True Fantasy Live Online Fees

[Myukoi]

Hello there, i plan on this thread being popular.
Alright, i think we all pretty much know that TFLO is planning on having a monthly fee.
I must say, where on earth is the logic in that? I mean gosh, i was really starting to like Xbox Live, i loved the idea of paying a fee every month for a whole online game service, and having it at that.
I mean with PC, PS2, and all that you don't have to pay so many fees, just one monthly fee.
I must ask, are you people planning on paying 10$ a month for Xboxlive, then pay probally 60$ for TFLO, then pay probally 10$ a month? That will be 20$ A month just for xboxlive gaming, not including fees for cable and such!
That's why i think that there should be some sort of system that however many people play TFLO, level 5 would get the money that they pay monthly for xboxlive with it, then alot more players would play, it would be easier on the people who have to work hard for money, and they will still get money from all the people who buy the game, and the people who play it.
I just hope you guys think of the players, i was really hoping to just have a monthly fee just for Xbox Live, and then have total access to everything xboxlive.
Please, do post here and post comments or if you agree/disagree.

So far, i posted it on Xbox.com, Here, and Go-gaia. I wish to spread the word.

[JasonXE]

I‘ll let other admins decide were this topic goes to. (Don’t really care)

Also just to answer this topic.... The fee won't stop people for going out of their way to play this game. MS already proved that with PSO. I believe there was 4-5,000 members in the first week and decrease over time.

[Kenshin]

this topic is already in the TFLO forum I think its dead though.

[Myukoi]

Perhaps, but younger gamers such as myself cannot afford (due to not enough money, or there mothers) to buy an xbox, xbox live, game, game monthly fees, and all that.

[JasonXE]

younger gamers like yourself don't need to worry about the internet fee, xbox live fee, and xbox cost because your PARENTS are paying for them. Do what most of you do and don't tell them that your paying for it.

here is a great deal from amazon: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000C9WBD/qid=1075231055//ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl63/103-1373448-1491820?v=glance&s=videogames&n=507846

Xbox live cost 50 buxs a year and tflo won't come out till august-december 2004. I can even afford this.

[Myukoi]

Actually, no.
I can barely get my mom to let me pay 5$ a month for an online game, do you really think she would let me pay two monthly fees and but the game too? Also, some mothers don't pay for there childrens monthly game fees.

[JasonXE]

well this seems to be your problem then the world problem.

[Myukoi]

I suppose so.
I'm sure there are others, however.

[SilentDeath]

hopefully i'll have a job by then, but i get allowence and what ever so that should cover it for me

[slimscane]

huh? i thought that there was NOT going to be a fee? :confused:

[eliminator2k4]

first of its only 5.95 a month for xbox live so it really isint that much plus TFLo will only cost the usual 49.99 and for the gfx that game has i would sell my soul to the devil himself
to play it

[SilentDeath]

5.95 W00T CHEAP CHEAP TFLO WILL BE MINE

[SHNAG]

Theres no fing way i'm paying any fee at all for one freaking game. Xbox Live already costs me about 80 bucks a year.

[slimscane]

Since when was there a fee! give me a link! las i heard there wasn't one!!!:mad:

[Kenshin]

yeah I need a job to get my xbl back seeing as my xbl fund went to buying me a new xbox and when i get a job I can offered TFLO too. But until then i'm gonna bitch and moan cause I can't get a job cause I don't have a car

Luckily i'm getting a car this spring and i'm selling my old car for a scrap :D

[JasonXE]

for me it 50 buxs a year and i don't care for the cost of tflo :-) (((save up money)

[eliminator2k4]

preach on im going to be playing with jason while all of you are stuck without xbl and tflo nah thats just mean lol but i will pay whatever fee as long as its fair

[SilentDeath]

50 bucks a year + 5.95 * 12 = $121.94 per year...sounds good to me

[JasonXE]

the monlthly fee is still unannounce.

[SilentDeath]

well that just for..an estimate then

[foxy]

I wouldn't mind a fee as long as it is within reason. I wouldn't want a higher fee like some pc mmorpgs have since we already pay for the live service, but if they keep it low like $6 a month that isn't too bad. They do have to have dedicated servers and this is an mmorpg, if they make the game worth it I'll pay.

edit: Also the monthly fee can be looked at as purchasing premium content since they should update all the time. If they can charge you for less why shouldn't they for more?

