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Hot news EA Mythic in trouble: 21 customer service employees, half of QA and all of the playtest gro
bodypass
Member Posts: 770
Ok ,
A month ago I predicted that if WAR would fall under 250 K subs it would come under the hammer of EA cuts.
"ALL of the playtest group" : who will do the Beta testing for new content launch then ?
The players as usual?
Reference:
http://www.joystiq.com/2009/01/19/rumor-mythic-layoffs-affect-qa-customer-support/
The past 2 weekends didn't look very good on Xfire, which now shows a 26/1 ratio between Wow and War Xfire players. WE all know that that figure was 6/1 at the end of September....
Just divide 5Million by 26 and it is indeed under the 250K (200K even).
Comments
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
MMO Vet since AOL Neverwinter Nights circa 1992. My MMO beat up your MMO. =S
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
Winner!
I make spreadsheets at work - I don't want to make them for the games I play.
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
Now THAT...is one hell of a novel concept!
Guys did you actually click on the link?
First thing that comes out:
"Rumor: Mythic layoffs affect QA, customer support"
"Hot news" indeed.
Twisting a rumor and trying to trick people into believing it's fact..
There's no doubt about it, bodypass strikes again!
Just read the article and of course EA confirmed it in not that many words.
Of course guys that were layed off went to the press and ....EA DID NOT deny it.
The day Mythic signed for EA they signed their death.... as an independant MMO developper.
THAT was the message. Not the OP. ... btw Massively already brought the news also...
Just read the article and of course EA confirmed it in not that many words.
Of course guys that were layed off went to the press and ....EA DID NOT deny it.
The day Mythic signed for EA they signed their death.... as an independant MMO developper.
THAT was the message. Not the OP. ... btw Massively already brought the news also...
I read it.
I'm not questioning the story itself (which may or may not be true), just the way you told the rumor.
You were trying to trick people into believing it's 100% undeniable, which it is not.
EDIT:
On-topic: Anyway if it's true, I think the lay-offs are simply due to the global economic condition, not a symptom of WAR failing or anything.
I think that WAR has got itself a stable niche population in the market like EVE and LotRO (well, I certainly hope so). It would be too bad for EA to pull the plug just months after the launch. The more MMOs we have the better.
What do you think bodypass? do you want the game to fail or succeed?
Just be happy that you still can play it. Guys from TR don't have that chance.
I remember EA stated at War's launch their aim was 250-K to 350 K subs, because at those rates they were beyond the point of breaking even.
TR had a base of 150 K players in its first months and Lord British himself said he was glad they made it to break even point.
Apparently somewhere between 150-200K subs lays that point of big MMORPG launches these days.
EVE got to that point, LOTRO was sighted at 170 K in March 08 and probably could add a few % with the expansion and up to this moment WAR is above the 200K, maybe even 220 K.
But... you don't have to believe Xfire of course and the ratio of those few thousand player samples. Believe the servers then.
So my statement was: War may not fall below that 200K point or EA could unplug the servers.
A company with a loss of 310 million dollars in ONE quarter (and recently announced a new big loss for the upcoming quarter report) can take some real odd decisions.
That's what I said about the financial analysis a month ago.
I also think that the game is too boring to have long term subs and that's the reason why the situation is not "comfortable". That's just an opinion of course. But 2009's economy is no joke either.
Not with the selling out to EA.
#1 It's not the economy...
even though the economy is faltering, gaming in general is doing great just look at COD4 and FALLOUT3....hell even Star Wars force Unleashed did great...War's just a crappy game who HAS (regardless of Xfire number or not) lost Thousands of Subs.
and not to mention WOW.
EA was targeting 250K subs???? wow, talk about aiming low
too bad they didn't aim any lower because believe me in around 6 months they'll be lucky to have
200k already people are complaing ALOT about 3 things
#1 Endgame collapses
#2 Boredom yes, in just 4 months people are extremely bored of this game, very bored
#3 Imbalanced population aimed at Destro
and lets not forget the last one, if CSR's weren't bad enough, now this....oh boy
and to the Poster who asked the question do we, or he want WAR to fail, that's not for us to decide or answer...I think WAR should be questioned...DO THEY WANT WAR TO FAIL OR SUCCEED...after all it is their game, that some consumers are now currently paying to BETA test....really this is a debacle for EA...
Just be happy that you still can play it. Guys from TR don't have that chance.
I remember EA stated at War's launch their aim was 250-K to 350 K subs, because at those rates they were beyond the point of breaking even.
TR had a base of 150 K players in its first months and Lord British himself said he was glad they made it to break even point.
