I dont know if I'd go that far...Video games come and go and fads change...SUre it has had a great run for 14 years but I really cant guess where it will be in another 14 not to mention the rest of my life.
When you are my age 14 more years is not a sure thing.
But hey, goals as are good, right?
Besides you have to reach 1 million posts before you can die
You do realize that most of the people you see in WoW are, in fact, on other servers besides your own, don't you? If your claim is that WoW has at least enough people to fill one server, then yes, seeing a lot of people proves that. But it doesn't prove anything beyond that.
But yes, WoW is definitely dying. There's a significant chance that Blizzard will pull the plug sometime before 2050.
Fact check: People say Wildstar is dying and it's going to shut down
Fact: It is in fact still very popular
Source: These shots taken inside the game itself just minutes ago, not even peak time/day of play time. This is just one area of the game. Other areas of the game have people everywhere, but I do not feel like having a thread of every single area of multiple parts of that area makes for a good forum post. If this was an actual website article, I would put up a lot more screenshots of how crowded everywhere is.
Well WoW has been dying for over 10 years... If you listen to the internet.
Is it dropping subs... Sure, any game that has been running for close to 15 years would. The fact that WoW used to clear it´s total production costs every few months... I think the game can stand to drop a few million subs more before it even reaches the break even point. And at that point it is just a matter of adjusting the operational cost (as in less expansions) and then coast on for a few more years.
I can guarantee you that people are displeased with BFA without screen shots. How? I am displeased by BFA and I have decided to step aside until what I want fixed and what they are promising is implemented. With that said, it saddens me that I can't stand logging into BFA because there appears to be nothing else to log into these days that is substantial.
If WoW is dying, then I'll continue to ride that Love Rocket off into the sunset...But I just bought the 6 month sub for the boat mount that doesn't even float on water, WTF, so I hope it lasts at least another 7 months.
LOL... you do realize that WoW is heavily sharded now, right? It's the only reason they could do away with PVP servers... they just shard everyone who turns warmode on together on the same realm. Starter areas have been using this technology for a while now. It's why you actually see people in the starter areas. If they didn't do this, you'd be all by yourself.
How many people around you are actually on your server? That is the only real number that matters. Because pulling one person from every state in the US and placing them next to you doesn't mean you have 50 people on your server. It means you have 50 people across multiple servers. And that isn't as pretty a picture now is it?
LOL... you do realize that WoW is heavily sharded now, right? It's the only reason they could do away with PVP servers... they just shard everyone who turns warmode on together on the same realm. Starter areas have been using this technology for a while now. It's why you actually see people in the starter areas. If they didn't do this, you'd be all by yourself.
How many people around you are actually on your server? That is the only real number that matters. Because pulling one person from every state in the US and placing them next to you doesn't mean you have 50 people on your server. It means you have 50 people across multiple servers. And that isn't as pretty a picture now is it?
GW2 and ESO are also heavily sharded and still regarded as healthy MMOs
My Skyrim, Fallout 4, Starbound and WoW + other game mods at MODDB:
I could probably get shots that make the game look crowed in Wild Star if I still played it.
"We all do the best we can based on life experience, point of view, and our ability to believe in ourselves." - Naropa "We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." SR Covey
WoW is dying in a "running out of story" sort of way. So not in a bad way, more like nearing its end just like any tv series would, for example. I get the feeling even Blizzard is ready to finally finish it.
That will still probably take like half a decade though.
WoW isnt going to die until it stop making money for blizzard.
They arent going to close it because they lost some subs. They need to lose ALL subs for it to close. Never happening.
btw this happens every single xpac since cata people have said "WoW is dying" lol its never going to die in the "game shut down because not enough people play it" way. Its only going to "END" when Blizz wants to end it.
I honestly would be shocked if Blizz didnt try to keep WoW going until at least 2030
"Beliefs don't change facts. Facts, if you're reasonable, should change your beliefs."
"The Society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools."
Currently: Games Audio Engineer, you didn't hear what I heard, you heard what I wanted you to hear.
I'm literally on a high pop server and this is almost an identical screen to yours. "Evidence" like screenshots showing a couple dozen people in any area aren't definitive proof that a game isn't dying. If that were true, then my "evidence" would show otherwise.
That said, I'm not implying that WoW is dying, but its populations aren't nearly as high as they used to be. Add in that the entire game up to BfA is included in a monthly sub without needing to buy anything, and you have pretty good reason why lower end content is "packed".
WoW's still doing well.
IT's the same Argument (in reverse) that GW2 fans would use to defend the argument that the game was losing popularity too quickly back in the day. (Which it was and it wasn't) Shortly after the game launched and we had screenshots showing full pops on the logins, in events and everywhere something was busy. Also RAPTR and Steam screenshots and there was another chat app that was used back then, I forget what it was.
All of that stuff was nonsense.
