Massively.com: Forbes: ESO's subscription model is just 'a compounding factor' to risk

News from: Massively.com

Filed under: Betas, Fantasy, Business Models, MMO Industry, The Elder Scrolls Online, Subscription, Pathfinder Online

Forbes is firing back at Pathfinder Online CEO Ryan Dancey, rebutting his faith in the subscription model by observing, "The general, obvious trend is that games are moving to microtransactions or optional subscriptions at best."

Forbes contributor Paul Tassi casts doubt on the subscription chart estimates provided by Dancey, saying that they leave out costs and other factors and are mere guesses to boot. The article points out that virtually all newer MMOs have either launched with a hybrid or mictrotransaction model or have moved to free-to-play in recent years.

"With rumors of a massive budget, indicators that the game itself isn't anything phenomenal, and the insistence of the subscription model across all platforms, I stand by my assertion that Elder Scrolls Online has the potential to be a huge miss for ZeniMax and Bethesda," the article concludes. "Honestly, even a free-to-play ESO would have seemed incredibly risky by itself, and the subscription fee is just a compounding factor."

Forbes: ESO's subscription model is just 'a compounding factor' to risk originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 09 Jan 2014 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read More at: Massively.com

I know how long Ryan Dancey has been around the RPG business, I would think he has more knowledge and experience regarding the gaming business as a whole than young Tassi will ever reach blogging and writing opinion posts.

A lot of gamers don't like Ryan, but I see him as one of the people that saved Dungeons and Dragons from complete annihilation when he purchased TSR and took it to Wizards of the Coast in the late 90's.  He has a great mind for business and a great passion for games, what he is doing with Pathfinder online's kickstarter is amazing, it is truly crowdforged because Ryan and his team at Goblinworks really do brainstorm everything with the backers and are completely transparent in their vision of the game.

I know the article is mainly about subscriptions, but if you ever wanted insight into a little bit of Roleplaying game history, read Ryan's story on his acquisition of TSR (The founding company of Dungeons and Dragons)

I can't wait to watch this guy eat his words.