Apparently somewhere between 150-200K subs lays that point of big MMORPG launches these days.
EVE got to that point, LOTRO was sighted at 170 K in March 08 and probably could add a few % with the expansion and up to this moment WAR is above the 200K, maybe even 220 K.
But... you don't have to believe Xfire of course and the ratio of those few thousand player samples. Believe the servers then.
So my statement was: War may not fall below that 200K point or EA could unplug the servers.
A company with a loss of 310 million dollars in ONE quarter (and recently announced a new big loss for the upcoming quarter report) can take some real odd decisions.
That's what I said about the financial analysis a month ago.
I also think that the game is too boring to have long term subs and that's the reason why the situation is not "comfortable". That's just an opinion of course. But 2009's economy is no joke either.
Not with the selling out to EA.
I can live without the game. I play it casually (a little too casually even). I think it's a good game, but NOT a good MMO. I hop in, join a group or wb, do a PQ or keep siege, a scenario and log off.
I think xfire gives an idea about the trend when there's a big increase or decrease in a game's population. I don't think anyone can deny that WAR's lost quite a bit of players since it's release, however nowadays it's not that apparent that's why I think it has stabilised a bit.
I certainly don't think that EA will 'pull an EA' on WAR anytime soon, and if it doesn't I think Mythic will pull their stuff together and they'll get more subs eventually in the coming months. If they keep on patching and improving the game like they have, there's no reason why not.
Although those layoff don't look like much it pretty much shows the games not doing as well as it should be or they hoped it would.
Damn. Yet another thread with xfire statistics. Pass.
I never use Xfire.
------------------------------
"Capitalism is currently working as intended."
Xfire has nothing to do with mythic laying staff off.
Why do some people feel compelled to come to the forums and put down games, whether it be WAR,
Darkfall or whatever? Do they think that to build themselves up they have to put others down? It's a really sad, pathetic person that needs to do that.
It's obvious that some of the posters, even in this thread, have never played WAR. All they do is regurgetate what they have heard other people say, who probably haven't played the game either.
I have played WAR since release and enjoy it. Just like every other MMO at release, it's had some problems, but Mythic has been very good at addressing them. Because I like the game, I plan on playing for quiet a while. When I no longer am having fun in the game, then I'll quit and do something else. I surely won't come to the forums and bash it because of <insert complaint of the day here>.
I played WoW from beta to about 1 year after release. It was/is a good game, but I found it to be too easy for my tastes. I didn't come to the forums and bash the game just because I got bored with it. Quiet the contrary. I have recommended it to people I knew would enjoy the type of game it is, but wouldn't like WAR because of the type of game it is.
Also, I don't use xfire. Does that mean that I don't count in the subs numbers?
Ion
"#1 It's not the economy..."?!
Imo, its the economy. I dont know what news you read but EA announced layoffs months ago, because their number werent good (and I dont mean WAR's numbers but EA's in general... so no clue why you mentioned games as examples of how they are doing great... they werent). Other companies (yes, that includes companies in the gaming industry) had announce cuts too.
These are facts. If you dont believe me, just google. Look for EA layoffs and you will see that the first news were from during ovtober (which means the decision was made way before).
And I have no clue why you meantioned WoW. Look for Blizzard layoffs too. Next time you have an opinion try not to stay it as a fact but as what it is: your opinion. And do some reseach... at least, google.
CCP is thinking of leaving Iceland... what do you think that will mean for lots of their employees? Free plane tickets? Even if they dont leave Iceland, I am pretty sure they will fire people and, at least, not hire anyone becuase they dont have the cash. And I just mention CCP because I dont think anyone will say that game has flaws... at least not for the 250k subcribers. So the quality of games have few to do with anything of all these lay offs, imo.
And there are already talking about Turbine layoff people... and they have a great MMO: LoTRO. But I think this is not fully confirmed yet.
Some companies (all over the world) had been firing people since months. I have no clue in which world some of the posters live.
Lest me start off by saying that this game kicks ass, and my server is always packed with doods having a great time... my guild is growing every day, and according to our roster, most of us are still playing every day.
Now, EA is laying people off, I think we all knew that some of the Mythic employees wouldn't make it long after launch, even before the recent economic downturn. Layoffs are also commonplace when a game moves from development to live. People are added for the development "crunch time", and it just doesn't take as many people to maintain a live game as it does to develop it.
To sum up... this game kicks ass. I really don't think it has much to do with EAs financial woes. I guess we can also say that poor sales of Warhammer are responsible for Circuit City going tits up.
-----Zero Punctuation Eve Online Review-----
This is where you're wrong. There's a thread on the same issue on the Vnboards and in there MJ replied that just like any other section under EA Mythic has to do their part to help EA reduce that 10%.
