DDO survival

[FluffyCalico]

Will DDO survive?

Reason for question:

We started with 14 high pop servers 2 years ago.

We are now down to 5 servers 2 of which have medium pop and 3 low pop that need merged again.

So if in 2 years we have lost what 70% of the player base how much longer can DDO hang on?

I hope it can for as least another year as I want to get my characters to level 20.

Any thoughts on TTL for DDO?

[Rowanheal]

The rabidness of this player base frightens Turbine. They wouldn't dare :D

Seriously I think we are doing fine and as I recall Kate said they have things planned out for the next two or three years. We got time *wink*

I have characters on every server in this game. I hop around all of them fairly frequently, and to be honest they all seem to have a good population to me. No matter what level I am playing, I can get my questing accomplished with some fun people.

Now having said all that, if Turbine doesn't get this lag fixed ASAP... well I don't know. We have had a lot of press, new players and so forth. What a mess.

See ya in Stormreach,

-R

[Mhykke]

Will DDO survive?

Reason for question:

We started with 14 high pop servers 2 years ago.

We are now down to 5 servers 2 of which have medium pop and 3 low pop that need merged again.

So if in 2 years we have lost what 70% of the player base how much longer can DDO hang on?

I hope it can for as least another year as I want to get my characters to level 20.

Any thoughts on TTL for DDO?

Where do you get the med. pop. and low. pop server info from? From the sounds of it, all servers are pretty populated.

(Btw, I think we can drop the death predictions for DDO. It's been 2+ years, it ain't goin nowhere.)

[arminius]

Yes, I agree with Mhykke. I've seen actual low population servers, and trust me, this ain't it.

There may be lots of people Shrouding with guildies so they aren't showing on the lfms, but even so, this isn't even close to what it was.

Nowadays you can still see 15-20 lfms at a time, all for different levels and classes. In the old days, you only saw that on Argonessen. On Fernia, everyone stopped and spontaneously burst into a chorus of Kumbaya if it got over 4 up at a time. Nowadays, you still regularly see multiple instances of the Harbor, Marketplace, Gianthold (even though the Gianthold was the past mod), etc. In the old days, multiple instances were discussed with the children in reverent whispers, as some far off, scarcely hoped-for sight not expected to be seen again in their lifetimes.

The game isn't perfect by any stretch, but compared to the bottoming out point before the merger, this is Nirvana.

_

[Borror0]

We're all DDOOOOOOOMed!!!, again.:rolleyes:

[roggane]

http://www.wikinomics.com/blog/uploads/disney-chicken-little-sky-falling.jpg

[FluffyCalico]

http://www.wikinomics.com/blog/uploads/disney-chicken-little-sky-falling.jpg

I love how 64% of teh servers get shut down due to lack of players and the others are comletely dead compared to what they opened with even after all the mergers and the denial folks are all "nothing to see here move along"

[Tanka]

Need merging?

No. The servers are just fine. Find a good guild, group with them. So endeth your grouping needs.

[Invalid_86]

Oh yeah, I was here when the game first hit the shelf at the local store. It tapered off pretty fast. Part of it, true, is that this happens to all new games. But also, after hearing people's opinions of the game who didn't stick around we had.....

Diehard DnD players who didn't care about Eberron. Honestly it was a poor campaign setting choice for the first online DnD game so I can't blame them. If it was Greyhawk or Forgotten Realms, well who's to say?

3.5 players who bought the game expecting it to be like 3.5, especially after it was marketed as being DnD, and saying *** this isn't 3.5. Where is X, Y, and Z? Why isn't (insert 3.5ism) working like it is supposed to? Who taught these guys how to DM? Etc.

MMO players who didn't really care too much about 3.5 who expected alot of common MMOisms who didn't get them. Instanced quests? No pointless PvP? No grinding? No auction houses or mail (at the beginning)? You can't just respec everything on a whim-you have to make decisions and live with them? You have an incentive to play with other people? No ninja looting?

So basically DDO has tried to do a bunch of things half-a$$ed. Perhaps it would have done better as actual 3.5 or if they had just come out and said that they were basically running a D20 based Eberron online and made it a regular MMO- and discarded that whole DnD logo.

