My 2 Copper's Worth

Well we're on a website dedicated to MMO's so I'll give you one guess as to what I'll write about. And no it's not mustard.

Author: ivan50265

   Let me first start off by saying thank you to those who read my first 2 posts. Your patronage is appreciated.  Now to the meat of the subject.  SOE of course has to do something the week after I write my blog about them to once again get the forums abalzing with their name. Media Hogs! SO I thought I'd tack on  a little snippet to look into the new matter at hand and offer my provential 2 copper on the subject. So friends enjoy a bonus issue of My 2 Copper's Worth.

   So here's the skinny.  The devlopers of Pirates of the Burning Sea announced this week that they have partnered with SOE to distribute and market the game as well take on the task of money collection. This is an identical deal that was struck last year with the creators of Gods and Heros.  Now I don't blame anyone here for not be too happy about this. SOE has a solid reputation for upsetting it's consumer base.  (Check my previous post for more info).  Nor do I blame anyone who sides with PotBS creators.  Let's take a look at the pluses and the minuses of these ventures with SOE, and see what SOE gets out of the deal as well. 

 What do these two companies get out of the deal? 

Simple enough they save a ton of money. Developing an MMO is an expensive venture in itself, but then factor in marketing costs, and production costs of packaging and your really talking some bucks. So by giving SOE the marketing and the billing these companies are avoiding a large obstacle. Let alone SOE are masters at marketing (they've gotten us a couple of times haven't they?) , and with the station pass that opens up the opportunity of players of SOE's other products to take a look.  And let's not forget E3 exposure and SOE's little get togethers. This deal offers these two companies a chance at a mainstream and highly competitive market which is a huge boost over going it alone. Now remeber neither of these companies has agreed to let SOE handle customer service nor does SOE have much if any say in the development and release of the game. Which is good news. As we have seen the tragic results of that with the recent release of Vanguard. (Sorry Vanbois) SOE's responsibilities include making boxes, marketing, and billing. All things they have experience in and handle well.

Now, what does SOE get out of it?

Well on this I'm gonna throw out a little conjecture here. 

First off they get to be behind two games that they didn't have to spend a dime on developing. So any money they get out of the deal is mostly profit. If the companies go under I'm sure they have rights to buy the games and keep them running as well.

Secondly I think SOE is trying to relegitimize itself in the eyes of the consumer. I think the first attempt at this was Vanguard, but that backfired as they got their claws a little deep in that game. But with these other two games they aren't in deep so if they are successful it's a win win for them with their name on the box the public stock rises in the eye of the consumer.

Third it really makes that Station Pass look attractive now doesn't it.  With 3 new games added to it in a years time that's just insanely a good deal for those of us who like to play more than one game. On top of that they two out of the three are unconventional settings as well. Which is a plus on the diversity end of things.

Fourth and Final point. It gives SOE a platform to try and get some more people playing the games they own. My guess is by the time these 2 games are on the shelf we'll be seeing a Vanguard free trial showing up around the same time.

Now for this to work these games need to launch well. Not Vanguard launch, but somewhat smooth and 80% bug free. Good reviews would only help as well.

In the end I have to admit I like SOE business model when it comes to these games, and if they stick to this model could become a protal for smaller developers to get their games exposure to a larger market share than they could on their own.  SOE could very well end up with a great little collection of niche games that could attract a sizeable fan base and alot of money as long as they can keep themselves out of the developers way.  So if you're a fan of either of these 2 games I wouldn't be too worried the worst case as of right now is you'll have more people to group with at launch. Well that's my 2 copper's worth.

Thnx and until next time

Ivan