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
Statistical logic would dictate that the proportion of people not using x-fire should be the same for both WAR and WoW unless there is a reason for a deviation between the two. I cant see a reason for deviation so the fact that some players are not on x-fire is moot because it holds true for both games.
My gaming blog
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
Statistical logic would dictate that the proportion of people not using x-fire should be the same for both WAR and WoW unless there is a reason for a deviation between the two. I cant see a reason for deviation so the fact that some players are not on x-fire is moot because it holds true for both games.
I'm almost impressed. Dealing with X-fire statistical bias by using another game as a balancing factor.
The logical argument almosts hold right up to the point where you say "I can't see a reason for deviation" & then degenerates into just being your perfectly valid but non factual opinion.
Even if it were correct though it would still only hold true for the portion of both customer bases that use Xfire & which as far too many threads have discussed, is not representative of the majority of players. Making predictions for the whole population based on adjusting stats of biased samples is rarely valid.
I definitely agree that 'moot' is a good description for Xfire though.
If you can't "Have your cake & eat it too", then how can "The proof of the pudding be in the eating"?
Take the Hecatomb? TCG What Is Your Doom? quiz.
Only one problem with you logic. I and everyone I know who plays WAR do not use x-fire. Does that mean we do not count toward subscription numbers? So they, along with many other companies, are cutting jobs. Welcome to the current economy. Do you want a medal for your prediction? How about this, why not go play the game you enjoy, we will play ours, and everyone can be happy without going around and trying to inflate their e-peens?
Cheers!
Will never happen because kids like to bitch.. Them and old guys living in their mothers basements need to do whatever they can to feel right
Fix up Origins server and get your subs back!
Please
Think of xfire as a poll, not everyone votes but you get a general idea of whats going on. WAR will close, its just a matter of time. Why put time into a game that is struggling and failing so badly? I think the server merges a couple weeks after release back up this data and show where the game is headed lol. The toilet
Forget about the Xfire numbers.. go by your gut feeling and on the number of 'closed' servers. A lot of players left Warhammer.
In the past, people have alway said " I don't care what the population of my game is, i love it and I enjoy playing it.. stop telling me X game is better becaues it has more players. Population doesn't matter to me".
But the fact is, this is a business. You will now see the results of lower populations
1. Patches will come out slower, because there is no internal playtest group
2. Patches will come out buggier because there is nobody trying to break the patch before it is released
3. Customer service is a wash though.. Customer servvice is a propotional think to playerbase. As playerbase lowers, so should the number of CS. Players probably won't see any real problems here.
But the first two are big issues. slower development cycle and more bugs/exploits making it into the live game.
Think of xfire as a poll, not everyone votes but you get a general idea of whats going on. WAR will close, its just a matter of time. Why put time into a game that is struggling and failing so badly? I think the server merges a couple weeks after release back up this data and show where the game is headed lol. The toilet
BECOUSE I ENJOY PLAYING THE GAME!
I mean do I need to make it more clear? I do not care whatever the game might go down next hours, next day or next years, becouse I have fun NOW. WoW will close it door sooner or later, so will any other MMO out there. Some might go sooner then the others.
Back to topic, if it is true, it does not mean that there will be no play testing, big change it will be send it to other companies. Most likely somewhere where poeple work cheaper. This will not even decrease the patches, infact for the same money they can have twice as many poeple play testing or it might be send to an other brech of the EA company.
Clearly we do not know, but creating an opinion based on a rumour is bad, becouse it does not contain all the information, becouse it likely no-one is being interviewed or asked about it. Also more websites might report it, becouse news like this speads like a flew and all of an sudden it not even tagged rumour anymore, but poeple actualy start to believe it.
Think of xfire as a poll, not everyone votes but you get a general idea of whats going on. WAR will close, its just a matter of time. Why put time into a game that is struggling and failing so badly? I think the server merges a couple weeks after release back up this data and show where the game is headed lol. The toilet
Hmm, think of Xfire as a poll where only a ridiculously biased sample ever get to vote. Well if those votes were on paper I know where they would be most useful, "The Toilet".
I love the cheery implication of your post though, why play any game when nothing lasts forever?
It doesn't matter if the game lasts another five months, five years or even fifty. As long as whilst they are playing it people feel like they are getting their money's worth that's all that matters.
It's a game not a lifetime commitment. (LOL, I almost said marriage but even that's nothing nowadays).
If you can't "Have your cake & eat it too", then how can "The proof of the pudding be in the eating"?
Take the Hecatomb? TCG What Is Your Doom? quiz.