Or just say......DOOOOOOM?

[Borror0]

I love how 64% of teh servers get shut down due to lack of players and the others are comletely dead compared to what they opened with even after all the mergers and the denial folks are all "nothing to see here move along"

There's much more activity since they merged the servers, than before.
As to why they merged, there were simply too many servers from the start.

Could DDO use new players? Yes!! But it'll survive. There's enough new players to survive.

[Invalid_86]

There's much more activity since they merged the servers, than before.
As to why they merged, there were simply too many servers from the start.

Could DDO use new players? Yes!! But it'll survive. There's enough new players to survive.

Too many servers from the start? Or not enough player retention? I remember in the beginning there routinely being 3-4 or more instances of the harbor and the marketplace.

[roggane]

I love how 64% of teh servers get shut down due to lack of players and the others are comletely dead compared to what they opened with even after all the mergers and the denial folks are all "nothing to see here move along"

love how there's always a post about this, yet the game survives just fine, turbine says it's a revenue maker for them.

btw, did you just come back or something? the server merge issue was covered to death before....

[lasra]

Ummm... how do you know what the actual server population is, or what constitues high/med/low?

If you get that info by logging into a server and seeing how many people are on the Who list, don't bother. I can't even begin to tell you how many people I know who run around with Anon. clicked on in a futile attempt to receive fewer plat farmer tells. ;)

[Lyllie]

anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.

[Falco_Easts]

I love how 64% of teh servers get shut down due to lack of players and the others are comletely dead compared to what they opened with even after all the mergers and the denial folks are all "nothing to see here move along"

If you made the same argument using figures from within the last 12-18 months you might pack more weight. New game start, a bunch of people jump on to try the latest thing, then leave for various reasons. I think the numbers have levelled quite considerably since then.

[roggane]

anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.

why do you keep paying them and bother to post?

[Lyllie]

why do you keep paying them and bother to post?

where in that post does it say I don't like the game?

[roggane]

where in that post does it say I don't like the game?

I don't seem to remember saying you don't like the game.

Just saying if it's soooo bad and gonna close what's the point then?

[Borror0]

Too many servers from the start? Or not enough player retention? I remember in the beginning there routinely being 3-4 or more instances of the harbor and the marketplace.

Well, first all MMO are like that. Start with a lot, then the population stabilises.
There are always people that will test a new MMO to see if it suites them. Just think of Vanguard. It'll be the same for AoC.

Then, DDO came out sooner than scheduled, so that doesn't hlep either.

[FluffyCalico]

Ummm... how do you know what the actual server population is, or what constitues high/med/low?

If you get that info by logging into a server and seeing how many people are on the Who list, don't bother. I can't even begin to tell you how many people I know who run around with Anon. clicked on in a futile attempt to receive fewer plat farmer tells. ;)

Um the last interview they gave said under 100000 suscribers does that work for you?

[Falco_Easts]

anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.

Don't beleive Turbine has ever said anything much about server population or number of accounts so not sure what propaganda you are talking about.
I suggest you WAKE UP and stop being so pesamistic. LISTEN to the new players joining and STOP listening to the nay sayers.

[Mistinarperadnacles]

Will DDO survive?

Yes... if people stop writing garbage about how the game's gonna shut down tomorrow.

[dejafu]

Yes... if people stop writing garbage about how the game's gonna shut down tomorrow.

And herein lies the reason why people get touchy about the DOOOOOOOM posts. MMOs follow one of the most basic rules of modern economics: perception matters more than almost anything else.

If people think the game is doing well, they commit to keeping their subscriptions, rolling new characters, sticking it out through rough spots (like the recent Lag of Doom), and so on.

If, on the other hand, people start convincing themselves and each other that the game is falling apart and won't last out the summer, then they start looking for alternatives, rarely log on, and ultimately cancel their subscriptions.

The kicker, of course, is that both become self-fulfilling prophecies. And a lot of people get that. So when we see a "can't people realize it's all falling apart???" post, what we read is, "Come on, let's sabotage the game by getting everybody to panic and leave!"