All these screens do is to show a snapshot of a subgroup. It means that 4 people were in the auction house on that server at that moment in time.
It is dying..because i cant even sell my damm account that has 1 lvl 120 + boost i havent used and i keep lowering the price each day...not even the farmers wants it for 10 $
I can guarantee you that people are displeased with BFA without screen shots. How? I am displeased by BFA and I have decided to step aside until what I want fixed and what they are promising is implemented. With that said, it saddens me that I can't stand logging into BFA because there appears to be nothing else to log into these days that is substantial.
I unsubbed again within 2 weeks into BfA. This expansion has nothing to hold my interest any longer.
Meaningful progression is gone. No new skills or talents. Gear and stats can't practically get dumbed down any further. Leveling up just doesn't mean anything anymore other than see your XP bar move. Nothing happens to your character anymore. Every level just feels the same as the one before.
BfA has turned WoW basically into a walking quest simulator. As that's all that remains now.
LOL... you do realize that WoW is heavily sharded now, right? It's the only reason they could do away with PVP servers... they just shard everyone who turns warmode on together on the same realm. Starter areas have been using this technology for a while now. It's why you actually see people in the starter areas. If they didn't do this, you'd be all by yourself.
How many people around you are actually on your server? That is the only real number that matters. Because pulling one person from every state in the US and placing them next to you doesn't mean you have 50 people on your server. It means you have 50 people across multiple servers. And that isn't as pretty a picture now is it?
GW2 and ESO are also heavily sharded and still regarded as healthy MMOs
GW2 and ESO started with sharding technology to begin with, they didn't set up an array of independent servers with a max capacity on each one like Blizzard did. Back in the day, when your server was full, it meant YOUR SERVER WAS LITERALLY FULL.
Those screen shots that you show would indicate a MAJOR PROBLEM back in the day because you would rarely see so few people in such areas... yes, those pictures show VERY FEW people, by comparison.
WoW is doing fine when compared to other MMOs because MMOs in general aren't as popular as they once were. Not even WoW garners the kind of interest it once did. So while the world population (and I'm talking earth here, not some virtual world in a game) is much larger today than it was just 10 years ago, you can't say the same for the population of WoW.
So your fact check is merely proof that people STILL play WoW. It really doesn't prove the anything beyond that.
WoW is losing players... and has been for a very long time. Just because it may have more players than some other MMO isn't the best metric to go by because ESO and GW2 never had a massive population to start with, so their loss of players is probably equal to that of WoW, percentage wise.
But we can't use numbers because no one really has the numbers. It's closely guarded information now, not a point to crow about at the year fiscal meetings. That in of itself says volumes. If they really were busting at the seams like they have been in the past, they'd crow about it. And they don't crow about subscriptions any more and haven't for a few expansions now.
We have no idea. No player can "count" how many subs there are. There are multiple servers and multiple regions. Claims that it has "millions" along with claims that it has only "thousands" are unverifiable.
Unverifiable and pointless. And all that matters is that the game has "enough".
Subs dropped. To just over 5M; then based on the $ values to under 4M and then just about 3M. Worldwide - inclusing China. With some of those paying in gold. But: so what?
Step back:
Activision released new games e.g. (Bungie's) Destiny. It often earns more that the Blizzard! Blizzard released new games - it no longer revolves around WoW. AB bought King. They may have overpaid but its as big as Activision and Blizzard.
As a result AB is a more "diverse" company; much less "a one trick pony". WoW is no longer the major financial engine in Activision that it once was.
Now make no mistake AB still want to make as much as they can from WoW but its no longer "critical" to what they have to tell investors. It will no longer get the "huge" focus from senior management that it will once have got.
Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if the focus within Blizzard has shifted more towards expansion sales - sell X million copies - rather than - retain X subs.
And - of course - it can continue for years as long as they keep "servers" sufficiently populated through whatever technology they deploy. Since it doesn't matter whether there are millions of players as long as there are "enough".
Anyone could tell it wasn't going well, when blizzard stop releasing sub numbers. Just the fact they are even making a classic server/s again is surprising. For years they had said people don't want it. Peaking at the famous line of "you think you do, but you really don't". Then adding on stuff like "Remember you really spent hours looking for a tank, you will miss LFR/LFG".
Which really just shows how out of touch they are from gamers these days or at least some groups of them. People can claim it's just from nostalgia. But sites like GOG, wouldn't survive if that's all it came down to.
In the end, even if WoW was to crash out and all servers shut down right now. Though it might hurt them. It's also not the milk cow and hasn't been for years. I would wonder, is that why they don't care as much. Since back in the day, if it crashed. There goes their biggest money maker.
But you can go onto a server that is normally full/locked and claim it's still going well. Last time I went onto WoW, before the expansion, the servers were way more dead. The servers that were normally full were only medium. Of course, I did hear they made the servers bigger. Not sure why, since most were only medium, now they are all low.