[Zzero]

I would say that $7.95 a month or less sounds about right for TFLO. I don't want to be paying the $9.95 or $12.95 per month like current MMORPGs on the PC charge. I mean, I know it costs money to maintain and run everything, but take a look at it from my eyes. Lets say 100,000 people sign up for TFLO. $7.95 x 100,000 = $795,000 per month. I don't care how much work it would take to run and maintain everything, $795,000 per month is more than enough to pay employees to keep working and to fund whatever else that needs funding.

[Myukoi]

I know, i mean since they need all that money for all the people, i'm sure all the people who pay for XBL, buy the high priced game, and pay around 7$ a month, im sure that can keep the servers up. Anyway, microsoft is rich.

[Kenshin]

well if you look at it that the servers are part of the XBL servers they will still be able to maintain it with the 5 bucks a month but since they will most likely be charge to make sure they maintain a profit I don't think it will be that much probly like 7.00 bucks or less.

[Myukoi]

Yeah!

[LavisBlade]

Just because Microsoft is rich doesnt mean they are going to throw away money. They wouldnt be rich if they did this before.

[TFLOfreak]

I could care less about a fee i have 130 bucks devoted to the monthly fee and counting i think can get a year or more with that

[ChuckDigety]

Read on a sight that Microsoft won't make XBL subscribers pay for a microsoft game, (PSO isnt a microsoft game it is a sega game), so keep that in mind They probably say that because, XBL isnt hosting that many servers for games, Part of that XBL fee is for servers, they just havnt had a game that really used Microsoft servers. But if paying helps keep the servers running perfectly and DL content and stops cheater I would love to pay it.

[LavisBlade]

EVERY MMORPG HAS FEE'S ! Why cant people just give in to that?

So you saw a site that said MS wont have a fee huh? Well I've seen some stuff on the internet to.

Even Hino the Director for this game has said this...

The Fee Is Undecided. Meaning theres a fee just they dont know the price yet.

[Myukoi]

Yeah, there is a fee. I'm sure it won't be too much, and i wonder why PSO is still even.. the way it is.. it's like.. horrible for Xbox, sega should really fix it up.
Anyway, i can pay for XBL and have the time of my life, i just need to find out how to get cable, mom said as soon as i find a way to get it were getting it, but what do i doooo?

[LavisBlade]

I still cannot believe there are places that dont have access to cable/dsl yet.

Broadband is the only way to go nowadays... I hate going to someones house and haveing to use 56k it's horrible.

Try going here and seeing if they are in your area. I have comcast and I havent had one problem with them. Used to use SBC Yahoo, but we had some billing miscommunications so I cut off business with them.

https://comcast.com/localization/Default.asp?Referer=Home&LinkID=18&NoAuto=1

[Myukoi]

Thank you! i will use it right away, and i know like a few steps away from my house in my little community you can get cable, but noo where im at "there were not enough houses"
If there isnt any in my area, what can i do to try to get it there?

[Myukoi]

We're Sorry

We are unable to provide information about our digital products based on the address you provided; however, you may live in a location where basic cable services are available. Please note that we are continuing to add enhancements to our Web site that will enable us to provide you this information in the future. In the interim, please submit your question or request for information about basic cable service through the form below and a Comcast Account Executive will respond to your inquiry as soon as possible

[Myukoi]

Argh, i don't know what to do now, i really need cable.. If i can find some, or get it somehow i can have XBL by the end of this month..

:( I guess i won't ever be playing TFLO.

[JasonXE]

try some dsl sites........SEARCH

[Kenshin]

yeah DSL is just about as good as cable (especially were I live I live like half a mile from a jump station)

[LavisBlade]

Yes, but Dsl loses speed judgeing by how far you live from the ISP. I've had both and I like cable more, although dsl can be faster if you live extremely close to the ISP.

One thing cool about Dsl is it uses a Regular Phone line that you use your 56k for, so that means you dont have to move your computer to a cable jack or pay a guy to come in and set up a cable jack by your computer.

Also if your Xbox is close to your computer get a router, my computer loses no speed, but my xbox gets affected a little when I'm on the internet.