Mind you, I'm NOT saying that's the intent of said posts. It's just what it ends up sounding like from the above perspective. On the flip side, posts like mine probably read something like, "Just be good and quiet and pay no attention to the water rushing in through the HUGE HONKING HOLE IN THE SHIP!", even though I think it's perfectly dry in here :p

[maddmatt70]

Well, first all MMO are like that. Start with a lot, then the population stabilises.
There are always people that will test a new MMO to see if it suites them. Just think of Vanguard. It'll be the same for AoC.

Then, DDO came out sooner than scheduled, so that doesn't hlep either.

I do see AOC as a bigger competitor that could draw alot more folks then vanguard did. There is alot of buzz around ddo (far more so then with any mmo that came out previously) about AOC and I have heard and I think alot of people will try it. DDO could see a decent drop when it comes out. The only other new mmo on the horizon getting that kind of buzz is Warhammer..

[Mhykke]

anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.

Well with all those facts in your post, who could argue? :rolleyes:

[Nevthial]

Um the last interview they gave said under 100000 suscribers does that work for you?


100,000 subscriptions is enough to keep the game going for a looooong time. This game will have players that come and go, that is to be expected. The reason this game has lasting power is that the name Dungeons & Dragons brings people in. This isn't a rip off , or fad of the month game. The only thing that will draw the core players away is another, newer Dungeons & Dragons game. Anything else won't do it.

If LOTRO didn't shut down the game; a series of books and movies with an infinitely larger fan base than say Conan for instance, nothing else will. With the above exception of course. I.E. DDO 2

This game is excellent PR and advertising for WOTC & Hasbro , it could even operate at a minor loss and not be shut down for obvious reasons.

[FluffyCalico]

100,000 subscriptions is enough to keep the game going for a looooong time. This game will have players that come and go, that is to be expected. The reason this game has lasting power is that the name Dungeons & Dragons brings people in. This isn't a rip off , or fad of the month game. The only thing that will draw the core players away is another, newer Dungeons & Dragons game. Anything else won't do it.

If LOTRO didn't shut down the game; a series of books and movies with an infinitely larger fan base than say Conan for instance, nothing else will. With the above exception of course. I.E. DDO 2

This game is excellent PR and advertising for WOTC & Hasbro , it could even operate at a minor loss and not be shut down for obvious reasons.

I really like this game and hope you are right. But I would like to point out that other than names and places this game has no more to do with DnD than WOW or EQ. This game is fun and would like to play alot more, but to call it DnD is something I can not do.

[Lyllie]

I don't seem to remember saying you don't like the game.

Just saying if it's soooo bad and gonna close what's the point then?

You are the one of the opinion I like or dislike the game. My post had nothing to do with my personal feelings.

Like I said...open your eyes and look at the factors...

[Lyllie]

Don't beleive Turbine has ever said anything much about server population or number of accounts so not sure what propaganda you are talking about.
I suggest you WAKE UP and stop being so pesamistic. LISTEN to the new players joining and STOP listening to the nay sayers.

another narrow minded view...I give up.

[Raes]

MMO's very rarely get shut down. The only ones I can even think of are AC2, MCO and Auto-Assault? The first 3 MMO's (EQ1, AC1, and UO) are still running, and I'm pretty sure DDO has more subs than any of them, possibly more than all 3 combined. Hell, even Shadowbane's servers are still up and they went free-to-play! I seriously doubt DDO players have to worry about the servers going down as long as Asheron's Call is still running. You know, Turbine's first MMO...

[roggane]

You are the one of the opinion I like or dislike the game. My post had nothing to do with my personal feelings.

Like I said...open your eyes and look at the factors...

what factors? think it was asked in an above post what facts you're posing?

you proved my point. the reason you keep playing (and paying) is the reason this game won't go under. think about it objectively for a bit, why hasn't it shut down before now?

[Borror0]

I do see AOC as a bigger competitor that could draw alot more folks then vanguard did.

I agree, it'll hurt more DDO than Vanguard did, but it's not that horrible either. DDO won't die thanks to AoC.

They'll be players leaving for good, others for a month. Others will come back a few months after. Some won't last a week. Will it be benefical to DDO? Nope, but it won't kill it either, which was the point of my post.