Comments
But yes, WoW is definitely dying. There's a significant chance that Blizzard will pull the plug sometime before 2050.
Is it dropping subs... Sure, any game that has been running for close to 15 years would. The fact that WoW used to clear it´s total production costs every few months... I think the game can stand to drop a few million subs more before it even reaches the break even point. And at that point it is just a matter of adjusting the operational cost (as in less expansions) and then coast on for a few more years.
This have been a good conversation
Gut Out!
What, me worry?
If you want to see what busy looks like play a Vanilla private server.
How many people around you are actually on your server? That is the only real number that matters. Because pulling one person from every state in the US and placing them next to you doesn't mean you have 50 people on your server. It means you have 50 people across multiple servers. And that isn't as pretty a picture now is it?
My Skyrim, Fallout 4, Starbound and WoW + other game mods at MODDB:
https://www.moddb.com/mods/skyrim-anime-overhaul
"We all do the best we can based on life experience, point of view, and our ability to believe in ourselves." - Naropa "We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." SR Covey
That will still probably take like half a decade though.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
거북이는 목을 내밀 때 안 움직입니다
They arent going to close it because they lost some subs. They need to lose ALL subs for it to close. Never happening.
btw this happens every single xpac since cata people have said "WoW is dying" lol its never going to die in the "game shut down because not enough people play it" way. Its only going to "END" when Blizz wants to end it.
I honestly would be shocked if Blizz didnt try to keep WoW going until at least 2030
"The Society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools."
Currently: Games Audio Engineer, you didn't hear what I heard, you heard what I wanted you to hear.
All of that stuff was nonsense.
All these screens do is to show a snapshot of a subgroup. It means that 4 people were in the auction house on that server at that moment in time.
Meaningful progression is gone. No new skills or talents. Gear and stats can't practically get dumbed down any further. Leveling up just doesn't mean anything anymore other than see your XP bar move. Nothing happens to your character anymore. Every level just feels the same as the one before.
BfA has turned WoW basically into a walking quest simulator. As that's all that remains now.
Those screen shots that you show would indicate a MAJOR PROBLEM back in the day because you would rarely see so few people in such areas... yes, those pictures show VERY FEW people, by comparison.
WoW is doing fine when compared to other MMOs because MMOs in general aren't as popular as they once were. Not even WoW garners the kind of interest it once did. So while the world population (and I'm talking earth here, not some virtual world in a game) is much larger today than it was just 10 years ago, you can't say the same for the population of WoW.
So your fact check is merely proof that people STILL play WoW. It really doesn't prove the anything beyond that.
WoW is losing players... and has been for a very long time. Just because it may have more players than some other MMO isn't the best metric to go by because ESO and GW2 never had a massive population to start with, so their loss of players is probably equal to that of WoW, percentage wise.
But we can't use numbers because no one really has the numbers. It's closely guarded information now, not a point to crow about at the year fiscal meetings. That in of itself says volumes. If they really were busting at the seams like they have been in the past, they'd crow about it. And they don't crow about subscriptions any more and haven't for a few expansions now.
So introducing 6 months sub with free mount
Unverifiable and pointless. And all that matters is that the game has "enough".
Subs dropped. To just over 5M; then based on the $ values to under 4M and then just about 3M. Worldwide - inclusing China. With some of those paying in gold. But: so what?
Step back:
Activision released new games e.g. (Bungie's) Destiny. It often earns more that the Blizzard! Blizzard released new games - it no longer revolves around WoW. AB bought King. They may have overpaid but its as big as Activision and Blizzard.
As a result AB is a more "diverse" company; much less "a one trick pony". WoW is no longer the major financial engine in Activision that it once was.
Now make no mistake AB still want to make as much as they can from WoW but its no longer "critical" to what they have to tell investors. It will no longer get the "huge" focus from senior management that it will once have got.
Indeed it wouldn't surprise me if the focus within Blizzard has shifted more towards expansion sales - sell X million copies - rather than - retain X subs.
And - of course - it can continue for years as long as they keep "servers" sufficiently populated through whatever technology they deploy. Since it doesn't matter whether there are millions of players as long as there are "enough".
Which really just shows how out of touch they are from gamers these days or at least some groups of them. People can claim it's just from nostalgia. But sites like GOG, wouldn't survive if that's all it came down to.
In the end, even if WoW was to crash out and all servers shut down right now. Though it might hurt them. It's also not the milk cow and hasn't been for years. I would wonder, is that why they don't care as much. Since back in the day, if it crashed. There goes their biggest money maker.
But you can go onto a server that is normally full/locked and claim it's still going well. Last time I went onto WoW, before the expansion, the servers were way more dead. The servers that were normally full were only medium. Of course, I did hear they made the servers bigger. Not sure why, since most were only medium, now they are all low.