[Majya]

How ca nyou accept souls as a payment? I would love to have some, may be ppl can sell their souls in tflo? rare sword for your soul, so i can have my own ghoul like slaves :D

[JasonXE]

http://www.accessphoneservices.com/cable-vs-dsl.html

Read this....none of them are the best but i tend to go with dsl b/c its more stable and cost is less.

Also does anyone have any information on t1 or t3?

[Zellery]

Originally posted by Myukoi
Yeah, there is a fee. I'm sure it won't be too much, and i wonder why PSO is still even.. the way it is.. it's like.. horrible for Xbox, sega should really fix it up.
Anyway, i can pay for XBL and have the time of my life, i just need to find out how to get cable, mom said as soon as i find a way to get it were getting it, but what do i doooo?
You can't even get Xbox Live so I don't know what you're moaning about! I remember you saying in a past thread that your area doesn't even have Broadband so I shouldn't worry about the fee for TFLO.:rolleyes:

[SilentDeath]

Originally posted by LavisBlade
Yes, but Dsl loses speed judgeing by how far you live from the ISP. I've had both and I like cable more, although dsl can be faster if you live extremely close to the ISP.

One thing cool about Dsl is it uses a Regular Phone line that you use your 56k for, so that means you dont have to move your computer to a cable jack or pay a guy to come in and set up a cable jack by your computer.

Also if your Xbox is close to your computer get a router, my computer loses no speed, but my xbox gets affected a little when I'm on the internet.
but you forget how many types of dsl there are, some are good for long distances. I'll give a list of them when i get home

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

I just want to say that I am another person who would not get the game if there was a fee.

It's not even so much the cost, although I think even if Level 5 can't afford not to have a fee, because of the servers and cost of upkeep, Microsoft should step up and provide their own servers and resources. We all paid Microsoft 80 dollars or so for Xbox Live, and if all we paid for was the "service" and not all the games (yes, I know about PSO, and I dont agree with that either) then we got a sucker's deal. We pay 80 bucks for Live, and then games are an additional fee? Whatever happened to the one fee for all the Xbox games?

I understand this game will be expensive. I would even pay more initially to buy the game, Even 80 or 90 dollars if it's a great game, with the extra going to keeping up the game, and again, I know it won't be enough to cover everything, but if it's as great as it sounds, it will also sell XL subscriptions - another reason for MS to support this game.

But I don't want or need another bill each month, whether it be 5 dollars, 10 or whatever. It's a hassle and pain, and I just won't do it. I don't blame Level 5 if they can't afford it, but I will not buy the game if there's a monthly fee.

[Myukoi]

I just looked it up, it's true. the only highspeed internet i can get is direcway sattelite, wich we have and suck. It's not compaitabled with XBL, and even if it was it would be slow as hell.
Damnit, why me?

[ChuckDigety]

You pay 80 bucks for Xbox live, where do you live.I paid 50 for it, and pay 54 bucks a year(tax)

[-Zero-]

What? theres a TFLO monthly fee that sux i have to pay all the xbox live stuff by myself now that

[Myukoi]

I think paying for two services just to play online is a little silly, i mean i like the idea of having a well organized Xbox Live, where you enter it and it's another world, voice chat, news, music, downloabales, music videos, and you pay a fee for all of that, not a fee for other stuff in it.

[eliminator2k4]

from the extent of my knowledge and past experience with xbl its only 54.93 or something like that the annual fee including tax i know because i was billed this month for a whole year so if you have to pay 80 dude i feel sorry for you.

Secondly how do you expect to pay a one time fee and get everything you want well you cant. Think of it this way you open up a bussiness that provides telephone service. Your going great till one customer asks why he has to keep paying and just cant pay once for the whole thing.

Now where and how are you making profits if this average Joe went around telling people they should only need to pay once for the whole thing and not this monthly crap that they are currently paying. Dude you would go bankrupt in seconds and well after the money you invested to start a company like that not to mention all the risks of starting a small telephone company that major ones would trample over in seconds apply this to TFLO, Level 5 & Microsoft and you will see why they need to not only charge a fee for there service (XBL) but to keep and maintain servers that you will be using to play which costs a lot of money.
I mean you demand newer and better improvments in your service but if the company will not make some money you can forget about it. If I am correct servers that are valuable cost at least in the range from $1000- up not to mention the cost to hire people to make sure they are in perfect condition so your game isint affected.

this is just something for you to think about when you say there is no way that your paying a fee for this...