[Cowdenicus]

what factors? think it was asked in an above post what facts you're posing?

you proved my point. the reason you keep playing (and paying) is the reason this game won't go under. think about it objectively for a bit, why hasn't it shut down before now?

The factors they know and nobody else. Shhhhh.

/runs and grabs the tinfoil hat.

[Strykersz]

Realistically, an mmo can keep running with 10k players, provided it has paid off any pre-release debt. You merge all the servers, fire the majority of the content team and leave the lights on to keep at least a % of the money coming in(or, if you're Horizons, you fire everyone, turn off the subscription servers and don't pay your hosting company, yet inexplicably get your servers left running for months). It's when you're at 100k players 3 months in when you expected to have 200k+ players to keep paying the bills, that you call everyone out to the parking lot, fire them and sell the game lock, stock and barrel to the publisher.

[QuixoticDan]

Sailor #1: We're sinking, we're sinking!
Sailor #2: We're on a submarine.

They are both correct! The server merges were a good thing for the game. I can find a good group easier on any day or night, at any time, than I ever could during my two years playing WoW. It was either on these forums, or on the LOTRO forums, but Turbine has specifically stated that DDO is financially independent; it is profitable. Guess what that means? It's not going to shut down.

I look forward to years of playing a game that I love, that Turbine loves, and that not only has a 'player base,' but an actual community. I don't need to tell anyone to feel free to disregard this post; I'm sure it would be summarily dismissed if it's convenient anyway. ;)

[Aesop]

100000?

I thought we had like 35000? Wow we're doing really well then ;)

DDO is a great game but even Turbine has said that its a niche game and that they were not thinking of trying to make a WoW type game which attracts the drooling masses and the "hypercompetativenolifeneedsomethingtomakethemfeelb etteraboutthemselvessotheylogontoanmmoandbeatuplit tlekidsjustliketheygotbeatupinschoolforbeinganerdt ogivethemasenseofsuperiority" people. They actually have been getting a lot of new players recently and if the oldschool leet player base that has developed can remember how it is to learn this game after coming from some of the other ones...maybe just maybe we'll even hit that 100k mark again someday... I'm not overly worried though. I love DDO and have no intention of leaving til the bar is closed and the after party done and the building scheduled for demolition... but if that does happen I'll have more time to get back into shape and get my life on track :D

Aesop

[Gabrion]

It's gonna be around a long time. Just think what it takes to run the game - basically nothing. MMOs that are 100% instanced are very low maintainance - nothing has to be fixed in the persistent world, because a new instance will always fix it. This is why there are so few GMs, and why they are apparantly minimum wage workers who are not capable of doing anything other than apologizing and asking you to do the quest again.

Then think about the production cost for new content. First off, they obviously haven't hired anyone in the gaming world that cost a lot of money. Lets face it, the talented folks are not looking to work on a project like DDO - and it shows every time they have to put out a new project. Combine this with the fact that DDO devs never actually have to meet deadlines, and if worst comes to worst they can basically stop the production process and just let the game run as is for a long time with basically no costs, and I think it's obvious that this game will be around a while.

[Deriaz]

I think the game's gonna be around for quite awhile, still. If that makes me narrow-minded, I dunno, but. . .

The game may have less than 100,000 subscribers, but does that mean anything, really? A lot of forums I visit/lurk in have a discussion like this pop up every once in a blue moon. People, at least in my opinion, seem to have their idea skewed on what amount on subscriptions can make a game survive, especially when you look at WoW with its who-knows-how-many subscriptions. (9 million, last I heard? Meh.)

Like Aesop said, it's a niche game. If you were expecting hundreds of thousands of playing running around Stormreach, well. . . I dunno. But the game is fine. I see the same people logging in consistently. I see new people appearing in the Wavecrest and asking for help consistently. The game is fine, in my eyes.

-D

[EinarMal]

I think as long as no one else does an online D&D game you will have a solid core group of players. The only thing that would truly shut down the game completely would be a 4.0 game made by Turbine or Bioware or <Insert Dev here>. Given that nobody has even announced a game like that it would take at least 2 years for that game to come to market if it was announced tomorrow (best case).

