Game Phases

This by no means is scientific, at best it may be a hypothesis, but I think that it can very well be applied to many current/past/future MMORPGs. I feel that there are certain phases that each game falls into, but at different times. No everything is set in stone in any phase, some phases can overlap, not have certain parts, have more then is listed, etc. I wrote this mostly because I was bored, and had some free time . Tell me what you think. Any comments, critism, etc?

1.) The Rumor Phase: Word is whispered through the grape vine that a new game maybe in the works by company X. This stage is also refered to by some as the Vapor-Ware period. Where a game can just as easily vanish as it can become real. However this opens the door to everyone and their brother who has a vauge interest in creating a home brewed MMO. And would be a ton of work to maintain. (From Finbar at MMORPG.COM)

2.) Announcement Phase: New MMORPG announced. Players given teaser screenshots or brief little blurbs on certain game aspects. General theme of the game is released. A few fans are drawn, but not necessarily a huge following yet.

3.) Pre-Beta(and Alpha) Phase: Many new things are added to the game's webpage. Videos are shown detailing certain aspects of the game. Many screenshots given. Game system is discussed, but not completely revealed. Beta applications are accepted usually toward the end of this phase. This stage likely draws many fans to it. Also, an Alpha stage has likely begun by now (if not already started in a prior stage). According to Finbar, in his own words the alpha testing phase is likely "A pre beta phase. [It is focused on] Making the game work at all, however there is already a physics engine implemented, and at least one avatar sheet interacting with the physics engine."

4.) Beta Phase: Developers announce beta. Invitations to participate in the beta are sent. News spreads like wildfire by word of mouth, even more people are drawn. The mystifying NDA entices players outside of beta, who are dying to know more about the game. The developers, as in the last phase, slowly release more information, revealing the intricacies of the game. The fanbase by this time is likely the largest it will be for some time, depending on the success of the game.

5.) Gold/End of Beta Phase: Beta is ended, and ultimately the NDA is lifted. Players are free to share with the players the secrets of the game. Also, the game is released so players can see everything that occurred in beta. Depending on how smoothly beta went, the overall quality of the game, and the success or failure of the game's launch, the player base/fan base will either grow enormously or drop tremendously. Message boards and fansites will be raving about the new game, and you will see perhaps the most activity they will have until the late or rebirth stage.

6.) Mid/Recovery Phase: By this time, the game has been out for several months. If the game's launch was disastrous, the developers are compensating for failure and improving the gameplay. After some time, the game will be up and running as intended or better then intended (or in some cases, nothing can help a game that has had a terrible start). Although it will not have as large a player base as it's start, the population will at least stabilize and perhaps grow some. If the game's launch was positive, many players will be content and the game will continue strong adding many new players as it progresses.

7.) Late Stage: By this time, the game has been out for many months or even a year or two. At this time, many new MMORPGs are either in the announcement, pre-beta, or beta stage. It becomes a challenge to the developers to entice players and keep their interest in the game. At this time many developers may announce an expansion, to draw the player's attention away from many competitor's titles. If the game had a poor launch, and did not fix it's problems by the recovery stage, the player base will continue to diminish and so will the fan base, leading to potential failure. A positive launch and stable past will likely lead to a large and still growing player base, keeping the game alive and fresh for years to come.

8.) Death(or Dying)/Longevity Phase: At this time new games are going gold, and like most new games, they have a significant following. Depending how the developers handled each game throughout the previous stages, 4-6, determines the ultimate outcome of the game. If the developers worked hard, and kept their players happy, they will enter the longevity stage. This stage has a very gradual decline in players usually, but will continue on for years because of a good solid start and foundation. On the other hand, if the game's history was rocky, or the game just was not able to keep it's players, it enters the death stage. The death stage does not necessarily indicate an immediate death to the game, rather then a steep or moderate decline in players until there really is no one left playing. Usually once a game is in it's death phase (not to be confused with Longevity), there is nothing that can save it, players are just tiered of the same old thing. When in the longevity phase, there are still new players joining the old game, but often there are old players leaving slightly faster then the new players replace (Example: 100 players leave game X, but 93 new players joined in the past month).

9.) Rebirth Stage: When a game releases an expansion, it is in hopes to accomplish one of many things: Trying to bring some new life into an old game, attempting to fix mistakes made, to keep players with the current game instead of finding a new more appealing one, or a last ditch effort to keep players. At any phase an expansion can be released, but depending on which phase it can have varying results. In the Gold/Release stage, an announced expansion can leave players feeling confused, angry, or hurt. If they just paid $50 for a new game, do they really have to pay another lump sum again in a few months? If announced in the Mid/Recovery phase, it is usually done so to draw new players to a bad game, keep players distracted from a new game, or fix mistakes. This may make players unhappy as many may feel that a game should not have an expansion if current issues such as bugs or exploits are not being handled. The best time for an expansion then, would be the late phase. By this time the players are dedicated to their game and a new expansion may be a welcome breath of fresh air that the players want. If any expansion fails to meet their expectations, or just plain stinks, it can actually knock a game into the longevity death stage in some dire cases. Otherwise, an expansion can bump a game back into the Mid-Phase, as an expansion should be exciting and keep players enchanted in the whole magic of the game. Repeated expansions may not help after a game has reached longevity, you can only bring so much life into a game before everything that's done can be done.

Input added from: Finbar at MMORPG.COM forums

-=MMORPG.COM Staff=-
E-mail: Zohar@mmorpg.com