Station Bundle including SWG.

Bob_Blawblaw · February 2006

http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=8160

Interesting they announce this today.

MX13 · February 2006

Just another way to artificially inflate their Sub numbers. I'm sure they count anyone who has a Station Pass and has at sometime played SWG a "Current Subscriber", and technical they may be right. However, ethically, this is called padding, and is frowned upon in business.

Anyone who buys this pack will be added into the new SWG players numbers, I guarantee you.

That said, it's a smart move on their part. It gives them the industry player numbers they need to claw their way back to a respectable level. Now, if you buy this pack and stick with a Station Access Pass, they can count you as a current subcriber for EACH OF THESE GAMES, even if you don't play all of them. Where someone may play 2 or 3 of these games, now they can add a +5 subcribers total (one for each game) for every buyer.

Get ready in a few months to see a LOT of mag articles/interviews & a TON of statement saying "Our player level have TRIPLED in the last few months." Currently SOE has about 1.5 mil subs total. This move should put them around 3 mil in a few months.

Heck, they may even give all Station Pass users all of the other games for free to they can count them too. It's great PR.

BTW: This means that the NGE is here to stay, and that SOE/LA will let SWG die a slow painful death. No Rollbacks, Reverts or Shutdowns. They are commited to having few players, with less resorces for developing, while cramming expansions down our throat for a game that won't be playable for over a year. This Bundle and the Producer's Letters follow-ups by Smed & Rouge_5 mean the game we loved is dead. SOE doesn't get it. RIP SWG.

Unknown · February 2006

Originally posted by MX13

BTW: This means that the NGE is here to stay, and that SOE/LA will let SWG die a slow painful death. No Rollbacks, Reverts or Shutdowns. They are commited to having few players, with less resorces for developing, while cramming expansions down our throat for a game that won't be playable for over a year. This Bundle and the Producer's Letters follow-ups by Smed & Rouge_5 mean the game we loved is dead. SOE doesn't get it. RIP SWG.

I firmly believe that $OE and LA would go as far as letting SWG run at a loss due to the colossal symbolic impact shutting it down would have. From anyone on the outside looking in (investors, the gaming community at large, etc), the inability to maintain even a skeletal subscriber base for a Star Wars game is about as massive a failure as you can commit. It would basically the Enron of the gaming world, although maybe it'll end up that way anyhow.

Shayde · February 2006

Sure.. type THIS out as I'm typing my giant post :P

CURSE MY SLOW FINGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

MX13 · February 2006

Originally posted by Shayde

Sure.. type THIS out as I'm typing my giant post :P
CURSE MY SLOW FINGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hehe... "How's that curse I cursed you with, Cursed-y?"

Wakizashi · February 2006

*shakes fist in the air*

Ehmma · February 2006

I did not see that listed yet at work. I thought it funny that we no longer sell EQ2 starter at Best Buy anymore that I could find.

Still got tons of Galaxies Starter Kits. woohoo.

Cymek · February 2006

Well, SWG is officially on life support.

I bet all the fanbois will be happy when Mos Eisley gets a sudden surge of people from MxO, Planetside and EQ.

viadi · February 2006

All this makes me this that they is more meat to this rumour than meets the eye. I think that soon (possibly only 18 months - 2 years) SOE will be no more maybe Darth $medious has run it into the ground

Elnator · February 2006

Guys, NGE has been part of the pass since it was SWG. This is just a bundle putting all their MMO's out there so users don't have to buy them separately. And for the price... I suspect it's a very smart move, marketting wise. From a 'life support' standpoint it doesn't make NGE any more, or less, on life support than it already was.

Again: SWG, and the new NGE version now has been part of the pass for over a year now.

And, no, I don't like NGE, I wish they'd bring SWG back. But stating that this means it's on life support is silly. They basically just stuck all their MMO's onto a single bundled DVD set (which, imo, is VERY smart, marketting wise) for a very reasonable price. If you think this is going to do anything but increase their subscriber numbers, across the board, you're deluding yourself. Alot of people won't pay $40+ for a game. This gives those folks 5 games for $20... I have a feeling that all SOE's MMO's are going to experience at least a brief climb in population.

Much as I hate NGE and wish they'd cancel it and bring SWG back I have to say that as far as marketting moves go, this is Genius. It's technically not even a new idea. EA and other companies have long been bundling their game titles into 'experience packs' for single player games. This is the first time a company has had enough MMO's to make one, that's all.

BamaDoc · February 2006

I agree. I've still got friends who swear by the EQ games, though I've never played them. As much as I hate SOE, I may even do this for a month to try the other games.

duncan_922 · February 2006

Originally posted by Elnator

Guys, NGE has been part of the pass since it was SWG. This is just a bundle putting all their MMO's out there so users don't have to buy them separately. And for the price... I suspect it's a very smart move, marketting wise. From a 'life support' standpoint it doesn't make NGE any more, or less, on life support than it already was.
Again: SWG, and the new NGE version now has been part of the pass for over a year now.
And, no, I don't like NGE, I wish they'd bring SWG back. But stating that this means it's on life support is silly. They basically just stuck all their MMO's onto a single bundled DVD set (which, imo, is VERY smart, marketting wise) for a very reasonable price. If you think this is going to do anything but increase their subscriber numbers, across the board, you're deluding yourself. Alot of people won't pay $40+ for a game. This gives those folks 5 games for $20... I have a feeling that all SOE's MMO's are going to experience at least a brief climb in population.
Much as I hate NGE and wish they'd cancel it and bring SWG back I have to say that as far as marketting moves go, this is Genius. It's technically not even a new idea. EA and other companies have long been bundling their game titles into 'experience packs' for single player games. This is the first time a company has had enough MMO's to make one, that's all.

That's not entirely accurate Elnator. I'm not certain if it was before the CU or after, but I'm sure that SWG was not part of the Station Pass when it was first introduced. It was added later.

As for this move increasing SWGs numbers, perhaps so, but it will only be an artificial increase, since it won't be for it's own merits, but riding on the tails of a bundle.

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Station Bundle including SWG.

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Station Bundle including SWG.

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