Delays and Expectations

By Charabis

We all know that, in the MMO world, release dates for games and even expansions get set back all the time. Even the most highly anticipated games are prone to the infamous unforseen circumstances that force developers to make the difficult choice.

Mind you, I'm not here to discuss the reasons for these delays. They happen, and that's not going to change. Yet what does a delay do for or to the gamers' expectations for it? For that matter, how many delays can the average gamer handle before they begin to become disenchanted with a game?

These questions are far more difficult to answer, as they vary from person to person. What is certain is that the majority of players, whether for better or worse, will change their expectations for a game when it's delayed.

Typically, following an announcement of a delay in releasing a game, you can jump on their official forums and find many threads already underway discussing the future of the game. BY examining these threads, you can begin to see the changing expectations.

The doomsayers are always the first ones out of the gate. They immediately start predicting the game will be DOA. This in turn draws out the hardcore fans who flock to these threads to predict that it will only get better with the additional time. Those of us who are smart adopt the wait-and-see approach ;)

The effects of these threads is fascinating though. Doomsayers' expectations for the game go down, while the hardcore fans' expectations go up.

The danger here lies in the balance. Too many delays, and the hardcore fans wind up with completely unrealistic expectations for the game. On the other side, a doomsayer's expectations may drop so low that they don't see it as worth buying.

The world of MMOs is a gigantic balancing act. Love it or hate it, World of Warcraft has walked that line quite well. Now, it's Perpetual's turn. With a slight delay in release date to later this year, they now have to begin the balancing act. I, for one, can't wait to see what happens next!