingsmouth trading stories.
Funcom screwed up the launch. Having the bank system missing AGAIN at launch just made it to risky that this would be an AoC 2. When you got a bad reputation, you can't afford any mistakes and plenty of people remember AoC.
Right now, TSW is a decent game for those willing to put up with it bugs and shortcomings (no working chairs at all? Even SWTOR had some in your personal ship that you couldn't personalize and everyone had the same model).
Mail only in London, no customization of clothes (come on, Funcom should have known people would want to recolor clothes), high graphics demand, launching just two months in front of GW2... a niche game with tons of depth can do this (See Eve) but we have to see if TSW makes that very short list. The list of also rans, is far far longer (see list on the left of all MMO's on MMORPG.
I understand some of your points, but what about that one? I got more clothes in my dressing room, than i can wear. And i never used the cash shop for it.
Strange thing is TSW isnt a bad mmo, the thing that disturbed me the most was how outdated the animations / movement was. It just dint feel like WoW/GW2 but overal i think TSW was good while it lasted :P
Strange thing is TSW isnt a bad mmo, the thing that disturbed me the most was how outdated the animations / movement was. It just dint feel like WoW/GW2 but overal i think TSW was good while it lasted :P
I watched the combat videos also and, yes they were disturbing. This could be a reason for subscription loss right there. Even before release, fans were releasing reviews and youtube videos criticizing the quality, but nothing was done. Even gamebreaker mentioned how it looked like an MMO from ~ years past (TWIMMO).
Not every buyer into TSW bothers to check out videos and reviews, so this could account for some of the disappointment.
Some found out that themepark games have an ending, and endgame isn't all that fun. More horizontal progression?
Still others may have realized after the fact that EA was involved so there would be a nifty cash shop. Some not all would have seen this, because I would like to have some faith in humanity that many stayed away because they knew EA had influence in this game.
So subscribers drop off from (1) game issues like combat, (2) Themepark end-of-game stalemate, (3) lack of knowledge on who the main corporate players are.
If TSW goes truly F2P, not this freemium crap, then I'll check it out. But EA is involved so it will likely go freemium and contribute to polluting how good Truly F2P games actually are.
To further this satire, Funcom is now en-debted to EA, so if anyone is to acquire Funcom, it will be EA, at a nice discount. Yeah.
I understand some of your points, but what about that one? I got more clothes in my dressing room, than i can wear. And i never used the cash shop for it.
Okay, customize THOSE clothes. Not customize your outfit, but the actual clothes. if you played The Sims, you can change the colors of clothes, the materials and patterns. So, the gangster style hat, could have a red ribbon instead of a grey one. The game would no longer sell a red shirt, a blue shirt but just the model and YOU pick your own color for all the parts that can take a seperate color.
Right now, if you mix and match outfits, colors often don't match up. Just the wrong shades of brown for instance or a black that isn't black.
It might seem trivial stuff but the moment Funcom went the The Sims route, they should have gone the whole way. The Sims players are willing to spend a lot of cash on outfits, a dream source of income that is giving EA a steady source of income.
I enjoy the game, and I will keep playing it because I have the lifetime sub. But it doesn't really feel like an MMO to be, in that I don't feel connected to the world. Less than any MMO i've played to be honest.
Its a fun game to play casually, but I do think designing it as a kinda hub based CORPG like Guild Wars 1 would have been a better option. I think a lot of people are playing through the zones then saying "ok, ill quit till a new zone comes out" and its not that they don't like the game, they just don't feel like living in the world.
It's perfect for me with the lifetime sub, i can play GW2 and maybe WoW and still have access to TSW when i feel like it.
Comments
As expected this game flopped.
I don't think going F2P will even save it tbh (like it probably will with swtor). The style of the game just hasn't appealed to many people at all. It's still not clear who exactly their target audience was supposed to be.
Had 20 of the 21 in my cabal quit for now, until a few months down the line. We'll all resub for a month then.
Basically id say they are around 300k subs.