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

About the 80 dollar thing, perhaps I should have clarified a bit more.

It doesn't necessarily have to mean yearly. Some people are already into their 2nd year, making it over 80 dollars total for them so far, and it's also around 80 dollars (Canadian) in Canada. There are those who have only bought 1 year though, and people who are using free trials, so maybe 80 is a bit high for an average. It would still be above 50 though, which basically was my point that we all (those of us with XBL) have already paid a considerable fee to Microsoft for online play.

And we don't just pay once. We have to renew our XBL subscriptions every year, as well as buy each individual game we want to play. Microsoft makes money on each game sold, as well as every XBL subscription sold. I would suspect TFLO would be an extremely compelling reason to get XBL for those Xbox owners who don't have it yet, and for those who don't have an Xbox - as long as it's fun and catch and hassle-free. (i.e. no fees on top of fees)

The phone company doesn't charge you multiple times for the same service, (at least mine doesn't) so why should I pay to play online, and then pay again to play online?

I do see your point about business practices, and making a profit, but let's be honest; Microsoft is no small telephone company. It's huge and has had no qualms about taking a loss before to gain marketshare. They reportedly lost money on each Xbox sold, but they did it to get a foothold in the console market. They could do do the same for Xbox live. Make it so attractive no one wants to pass it up, have a huge selling game for Xbox; one that would sell systems, and blow PS2/FF out of the water. Microsoft has the resources to make this happen. I for one hope they do it.

[Risen_chaos]

lol, hell ya, i live for the day when ps2/ff gets taken down to the bottom, all my friends will fall over dead, :D(they are huge ps2/ff fans, thats all they do)

[eliminator2k4]

everything you said makes sense.
<<< Into my second year of it.

But I also have had XBL since it came out well not the first two months but after the first two months I decided to get it. Personally the annual fee is less expensive then paying monthly if you do the math it comes out more expensive.

Yes it cost me 50 bucks to get xbl and another 50 to renew it but you can cancel anytime and it was your decision to get it in the first place so you really shouldnt be complaining about fees now since you had a chance to read the contract and stuff before you agreed.

And we don't just pay once. We have to renew our XBL subscriptions every year, as well as buy each individual game we want to play. Microsoft makes money on each game sold, as well as every XBL subscription sold. I would suspect TFLO would be an extremely compelling reason to get XBL for those Xbox owners who don't have it yet

This is true with most things. MS provides you with a service of multiplayer gaming all around the world therefore you must buy the eq.(game etc.) and pay for the service(XBL) to be able to pay.

When you buy a cell phone for ex you need to pay for the hardware the phone (in this case the game) and the service (XBL)


and for those who don't have an Xbox - as long as it's fun and catch and hassle-free. (i.e. no fees on top of fees)

No fees on top of fees? People might as well call up Level 5 and tell them to make a special copy of a non XBL addition because there will be a fee you just cant deny it when it comes to a case of something like this.

Another thing isint this exactly what people do even in a pc mmorpg you pay a fee to play because the game is crap without its premium features. and they also pay a fee for the internet basically your playing two fees to do just one thing.

This post is in general to everyone and not pointed at just one person

but hey i can always be wrong

[LavisBlade]

Originally posted by SilentDeath
but you forget how many types of dsl there are, some are good for long distances. I'll give a list of them when i get home

CDSL
VDSL
ADSL
SDSL
RADSL
UDSL
HDSL

They all lose speed judgeing by how far you are from the ISP. Some can go longer distances and lose less speed. Others lose more. Most of these are outragesly priced anyway. I'm pretty sure ADSL is the normal one that most households buy.

--------------------------

By the way since we are doing all of this Broadband talk lets test your brandwith speed at
http://bandwidthplace.com/speedtest/

Please post your speeds...

I'm:
3.9 megabits per second
Communications ----3.9 megabits per second
Storage ----486.7 kilobytes per second
1MB file download ---- 2.1 seconds
Subjective rating --- Awesome

[eliminator2k4]

err kind of off topic but

709 kilobits per second

Communications 709 kilobits per second
Storage 86.6 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 11.8 seconds
Subjective rating Good

[TFLOfreak]

i can run at anywhere from 11 to 15 megabytes a second

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

it was your decision to get it in the first place so you really shouldnt be complaining about fees now


I'm not complaining about the XBL fees. I think it's a great service, and enjoy the games I play on it. I was just saying that I, and everyone else who has Live has already paid for online gaming. I'm fine with that. What I'm not fine with is paying for XBL and on top of that, additional monthly fees for individual games.