I looked at AOC, and honestly I hate the fixed class skill tree diablo 2 type character building system, and I am not really into PvP. So, that means both AOC and Warhammer are not for me. In fact the only way I would leave for good would be another D&D (or something similia) where you have the awesome flexibility to make pretty much any character you want.

Having said that I hope enough people stick around so that we can get to level 20, and maybe a few more class/race/prestige class options. The worst case (and I am not too sure how far we are from this), is to just leave the game running with a part time developer on it doing bug fixes and the occasional small updates.

I just hope we make it 20 honestly. They are not going to shut down the game, we might end up with 1 server and 1 developer a year from now but the game will keep running and I will keep playing.

[Shaamis]

Will DDO survive?

Reason for question:

We started with 14 high pop servers 2 years ago.

We are now down to 5 servers 2 of which have medium pop and 3 low pop that need merged again.

So if in 2 years we have lost what 70% of the player base how much longer can DDO hang on?

I hope it can for as least another year as I want to get my characters to level 20.

Any thoughts on TTL for DDO?

right before the server merge, i would have been happy to see 5+ LFMs up on Aundair, but after the merge with Khyber, I will see 15+ up sometimes.

The adventures that have been developed I give more of a frown to, than the notion the server pop. is bad.

Khyber seems to be going along fine.

Of course, the monks will bring up a big surge in population, but whether it persists is another matter.

[Grond]

anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.

They told me I was in complete denial when I disagreed with them at the end of beta that the game wouldn't last 3 months as well... has it been three months? Man, I've got some strong denial! To think, I've kept the game going for over 8 times it's projected lifespan through denial alone. :D

Just as easy to say that those of you that claim the game is dying are completely deluding yourselves, just like the guys standing on the street corner claiming the end of the world is nigh...

[Lyllie]

what factors? think it was asked in an above post what facts you're posing?

you proved my point. the reason you keep playing (and paying) is the reason this game won't go under. think about it objectively for a bit, why hasn't it shut down before now?

because the population exists to support it?

that does not mean it will continue to exist, it just means it currently does.

I never posted a fact nor did I say "look at the facts".

[fatherpirate]

Survival = Playerbase

Ok, if you are worried about survival...suggest and support ideas that will increase the playbase.

That means this game needs to add things MMO players want...THEN advertise.

I hear them screaming already......NO no no no no NO we want our game to stay the same and be different then all the rest of them.

ok, thats fine...then be happy with the playerbase we have and hope it is enuff because this is all the playerbase
a game like this will generate..period. Without added features (evil toons, at least some realm vs realm pvp) advertising would
be a waste of money...regular MMO players will still pass on this game. Thier point of view "What?? I have to play a good/neutral
toon? and only do missions ?? WHAT ???? no pvp at all ??..forget that !"

We do not need the game changed...we need some added features to attract MMO players to the game, the D+D players
that would like this game are already here.

[Zedim]

I started this game about two months ago, and personally I just don't see the problems so many people seem to see with the game. So far it's been a blast. I am also constantly running into people who have just signed up for the very first time. It's just my opinion, but the game actually seems to be doing much better than all this doom saying would suggest.

[stockwizard5]

I just wanted to point out that the "Lag" issue appears to be having a major effect on server populations.

Last night on Thelanis we had 50&#37; of the capped (and 60% of the overall) population compared to last Tuesday at a similar time. I think it is reasonable to assume the proportion of anonomous characters has not changed substantially in the last week.

It is very dangerous to allow people to take nights off as they may well discover there are other things they like doing :eek:

Of course the lag was a bit better (still horrible but better) but reducing the player base would not be the "optimal" solution. This needs to get fixed ASAP as its not something we can "get over" like HV or Evasion.

[fatherpirate]

IF the game is doing fine ( I think only the folks running this knows) then sure..stay on course.
I hope it is doing fine , I am not a big PvP fan personally.

[ahpook]

because the population exists to support it?

that does not mean it will continue to exist, it just means it currently does.

I never posted a fact nor did I say "look at the facts".

No but you did say:

You are the one of the opinion I like or dislike the game. My post had nothing to do with my personal feelings.