Don't know how to judge the numbers on the servers. Agartha has plenty of Nightmare mode requests, to the point spamming has become the norm.
Kingsmouth seems to get plenty of new players, even outside the free weekends but look for a group in egypt and it becomes VERY lonesome.
Not sure what that means. It could just show a fractured playing base, the rushers grinding purple gear, the RP people still in Kingsmouth trading stories.
Funcom screwed up the launch. Having the bank system missing AGAIN at launch just made it to risky that this would be an AoC 2. When you got a bad reputation, you can't afford any mistakes and plenty of people remember AoC.
Right now, TSW is a decent game for those willing to put up with it bugs and shortcomings (no working chairs at all? Even SWTOR had some in your personal ship that you couldn't personalize and everyone had the same model).
Mail only in London, no customization of clothes (come on, Funcom should have known people would want to recolor clothes), high graphics demand, launching just two months in front of GW2... a niche game with tons of depth can do this (See Eve) but we have to see if TSW makes that very short list. The list of also rans, is far far longer (see list on the left of all MMO's on MMORPG.
o.O
I understand some of your points, but what about that one? I got more clothes in my dressing room, than i can wear. And i never used the cash shop for it.
Hodor!
329 452 subscribers as of 12 PDT yesterday.
Strange thing is TSW isnt a bad mmo, the thing that disturbed me the most was how outdated the animations / movement was.
It just dint feel like WoW/GW2 but overal i think TSW was good while it lasted :P
Source?
I watched the combat videos also and, yes they were disturbing. This could be a reason for subscription loss right there. Even before release, fans were releasing reviews and youtube videos criticizing the quality, but nothing was done. Even gamebreaker mentioned how it looked like an MMO from ~ years past (TWIMMO).
Not every buyer into TSW bothers to check out videos and reviews, so this could account for some of the disappointment.
Some found out that themepark games have an ending, and endgame isn't all that fun. More horizontal progression?
Still others may have realized after the fact that EA was involved so there would be a nifty cash shop. Some not all would have seen this, because I would like to have some faith in humanity that many stayed away because they knew EA had influence in this game.
So subscribers drop off from (1) game issues like combat, (2) Themepark end-of-game stalemate, (3) lack of knowledge on who the main corporate players are.
If TSW goes truly F2P, not this freemium crap, then I'll check it out. But EA is involved so it will likely go freemium and contribute to polluting how good Truly F2P games actually are.
To further this satire, Funcom is now en-debted to EA, so if anyone is to acquire Funcom, it will be EA, at a nice discount. Yeah.
Want a nice understanding of life? Try Spirit Science: "The Human History"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8NNHmV3QPw&feature=plcp
Recognize the voice? Yep sounds like Penny Arcade's Extra Credits.
Okay, customize THOSE clothes. Not customize your outfit, but the actual clothes. if you played The Sims, you can change the colors of clothes, the materials and patterns. So, the gangster style hat, could have a red ribbon instead of a grey one. The game would no longer sell a red shirt, a blue shirt but just the model and YOU pick your own color for all the parts that can take a seperate color.
Right now, if you mix and match outfits, colors often don't match up. Just the wrong shades of brown for instance or a black that isn't black.
It might seem trivial stuff but the moment Funcom went the The Sims route, they should have gone the whole way. The Sims players are willing to spend a lot of cash on outfits, a dream source of income that is giving EA a steady source of income.
I enjoy the game, and I will keep playing it because I have the lifetime sub. But it doesn't really feel like an MMO to be, in that I don't feel connected to the world. Less than any MMO i've played to be honest.
Its a fun game to play casually, but I do think designing it as a kinda hub based CORPG like Guild Wars 1 would have been a better option. I think a lot of people are playing through the zones then saying "ok, ill quit till a new zone comes out" and its not that they don't like the game, they just don't feel like living in the world.
It's perfect for me with the lifetime sub, i can play GW2 and maybe WoW and still have access to TSW when i feel like it.