This is true with most things. MS provides you with a service of multiplayer gaming all around the world therefore you must buy the eq.(game etc.) and pay for the service(XBL) to be able to pay.

When you buy a cell phone for ex you need to pay for the hardware the phone (in this case the game) and the service (XBL)


Very true, and again, I'm fine with paying for games and for XBL. I brought them up merely to show that we are already paying Microsoft - every time we buy a game, and every time we buy a new XBL subscription. I don't think we should pay extra fees on top of that to play games.



No fees on top of fees? People might as well call up Level 5 and tell them to make a special copy of a non XBL addition because there will be a fee you just cant deny it when it comes to a case of something like this.


I have no problem with Level 5 if they can't afford to put this game out without fees. We don't pay our XBL fees to Level 5. We pay them to Microsoft. That's why I'm saying MS should step up and provide the servers and such, in the case that Level 5 isn't able to provide them. It could even be to their advantage to do so, if this game is huge, (which from what I've read it has the potential to be) getting people to buy an Xbox (if they don't have one) and a Live account to play, as well as pay for the game itself.


Another thing isint this exactly what people do even in a pc mmorpg you pay a fee to play because the game is crap without its premium features. and they also pay a fee for the internet basically your playing two fees to do just one thing.


Most people don't have the internet just to play MMORGPs though. They have it for e-mail, school, work, chat, etc. They just also use it to play games. The only fees they would have specifically for the game would be the cost of the game and the monthly fee. Take those same people, have them all pay at least 50 dollars upfront for online capability, then the cost of the game, and finally a monthly fee of 5-15 dollars to play, and I think you would find a whole lot less interest.

My whole point is if Microsoft's online strategy was like Sony's, where each game charged individually, then it would be perfectly acceptable for there to be a monthly fee. However, that isn't what Microsoft did. Which is fine, because I think it's a better system, but I also think Microsoft should therefore fully support its online system the way XBL subscribers believed it would be. If there is a fee, it's Microsoft's failing, not Level 5's.

...P.S. Sorry this got a little long.

[LavisBlade]

Originally posted by TFLOfreak
i can run at anywhere from 11 to 15 megabytes a second

And I can shoot money out of my ass... take the test copy and paste it... though even then I wont believe you because you could always change the numbers.

-------------------

This I posted in another thread here... if you have read it already just skip it... so many people want to talk about fee's...

WHO CARES!

God people act like they are poor and liveing on the streets.

IF YOU CANT GET 20$ (Sure 20$ is way over what it will be... probaly will be around 5-10 $ ill explain later ) A MONTH THEN YOU ARE A SAD LAZY BASTARD AND SHOULDNT DESERVE TO PLAY THIS GAME.

EVERY! Site I've gone to with tflo forums some CHEAP guy gets on and says somthing like "If there is a fee I'm not playing it." and you know what i have to say to that? GOOD! I wont want to play with your lazy a$ anyway!

I mean comon I could go mow a guys yard for 15 mins and get a 20 easy. My sister on New Years, baby sat three kids for the night. Guess how much she got... 70$ ridiculous is all I have to say :P

h*ll if your really lazy ask for money for your birthday and use that pfft sure its sad but atleast you have the funds.

The problem I guess lays on the requirement of a credit card as a use for the monthly billing.

And I know by playing on live that most "teens/kids/whatever you are" dont have a credit card and this I can understand.

But think about it when you go up to your mom and tell her you'll need her card for a sec she'll give you a bad look (i would to) ,but tell her its only 5-10$ a month and she'll laugh because thats nothing compared to want most credit card bills and regular bills cost. (Taxes arent to cool either ).

Then pay your mom the 10$ a month like it will kill you. Most likely thing to happen is she'll use that 10$'s for somthing like food for your a$.

Now for the explaining of the payment priceing and why i think its 5-10$

This is a MARKET everyone wants a peice of the pie.

When a company like BestBuy goes and purchases games from Microsoft its at *WHOLESALE*
price. I'm not in the game selling business, but I've been to trade shows where candlemakers and fake christmas trees are shown. (Yeah its boring, but it cool to see all the ideas poeple have.)