Like I said...open your eyes and look at the factors...

Which is what the other person asked: What factors?



anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.
And to this a big so what? I enjoy playing. If they keep running the game I will continue to play. What propaganda are you talking about? How does accepting YOUR viewpoint change anything except possibly becoming a self-fullfilling prophecy? You offer no solutions just your opinion that pessimism is superior. I don't see why though.

[ArkoHighStar]

To be honest on argo the last few months I am seeing more examples of multiple instances of the harbor and marketplace, something I didn't very often even after the merge, and Argo was always considered #1 or #2 in server population before and after the merge. The increase in public instances says to me more new players have been coming to DDO, ironicly enough many of the new players are WOW refugees tired of the WOW gamestyle, or have graduated to the more complicated gameplay DDO gives us. While older players may be leaving due to weariness new players seem to be outnumbering them.

As to AOC having tried it out briefly, I will imagine many will be disappointed with the limited race and class choices, and the cookie cutter skill based system. The combat while closer to DDO than WOW is still based on button combos and cooldowns for all attacks, and while you are more active the mobs are not very active. So while many will jump over to try it, it is hard to say how many will stay.

[JayDubya]

Lillie - you may not have stated any facts, but you did basically say that anyone who didn't agree with you was in denial.

Essentially, your assertion is - "Either agree with me, or you've been bamboozled."

I reject this basic premise. You have not demonstrated any knowledge, perspective or insight that any of the rest of us might have. It's easy to look at some issue and think to yourself "I'll think a little deeper, and come up with something that most people wouldn't notice."

So you come up with an insight you think is brilliant. However, these forums are not populated by "most people". They are populated by people who are smarter and more perceptive than average. It is quite possible that some of us have actually thought about the issue in more depth than you have. That we've already considered your position seriously, and based on other data that we have (that you may not be aware of) we've rejected it.

Having said that, we could be wrong, and you could be right. When you try to predict the future, you always find a bunch of variables you hadn't expected.

In short - you have not provided any justification for why your perception is better/deeper than anyone elses on here. Being pessimistic is not the same thing as being more perceptive.

And I'm sure you're going to dismiss this with some offhand "You're just in denial, JW".

Which is what I would expect from someone who isn't particularly insightful themselves, and would essentially prove my point. If you have interesting insights, share them.

[Kalari]

I came to DDO just this year myself, I know from guildmates that a few others have as well, and were expecting more to join. Ive been talking to some of the guys and girls I used to play pnp with down in florida as well (though the dm is a coh/cov fan is keeps trying to pull me to that game bleh). It takes recruiting, right now one guy in my guild tries his hardest to get friends and family into the game, he even goes out and buys the game and gives it away as gifts (hehe calls himself an enabler.) If people are so worried about the game failing they maybe should try to save it in their own way if they really wish to see DDO go strong. I came to this game because its not like other mmo, or any other type game ive played online. Sure you have the elitists ive seen that even in muds (lol imagine how sad you have to be to brag about how uber you are in a texted based game). That doesnt bother me, zergers dont bother me, heck people who are just plain rude dont either, because the game itself is unique. Ive faced crazed elfs, drow, a dragon and undead. I get to group with people I like being around and after we vanquish a quest we get to bs about the day. I may not have gotten to the larger areas yet (ie shroud and all that nonsense) but last night I ran the Wiz King with my guild and we made it with only one death (suprizingly wasnt me for once lol). It was a nice run to a quest ive heard nothing but bad things about. I dunno about some of you but as long as I continue to go slow and play the game the way I feel comfortable with i'll be a paid subscriber for a long while. I know some want to see more things implimented and I dont blame them, but im happy right now and only hope that I came in at a point where I wont get bored anytime soon.

[Avelin]

As to AOC having tried it out briefly, I will imagine many will be disappointed with the limited race and class choices, and the cookie cutter skill based system. The combat while closer to DDO than WOW is still based on button combos and cooldowns for all attacks, and while you are more active the mobs are not very active. So while many will jump over to try it, it is hard to say how many will stay.

