All Posts by loftly

i was reading up on SoE's new title The Agency and its free play business model

http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/setView/news/gameID/292/showArticle/8562

SoE considers the micro-transaction model to be the future of MMO gaming (that is, paying real money to gain access to areas, levels, and items... instead of a monthly fee)

what worries me is the thought that this could get pricey!

say you currently spend $15.00 a month for a subscription fee... if in this new business model weapons and armor etc are each $0.99 (think iTunes songs) that means your monthly budget would be 15 new items a month which i find really low considering how much i can usually achieve in a month of play normally... and what if the items are consumable like health potions? how much is winning a PvP fight worth?

the argument FOR this model is a good one: people only pay for what they want.

the argument i see AGAINST is encouragement of twitchy buying:

"hmm i already spent $20 this month... but if i buy 1000 gold i can afford this [Axe of Slaughteringness]!!!"

what do you think? am i being stingy? does everyone already buy from eBay...?

WHEN i become the lead dev for Stargate Worlds, this will be my first act:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtyHC1MaRms

FURTHER more, development of  World of The A-Team Online shall begin next week.

YEA!

screw Stargate Worlds!

Quantum Leap Online baby!

and of course all background music would be the shows respective theme songs at all times.

i demand an A-Team MMORPG be made.

development should start immediately!

it would be teh awesome.

if my idea is ignored i will be totally pissed.

what the hell is a mac?

"Today, Bandai Visual announced that Akira Toriyama's popular manga and anime series "Dragon Ball" will become an online game called "Dragon Ball Online". Toriyama will oversee the project, while the Tokyo/Seoul-based company "NTL" will develop it. The game is scheduled for a release in 2008 in Japan, but a beta test in Korea will start this summer. Fees and payment schedules are undecided at this time.

The game itself is based in a world several hundred years after the events of Dragon Ball. This allows for both well-known characters and all-new characters to be introduced to gamers. Players can freely customize their hair, clothing and other facets of their character, group with other players and defeat powerful enemies and quests. Players can also challenge one another in combat."

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2007-03-20/dragon-ball-online-mmo-to-be-released-in-2008

i decided to try out a number of the free trials floating around but ive had ZERO luck.

- the D&D online trial downloads 1/4 of the way and just stops, no matter WHO i try to get it from!

- SWG isn't "consuming trial codes currently" or something, despite having numerous ads about it...

- EQII requires you chop off an arm and then let the ENTIRE game DL and patch, which takes a day...

- RF online DLs fine but they require you subscribe with a card and try to cancel before the first payment is taken if you want a FREE trial and given the level of fun the game offers, meeeeehh...

so far EVE online has had the best trial program;
DLs and installs quick, lasts 14 days and gives you a great idea of how the game plays.