DDO Editorial: Doing Business

By Ralsu

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Yesterday, an interesting series of questions regarding the monthly fee of massively-multiplayer games (MMOGs) landed in my inbox. In this editorial, I will take a look at how a monthly fee impacts a game from my perspective. I'll also address what an established market of MMOGs with a monthly fee means to a new contender like Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach (DDO). Finally, I'll supply my opinion of DDO's price based on my level of enjoyment with the game.

What Good is a Fee Anyway?

At the basest level, fees keep your MMOG of choice running. To run persistently-online games, a company needs servers. To maintain the servers, it needs technicians. To resolve technical and billing issues, it needs customer service representatives. To maintain the subscription base and generate new interest in the game, the company's going to want a website. Websites require developers. To lock 80 flamefest threads each day and let forum posters know their digital voices are heard, the company must hire community managers. Oh, and then there's the marketing and public relations specialists.

Wha--? Say again? Oh! You want new content, do you? Well that means the company will have to maintain at least a skeleton staff of writers, graphic designers, programmers, and more. Somebody has to manage these folks, so that'll require a lead developer (with higher salary). And somebody will require supplies (No, not Mountain Dew! The interns go get that!), which necessitates a logician.

By the way, all of these people will want to get paid regularly, so the company had better have an Accountant/Budget Analyst. Then the company should probably train these people on standard operating procedures and prevention of sexual harassment (one lawsuit could spell ruin). Don't even get me started on what happens if the employees get benefits.

I think…you get the point. Running any MMOG can be a costly investment. That's what our fees pay for each month.

How Do Monthly Fees Shape the Gamer's Expectations?

Two weeks ago, my wife and I visited an upscale restaurant that opened two months earlier. It was actually the new location of an older establishment. We found the menu to be pedestrian for the prices, and the bland food disappointed. We didn't complain, though. We paid our tab with a fair tip and went to our car. On the ride home, we quickly formed a pact to never eat there again.

I tell you that story to make a point. I am not likely to complain about an insignificant fee, especially if I have to pay it only once. On the other hand, I will complain about even an insignificant fee that I pay on a continuous basis. What I consider significant or a lot of money may not be the same by your standards, but I believe $10-15/month for entertainment is a reasonable price. Thus, I am willing to take the plunge and subscribe to a MMOG. Since the fee comes every month, though, I feel I have some room to complain if things aren't to my satisfaction. Sure, I'll pay to play your game, but I'll stop playing if I no longer get entertainment from it.

Doesn't the Fee Make You Want to Squeeze More from a Game?

When I pay for something, I hope to get my money's worth. The value of a dollar is another subjective concept. I look for 1 hour of fun per month for each dollar I pay from my MMOG. If I'm paying $12/month for my MMOG, I feel as though I need to play at least 12 hours per month for the game to “earn it's keep.” If I'm not able to play because of work or family, I feel as if I'm wasting money.

Outside of self-imposed pressure to play a game I pay for, the structure of MMOGs lends well to a reluctance to stop playing. My MMOG avatar is an extension of myself, and I likely invested at least $125 in him ($50 for the game and 6-7 months os subscription fees to hit the level cap). I won't just walk away from him. Not only that, new content is coming all the time. I might miss something! Then there's my friends—6 or 7 months of adventuring with the same group of people will form a bond. I don't want to say goodbye to them yet!

At the same time…

Does the Monthly Fee Make You More Likely to Quit at the First Significant Hurdle?

I have to admit—just like the upscale restaurant that failed to meet expectations—a MMOG is always a trial purchase for me. If I don't like it during the trial month that typically comes with purchase of the box, I'll cancel my account and never return. I'll not hesitate either. I've got little time and money invested at that point, and I likely won't have a ton of new friends in so short a time.

So What Does All of This Mean for a New Contender Like DDO?

In the first days of MMOGs (think Ultima and EverQuest), customers just felt excited to be a part of the next evolution of gaming. For every person who said “Game X does this better,” a MMOG player was there to say, “Yeah, but my game lets me play online with thousands of people!”

MMOGs don't get the same reverent treatment today. The market is packed with dozens of games that charge a monthly fee to play. Gamers have developed a set of clear expectations:

• Emulate the best features of existing MMOGs
• But don't copy too much because we're not looking for a clone
• Show us something new—be it new landscapes, battle systems, or creatures
• Give us frequent content updates
• Make an easy-to-use interface and buddy system
• Have stable servers
• Respond to CS tickets swiftly

Is DDO's Price Model a Good Fit for Its Player Base?

Shayalyn addressed this topic in one of our Friday Editorials last month. My opinion is both similar and divergent. I fully believe DDO is a MMOG and deserves to charge a monthly fee. Turbine has steadily addressed bugs and provided new content since the game's release in February. Additionally, I find myself going back to that list of expectations in the previous section. I think DDO has tackled most of my list.

Ultimately, it comes down to my personal enjoyment of the game. The MMOG market is no longer a fresh niche, and I am inclined to make comparisons. My final analysis is that there's no other MMOG on the market I'd rather be playing.

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