I watched a bunch of gameplay footage for AOC and I must say it looks very boring honestly. The player movement is very sluggish as is the combat. The PCs just look tired. I was bored just watching the footage. It looks like EQ2 with better eye candy. The Pcs in DDO are very energetic in their movement and combat as are the mobs which makes for an exciting game experience. I left EQ2 for DDO because of this. I don't think AOC will hurt DDO that much in the long run, but maybe a little at the lauch. DDO has a unique combat system that I believe people will miss. :)

[Uska]

Survival = Playerbase

Ok, if you are worried about survival...suggest and support ideas that will increase the playbase.

That means this game needs to add things MMO players want...THEN advertise.

I hear them screaming already......NO no no no no NO we want our game to stay the same and be different then all the rest of them.

ok, thats fine...then be happy with the playerbase we have and hope it is enuff because this is all the playerbase
a game like this will generate..period. Without added features (evil toons, at least some realm vs realm pvp) advertising would
be a waste of money...regular MMO players will still pass on this game. Thier point of view "What?? I have to play a good/neutral
toon? and only do missions ?? WHAT ???? no pvp at all ??..forget that !"

We do not need the game changed...we need some added features to attract MMO players to the game, the D+D players
that would like this game are already here.

You keeping asking for pvp and evil and keep getting told we dont want that. This game would die a quick death if they put in what you want. Most of us are here because it doenst have the things you ask for. Evil and realms vs realms isnt additonal features for us but minus, what we need is more content and we do get that although slower then some of us wish. You say we dotn need the game changed but then ask for changes. Advertise yes pvp no

[Uska]

IF the game is doing fine ( I think only the folks running this knows) then sure..stay on course.
I hope it is doing fine , I am not a big PvP fan personally.

If your not a big pvp fan why do you keep asking for it? As to the game lasting there many players that have been here from the start and arent going anywhere

[roggane]

because the population exists to support it?

that does not mean it will continue to exist, it just means it currently does.

I never posted a fact nor did I say "look at the facts".

factors, facts.....enlighten us on these so called "factors" please, we're missing out? I can't open my eyes without knowing what these "factors" are.......

It has continued to exist through all the other "oh my gawd it's gonna shut down" moments, survived good and bad mods, things the playerbase all complained about that would kill the game. Why is this time different? I'm looking forward to knowing.

[moorewr]

Turbine has said before - one CEO ago - that DDO required 35,000 subscribers to remain afloat. I signed up 16 months ago, and, going by forum IDs, more than 125,000 accounts have been created since then. Even if that includes 40,000 plat farmer guest accounts :eek:, that's pretty good.

Acheron's Call is still up and running, and there are most assuredly less people on the AC servers than there are on the DDO servers.

From these two facts I conclude that if things go badly we may be facing the slow development we've seen since last April, and an end to new content in DDO around two years out. If things go well despite it all we'll be worth keeping devs dedicated to new stuff to keep us amused.

My money's on DDO. I'm optomistic, and I'm sticking around.

[Lizardgrad89]

One of the things that hasn't been mentioned is the "health club" aspect of DDO.

By that, I mean it's not the number of people using the Nautilus Machines, it's the number of people PAYING to use the Nautilus machines.

Counting Server pops, etc. means little. It's a 24/7 game, and there are lots of people who are committed to playing here that can only get on occasionally.

The game's health is not determined by the PLAYERS, it's determined by the PAYERS.

[negative]

The game's health is not determined by the PLAYERS, it's determined by the PAYERS.

And I'm probably not the only one that has taken a quasi-multi-month break from the game yet continued to pay my monthly subcription. The fact that I wasn't playing meant nothing. I was still paying.

[Pyromaniac]

You merge all the servers, fire the majority of the content team.

Hmm,

Server merge (check)
New content huge slow down (check)

Puts on my tinfoil hat, cause it don't look good

[MerlinSylver]

another narrow minded view...I give up.

Now that is funny...thanks for the chuckle.

[Wizzly_Bear]

id first like to say DOOOOOO0O0O0000O0O00000O00MMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!

:D

no, but seriously, i doubt the game is leaving any time soon. maybe it's in hard times, i could see that being a possibility, but i dont see it leaving.


