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advertisements for MMO's with a "best before" date
ArcAngel3
Member Posts: 2,931
We've all seen MMO's advertised with various features, items, quests etc.. What has become clear is that some, definitely not all, MMO service providers think that it's acceptable to hook people with an ad. for something that they are planning to delete in two weeks time. We've then seen people try to justify this by quoting a EULA, which may say something like "the company reserves the right to enhance the game at anytime."
No one in their right mind would think that deleting brand new features you just advertised is an enhancement, unless you're SOE or LA I guess.
What would you think of having along with any such advertisements, a mandatory disclosure of how long the advertised features etc. will be valid in-game for, with the same functionality?
What if there was also a mandatory 2 month warning period for changes to advertised features, enabling you to make informed decisions about resubscribing?
Game companies want to continue to make their services more entertaining and marketable. I think this is a good thing.
Customers simply want to know what they are getting when they subscribe, and how long they can expect it to be available.
So, if you're a game company, go ahead and advertise new features and loot etc., but let people know how long these things are going to be available to them, and give them fair warning with options regarding their subscriptions when you are planning to make changes.
Thinking out loud here, any feedback would be welcome.
Comments
"Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided"
Best use by: 4/26/2005
Discard after: 11/14/2005
"If I had a penny for everytime a frustrated fanboi hits the report button, I could end world hunger."
Whats that for a game design to have features/items being good only for a limited time....
running into this..well ..
But have it in your game design...boooo
(behind the scenes i guess some marketing mouths watering about that)
-----MY-TERMS-OF-USE--------------------------------------------------
$OE - eternal enemy of online gaming
-We finally WON !!!! 2011 $OE accepted that they have been fired 2005 by the playerbase and closed down ridiculous NGE !!
"There was suppression of speech and all kinds of things between disturbing and fascistic." Raph Koster (parted $OE)
A step in the right direction, but it could be used in a negative way as well - particularily with RMT's.
Earth & Beyond
Discard after: September 22, 2004!
RIP!
Kind of on topic... How many think that EA's eventual goal if they stay in the MMO business (and they might not if WAR tanks which I think it might) will be to follow the "Madden" model and release a new version of the client every year (basically an expansion) that the players are REQUIRED to buy or have their online service "sunsetted" after a time.
They do something very similar with online play on their sports games. Even if Madden 2008 has only tiny changes over `07 you lose the ability to play online after the new one comes out.
Thus, Madden MMO 2008 players have to purchase Madden MMO 2009 (whether it has anything new you want or not) to continue playing... This would be forcing 100% of the player base to buy all expansions.
"If I had a penny for everytime a frustrated fanboi hits the report button, I could end world hunger."
You know, maybe it would be better if they just highlight in the EULA the process by which real enhancements will be made to the game. SOE had a process of announcements, testing, feedback and implementation, but especially in the case of the NGE they didn't follow it.
What if that process was clarified in the EULA?
What I'm looking for is a way of eliminating the likelihood of unpleasant surprises for subscribers.
SOE always had that with SWG, the "in concept", "in development", "in testing" forums. But NEVER once followed that process. During the times they got into trouble and made promise #6,326 to "communicate better" inevitably part of that was that they would follow that process.
They never did. Those forums vanished with the NGE reorg too. The only times they ever went through the motions of using that process were for trivialities, NOT real decisions like the CU or NGE. This still continues today even with this "we really listen now" dev team, the only things the players get input on are meaningless things. The Jedi nerf wasn't ever up for discussion.
The problem with a EULA is that it's one sided. They only take rights from customers, they grant nothing in terms of obligations by the publisher in return. Which is why they are pretty much worthless as enforceable contracts, since contracts are not drawn up in this way.
The only way this is going to change is if we, the players, make them change. WE hold all the power. This is the dirty secret that the industry doesn't want us to realize, and it suppresses it. MMO games and publishers are as volatile as vapor. Their survival depends on their players to decide every month to spend that $14.95. No $14.95*x... No game.
It's time for the one sidedness, condescension, and contempt (basically the whole Chris Cao attitude) to end. WE are the owners of the MMO. WE are the boss.
"If I had a penny for everytime a frustrated fanboi hits the report button, I could end world hunger."
While I applaud you for your creative thinking and the funny reply after your post... i think that we have a bigger issue that needs to be dealt with. Its called the terms of agreement. Every gamer should know what evil phrase im talking about. Im talking about the "Game change may vary" crutch that many mmos are leaning on nowadays.
While its a fact that we can't totally obliterate the terms in court (due to the fact that it would make many devs leave the industry due to having their creativity confined too much.. thus killing our genre ) nor can we keep letting it be abused as is... (otherwise we will get many repeats of what SoE did to SWG from other devs as well...)
So what can we do really? Those are two extremes but at some point there has to be a line drawn that if a game company tries to cross that line and make excessive changes... the customers should (by law) have an option to get a certian amount of money back or something along those lines.
So what can you do? Its a fine dance really...
"Do not fret! Your captain is about to enter Valhalla!" - General Beatrix of Alexandria
"The acquisition of knowledge is of use to the intellect, for nothing can be loved or hated without first being known." - Leo da Vinci
Earth and Beyond is still in the making lol.
----------------------------
Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils ... - Louis Hector Berlioz
SOE always had that with SWG, the "in concept", "in development", "in testing" forums. But NEVER once followed that process. During the times they got into trouble and made promise #6,326 to "communicate better" inevitably part of that was that they would follow that process.