Not sure what games go for but I've seen sculpture of a dog for 10.63$'s and in the stores they go for around 50-60$. (You know what I'm talking about its them figures made out of glass but they look like diamonds... this one dog was about 4 inchs high and 6 inchs long).

Now back to the games and what I'm trying to get at... when you see a price in a random store. That price has made 3 different profits.

1. The people that make it need a profit (Mostly China and Asian countries do this) they get very low wages though for makeing these but its still a profit. (Level 5)

2. The Company selling the item for *WHOLESALE* boosted the price for their share of profit. (Microsoft)

3. The Final profit is of course the biggest of profit and thats what you see. (The Store you buy the game from.)

SO NO When somone says "Well Microsoft Gets 50$ for the game! Why do we have to pay a fee?" They dont get even close to 50$ is a fraction of that.

Everyone wants to make money!

So the monthly fees to me seem like the only way for Microsoft to get a firm income to keep things running smooth (Includeing the XBL Fee)

Now alot of these rpgs can vary in price from 10-14 $ so I'm guessing since we pay the LIVE fee which is 5$ (I think thats what it is now)

so 5-10$ seems fair to me.

Now lets think of this for a year lets start from to lowest I think they will go 5$

5x12=60$ a year which is a rip from the looks of this game hey look my sister could pay that with 10$ extra pfft sad.

10x12=120 This is where the price starts to get high but still 120 spread out the whole year is like nothing.

Its well worth the price if you enjoy the game. Plus it isnt like Microsoft has no reason for the charge. They have to buy brandwith and hire tech support and server ops all the time to keep the customer happy. It isnt like the charge is like a little extra money microsoft wants just because they want more profit :P.

You could look at it this way to... would you rather microsoft have you pay the fee for a whole year at once which would go for about 120$ plus u'd have to pay for the game 50$ I sure like the fees alot more how about you?


SO FRANKLY QUIT YOUR BITCHIN! PAY THE FEES AND HAVE FUN!


PS I posted this in another forum and all the people were whineing so i got a little mad lol sry. Was in the xbox forums so they edited some of my words hehe.

[eliminator2k4]

i could personally care less im paying...

[pawnblue]

This is a pretty funny discussion. And it always happens in MMORPGS.

People forget which side of the fence they are on, and argue for the business and not the consumer.

Guess what, video games are now the most profitable entertainment industry. That's right, movies, music and whatever else have huge up front costs and require enormous participation to even break even.

I have never once heard someone explain why movies have to cost $8.50 a pop so that J-Lo can get her 10 mil. Or else the movie just could not be profitable. Instead the consumers complain, movie attendance goes down, and the industry suffers.

You don't have to protect MS. They are going to make money. If they don't someone will take their place who can.

So please quit explaining MS's costs. They understand that. We understand it. I want MS to figure out ways of reducing costs to make a profit. Not to charge me!

Plus, an online comunity that wants to focus on exclusion and paying extra to help out these poor overworked companies doesn't benefit anyone.

And until video gamers quit trying to protect mega-conglomerate companies, I hope they soak all of you on every new thing that comes out.

[eliminator2k4]

well lets sum up this topic in a copule of words : If you want to play pay if you dont then go away

[pawnblue]

Originally posted by eliminator2k4
well lets sum up this topic in a copule of words : If you want to play pay if you dont then go away

Ah yes, the pay to play communities sentiments.

Agree with us or go away. Nice attitude guy.

I wish the game could be free, and then the "pay to players" could just make donations. Or even have advertisements in game. Like healing potions could be called Pepsi (not pop-ups).

What do you think Pepsi (or whoever) would pay for that? Of course with the pay to play attitude, we'd get both soon enough.

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

I don't mean to keep posting to this topic, but I really don't understand some of these people who seem not only determined to pay a fee, but actually want to pay one.

Why?

Does is make you more "hardcore" - a better, more dedicated gamer? Does spending hundreds of dollars to play one game give you satisfaction that you are somehow keeping the video game industry afloat?

I'm really at a loss here...

pawnblue brought up an interesting analogy with the movie industry. When a company makes a really expensive movie; big stars, huge budget, millions in advertising and so forth...they don't charge people an extra 5 dollar fee on top of the regular admission charge to "recoup their expenses". They hope that they have made a great, entertaining movie that hopefully a lot of people will go see. That's how they make their money back. Why don't they tack on an additional fee? Because people won't pay it and the company knows it.