Turbine has said before - one CEO ago - that DDO required 35,000 subscribers to remain afloat. I signed up 16 months ago, and, going by forum IDs, more than 125,000 accounts have been created since then. Even if that includes 40,000 plat farmer guest accounts :eek:, that's pretty good.
where do you find this info? ive never seen any forum id.


One of the things that hasn't been mentioned is the "health club" aspect of DDO.

By that, I mean it's not the number of people using the Nautilus Machines, it's the number of people PAYING to use the Nautilus machines.

Counting Server pops, etc. means little. It's a 24/7 game, and there are lots of people who are committed to playing here that can only get on occasionally.

The game's health is not determined by the PLAYERS, it's determined by the PAYERS.
qft


And I'm probably not the only one that has taken a quasi-multi-month break from the game yet continued to pay my monthly subcription. The fact that I wasn't playing meant nothing. I was still paying.
qft, esp with the recent 6 month discount program. ive been playing a little less myself since i got that, but im still paying.

[moorewr]

where do you find this info? ive never seen any forum id.

Click my name then "View Public Profile." You'll note it ends in my forum id. Increment that number by 100000 or so (edit the URL), and work up from there.

[Lorien_the_First_One]

I love how 64% of teh servers get shut down due to lack of players and the others are comletely dead compared to what they opened with even after all the mergers and the denial folks are all "nothing to see here move along"

I joined Dec 2006. The server didn't seem any more populated then than it did before merge day. So I'm thinking that they built too many servers for the population they got (maybe right after the release they had more people, but they were overbuilt for the stable pop 6 months in)

I mean if I am expecting to transport people by bus and I buy 1000 busses and they always operate at 10% capacity then I'm more successful not less if I sell off 80% of my busses and can still service all my clients, only now at 50% capacity.

[JacknCoke]

DDO is so fine!
You want to see low pop servers. Play Star Wars Galaxies. I use to play that game. Towards the end when I cancelled my sub there were 6 people on my server standing around on a Friday night. They are not canceling SWG anytime soon. SO its safe to say DDO is not going anywhere for a long time.

[lakewoodgames]

So much doom.

[Susquehana]

So much doom.The game was in danger of dying then. The Atari debacle was killijng them. The servers had been merged and Free to Play had not been introduced. If you were here then you know that doom was actually not far fetched.

[haulindonkey]

The game was in danger of dying then. The Atari debacle was killijng them. The servers had been merged and Free to Play had not been introduced. If you were here then you know that doom was actually not far fetched.Maybe so, but could people PUH-LEEZ stop resurrecting doom threads from 3-6 years ago??

[Memnir]

http://i.imgur.com/qblGFEL.jpg

[PentegarnDarras]

http://cdn.head-fi.org/6/6e/900x900px-LL-6e5d08f7_ThreadNecromancy4.jpeg

[UurlockYgmeov]

at least we get to use some fun graphics on these necro'd doom threads. :P

http://i.imgur.com/4Zeah.jpg

[Connman]

I actually think it's really funny. Guy makes a doom thread, just go necro one, from before I started playing. It's a slow death! Makes the latest doom thread look really, well uhm, you know.

[Goldenlogic123]

devs please start deleting or consolidating these worthless threads that is all thanks.

[Oxarhamar]

devs please start deleting or consolidating these worthless threads that is all thanks.

This thread is not worthless, it's a great demonstration of the doomsayers of the past being dead wrong.

[UurlockYgmeov]

Thread Title - sounds like a really cheap and horribly bad reality show. Now wonder why everyone is addicted to it.


This thread is not worthless, it's a great demonstration of the doomsayers of the past being dead wrong.

+1 and continue to be wrong. :D

[slarden]

This thread is not worthless, it's a great demonstration of the doomsayers of the past being dead wrong.

Yep my favorite quote from 2008


anyone that feels the game is doing fine, the servers are healthy, the game will be around a long time, ect...

you're in complete denial. you're ignoring the obvious, and when turbine announces the close of the game you are going to be shocked.

WAKE UP and stop being so narrow minded. LISTEN to what people are saying. STOP listening to Turbine's propaganda!

It's Turbine's JOB to make you feel secure...else you wouldn't keep paying them.