Why SOE Decided To Cancel Star Wars Galaxies 149
Last month we discussed news that Sony Online Entertainment will be shutting down Star Wars Galaxies, which has been running since 2003. Sony officials recently spoke at Fan Faire to explain the business decisions behind the closure. Unsurprisingly, licensing and upcoming competition from BioWare's Star Wars MMO played a big part. CEO John Smedley said,
"We have a contractual relationship that's ending in 2012, The Old Republic launching, a bunch of other business things with LucasArts. And then you look at the odds of a pretty large portion of the audience moving to TOR, which looks like a terrific game. ... That's the problem with licenses: they end. We're going to continue to do some licensed work, but we're largely going to stick to original IP [going forward] because then we won't have this issue. We'll never have this problem with EverQuest. Back in 2001, not '03 when we launched, but back in 2001 when we [first] negotiated it, a five year license seemed like a really long g****** time. EverQuest was only a year or so old at that point. Could we have renegotiated? Maybe, but I don't think that would be the right thing for the company."
Re:Are You Telling Me ... (Score:5, Insightful)
You aren't "investing" your time in a game. You're spending it there. Change your logic and you'll see how stupid the entire thing is. There is now end pay off in an MMO. Once you wasted your time in it, it's gone, forever.
Re:Are You Telling Me ... (Score:0, Insightful)
By spending I assume you mean wasting?
Re:Are You Telling Me ... (Score:3, Insightful)
Did you just say "invest"? In an MMO? Do you actually expect a return on that investment? Did you "invest" in your car, knowing full well it will always be worth less that it was worth 15 seconds ago?
MMOs, like casino gambling, are not an investment. They're an amusement. They will always cost you more than you put in, and your compensation will (hopefully) be entertainment value.
But I assure you, you have a better ROI from casino gambling than from MMO'ing, unless you're a <ethnicity> <currency> farmer. Even if it's guaranteed to be negative (i.e., house's edge).