They never did. Those forums vanished with the NGE reorg too. The only times they ever went through the motions of using that process were for trivialities, NOT real decisions like the CU or NGE. This still continues today even with this "we really listen now" dev team, the only things the players get input on are meaningless things. The Jedi nerf wasn't ever up for discussion.
The problem with a EULA is that it's one sided. They only take rights from customers, they grant nothing in terms of obligations by the publisher in return. Which is why they are pretty much worthless as enforceable contracts, since contracts are not drawn up in this way.
The only way this is going to change is if we, the players, make them change. WE hold all the power. This is the dirty secret that the industry doesn't want us to realize, and it suppresses it. MMO games and publishers are as volatile as vapor. Their survival depends on their players to decide every month to spend that $14.95. No $14.95*x... No game.
It's time for the one sidedness, condescension, and contempt (basically the whole Chris Cao attitude) to end. WE are the owners of the MMO. WE are the boss.
I'm enjoying reading your posts in this thread and others. What I'd like to see is that consumers have some clear recourse if these communication processes aren't followed.I want to highlight that most game companies do follow their own policies, and that is why they succeed. This tightening up on service provider communication is only necessary for companies with few or no ethics to speak of. They don't seem to notice that their games are virtually empty. They seem to count on the next gimmick or scam to sucker just a little bit more cash out of unsuspecting gamers.
Just imagine for example, giving SOE actual dollars for in-game items in the upcoming agency game. That makes me shudder, especially if the agency has a EULA like SWG that says they can "enhance" the game anytime they want. Since "enhancement" in SOE language can mean disabling items, deleting professions and invalidating progress, they could sell you a new spy gadget one day for real cash and then delete it or alter it beyond recognition shortly thereafter.
Complaints? well you clicked "I agree" on our EULA; please don't pay any attention to the fact that it isn't valid in your jurisdiction. And pretty please don't investigate how to have criminal actions prosecuted outside of your particular jurisdiction.
Read any MMO EULA and they can be digested down to this:
Player's obligation to publisher: Pay $14.95 a month
Publisher's obligation to the player: NOTHING
EULA's dont' even give a player any recourse if the publisher doesn't even operate the service (ie: has long downtimes).
"If I had a penny for everytime a frustrated fanboi hits the report button, I could end world hunger."
Actualy E&B ran for only two years before EA stated they didnt want to do MMO's and killed the servers. Right now there is a EMU being made but that is forbiden discussion due to the admins here not wanting the complete truth to get out about the status on many games. Guess SOE lines their pockets to keep such things quiet.
I think you have a point, and the fact is, this is not acceptable. Regulation is going to catch up with this industry just as it has with other communication and entertainment services. Meanwhile, consumers need to be wary of companies that will exploit them. Some companies will, opting for the quick, easy, short-term cash grab. Others won't, opting for a positive reputation, and a steady increase in demand for a good service over time.
I think you have a point, and the fact is, this is not acceptable. Regulation is going to catch up with this industry just as it has with other communication and entertainment services. Meanwhile, consumers need to be wary of companies that will exploit them. Some companies will, opting for the quick, easy, short-term cash grab. Others won't, opting for a positive reputation, and a steady increase in demand for a good service over time.
Yup. And the excessive abuse of the industry, the complete LACK of self regulation will make it far worse than it should be once it's imposed.
The SOE SWG team, with it's CUNGE, is, of course, a textbook example of lack of self regulation. Their attitude was "damn the players, full NGE ahead!"
If publishers want to avoid excessive government interference and regulation in the future, would do well to engage in proactive behavior, such as adopting an industry standard "player's bill of rights" that is a commitment to NOT engage in the behaviors that led to the demise of SWG.
They haven't. They won't.
It will be forced on them though.
"If I had a penny for everytime a frustrated fanboi hits the report button, I could end world hunger."
Self regulated responsibility is why we as consumers always have the power. The retail and corporate world has gone to great lengths to make the consumers forget this. Our power is in our commitment to demand for ourselves what we desire and expect in return for our money.
In my humble opinion, for this example, anyone who still plays SWG:NGE and enjoyed the Pre-CU, and complained about the sweeping game features, or understood the willful and admitted deceit in which they were implemented is frankly a weak-willed pansy soulless pushover that takes that kind of crap in the R/L, who deserves no respect from the gaming industry. And it is these Sallies that will eventually let everything in their lives be comprimised to ruin, it just so happens that a minute aspect of their lives, On-line gaming matches up with mine, and as such affects me, albeit in a very (over-all) tiny way.
But they are just games, hobbies. . . .which is why I haven't jumped off of a bridge, or let it ruin my life in anyway. But what is not a game is the way people in this situation let themselves get treated. I would not let anyone treat me that way in any circumstance even in my hobbies.
So with that being said, the only way to get basic human and consumer respect from the developers and the gaming industry is to constantly vote with our money. For example, and concerning SOE, for years they made smaller changes to all of their games, but all changes that I could live with, and as such continued to play, or at least try their games. But, after what they did with the NGE I willed to never knowingly give them another bit of my money. Ever. I don't play EQ, I did, I don't play EQ2, I did, I do not play SWG, I did, I did not try PotBS, and I am not going to try The Agency. I don't even care what I'm missing, or if they're the best games ever, because they are just games, and I can find something else to do. But my earned money which is a tangible symbol of my sold time is not a game, and I will not treat it as such.
I haven't even bought a PS3 or any other Sony products since then.
Bottom line: if you do not like the way you are being treated then stop letting yourself be treated that way. Then you will not have to fear the future and the treatment of you in it. Especially involving unimportant stuff like gaming.
So it goes. . .
T