So why is it so different with video games?

[Myukoi]

i will p2p i just need dsl.
damn i hate evergreen.

[LavisBlade]

The big reason movies have big-hit actors is because it will bring in more money, even more money then paying a nobody to act, even with the more money you have to spend on the big-hit actor.

Clone Wars was a big one had some good actors in it. Samuel L Jackson, Christopher Lee, Natalie Portman... Plus that had the Star Wars name.

Pirates of the Caribbean.... I know people that went to see that movie just becuase of Johnny Depp.

Sure I'll admit it would be nice if there were no fee's, but really it wont happen.

It's hard to get a balance between the Hardcore Gamers that play 6 hours a day online or off and blend them with the casual players that play a few hours a week.

The Hardcore Gamers really dont care much about the fee, they get good service and use every bit of it.

The Casual gamer feels he is paying way to much for the amount of time he plays.

In the end you can always cancel.

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

The big reason movies have big-hit actors is because it will bring in more money, even more money then paying a nobody to act, even with the more money you have to spend on the big-hit actor.

Yes, because the people making the movie want it to be as attractive to people as possible, and give movie goers the most amount of reasons to see it. They want lots of people to go watch their movie. Having recognizable stars is one of the ways to do that.

I think the same could apply to video games. Give people the most amount of reasons to buy the game. I think no fees would entice people to buy the game, who would otherwise pass if there were monthly charges associated with it. More people would play, meaning higher sales, meaning greater exposure and coverage, more attention to Xbox and XBL, more people without those may decide to buy them. Thereby increasing Microsoft's sales, revenues and marketshare.

I don't want to go on and on about this, because I know people will still disagree with me, and/or they are fine with paying whatever fees games decide to charge. I just feel it's wrong for them to do so. We pay enough already.

[LavisBlade]

Yes, but you could turn that around also.

Microsoft and other companies have probaly found out that it is in their benefit to charge a select few instead of getting alot of people to play for free. Plus if the game becomes so popular because it's free it will cost even more money to keep stuff up and running in the long run.

[Myukoi]

true fantasy awaits..

[xX_dudelove_Xx]

People wouldn't be playing "for free" though. They would have to pay for the game and Xbox live first. It sad when we've got to the point where paying over 100 dollars to play online is considered "free".

Your second point is a good one. The more people that played, the more bandwidth would be required, which does cost money. While the cost would be offset somewhat by the profits the game generates, as well as XBL, there is a lot of expense in running the servers, as well as staff support. However...

Microsoft would probably be gaining even more marketshare in the online gaming arena, positioning themselves even more as the leader in this field. Like I pointed out in a previous post, Microsoft has indicated it is willing to take a loss on profitability in order to make gains in the console market. They could do this again to try and capture the online market. A loss today could yield big gains tomorrow, and Microsoft no doubt has a long term strategy.

And even taking away all that....it really isn't my problem. Microsoft is the one who offered the Xbox live deal. All the games for one fee. It's up to THEM to figure it out. They should stand by their service. If they want us to pay them for all our online gaming on Xbox, then we should expect all our online gaming on Xbox to be included.

If I was Microsoft, I'd think about this carefully. You don't want customers feeling burned and cheated. Those people tend to look elsewhere next time.

[pawnblue]

Originally posted by LavisBlade
Microsoft and other companies have probaly found out that it is in their benefit to charge a select few instead of getting alot of people to play for free. Plus if the game becomes so popular because it's free it will cost even more money to keep stuff up and running in the long run.

Oh I agree, I just don't understand why gamers don't get outraged at it.

If Lucas charged $20 a ticket for the first few days, you guys would be upset I hope.

Or maybe you would argue that he should do it? I don't know. I just don't understand why you guys are always ready to pay for everything.

Have you heard of the new phantom console? At a press conference someone asked the guy why he should buy it. He said he had all the major consoles and a good PC. The guy told him that he will get it because he buys everything, just like the gamers always do.

That's why MS and Sony are in this market. Because they can rip you off and you defend them.

I don't care about a companies costs or bottom line. They pay guys to do that. I just don't understand why you guys want to pay them to do it?

[JasonXE]

ummm you do know the phantom is a joke and will never come out. I believe your looking for the discovery .....i think thats the name of it