The Atysian Subscription

[faedyne]

To be honest, for all any of us know that Winchgate is being run out of a shed in a back yard in northern Wisconsin by a racoon who desires to be a Yubo and a pissed off possum.

Dude, I'd like to see you run the Ryzom servers out of a shed in your backyard. (that had better be a well-built shed with some good locks on the doors)
and they've been running these servers for how long? 6 months of free service. I can't remember if they were up before that October.
If you think there is any possibility of the first month of subs being a scam, you're not realizing they've already sunk more money into it than they'd get from the first month of subs. (maybe? I dunno. Either way, not a good plan.)
Now it's not impossible that they're putting out the idea of 3 year subscriptions and yet they've hypothetically realized the game won't last long enough, but there's no way your first month subscription is going to end up being a scam.

[kalindra]

To be honest, I'd rather pay the monthly subscription at full rate, since it gives more regular income in the long run than a one-shot life time subscribtion. Also, I won't risk as much money as I did last time. (subbed for 6 months, Game Forge France went bankrupt 2 months after.) Also I just can't afford to spend a couple hundreads at once on a game... I'd rather buy a couple Ryzom t-shirts, posters or a RL yubo plushie.

[katriell]

To all the people asking for transparency...I don't disagree with you, but what exactly are you asking for? Do you even know?

A list of employee names? What about semi-employees like voluntary development contributors and CSRs? We already know that there are people in the Winch Gate team who worked on Ryzom before, thus there is an important familiarity with its nature and needs present. There are also people who didn't work on it before.

A company website? What would be on it? The company name we already know (Winch Gate), their mission we already know (to run Ryzom), and...a physical address perhaps?

A roadmap? Well, they're focusing on fixing bugs first. Also they're adding small features and implementing assorted polishing tweaks. They want to centre Ryzom on its saga and restore the activity of that saga. This is not idle talk - already they've released not one but three patches, and events have been run (not as many on Arispotle as on the other servers due to the event team personnel shortage here).

Marketing? Get off your ass and do it yourself.

I could create a professional-looking website and fill it with fake information and you'd suck it up happily in all its meaninglessness until someone did a whois and discovered its registrar had nothing to do with Winch Gate. But if WG was duplicitous they could do the same thing and it'd take longer for you to see anything amiss.

So...what are you really asking for? What mere words and/or media can prove good will, ensure the future of Ryzom, and attract a sustaining subscriber base?

I expected this community to be more interested in actions than promises.

[h0lycha0]

I'm worried about dropping that kind of money right now too. I would honestly love to but I can't be sure the servers will be on that long. I also wonder if with that sub we would start being charged for expansions? Right now I much prefer monthly subbing and a donation button (and a plushie too).

[sidusar]

and they've been running these servers for how long? 6 months of free service.

8 months. At a monthly sub with their new rates, that would've costed us €64 already (at Nevrax's old rates, €103). So trusting them with €200 at this point doesn't seem all that unfair. Obviously WG feels they need a quick cash infusion to make investments with more than they need a steady income from the current playerbase.

But that's again thinking from the perspective of someone who doesn't mind spending money to help Ryzom survive. As a critical paying customer who doesn't give a damn if Ryzom lives or dies, buying a lifetime subscription for €200 means you'd have to play at least 25 more months to be cheaper of, and given track record there's a fair chance Ryzom won't be around that long, aside from the chance you'll have moved on to another MMO by then.

This offer is aimed at those people who don't mind spending money to help Ryzom survive; giving them a lifetime subscription for it is just an extra 'thank you', so then why not a donation button and Ryzom merchandise too? (Though, if you really want to donate money to Ryzom for nothing in return, there's always the option of subbing a second account without using it. Subbing it for a month to donate €8, for a year to donate €80, etc.)

[graill]

If you want me to gamble on you with a lifetime sub then you need to give me something in return.

such as two skills i can max or reallocate one skill and max a low one. Either way my reward needs to be comensurate with my risk to your company if i did a lifetime.

you could do other incentives on that general line to get new subs for say a short time like an introductory offer.

and maxing two skills wont kill everyone or unbalance the game, most of us have one or two already maxed, you just need to reward our risk.

[framar07]

I think like many my choice would be between "Yes, because I want to help Ryzom" and "No, because I don't have confidence in your transparency or the future of Ryzom". Don't care about the Transparency.

Also i think that it would be a bit short sighted, yes they would get a big infusion of cash but 12 months down the line and for example you have 10% of the players with a lifetime account you would be limiting the funding coming into the game again.

I've made the mistake once before in once you fully own something the sellers suddenly lose interest in you, but if you are still a paying customer with more cash ready in there face they are intently interested in all your worldly problems.

I think they would be better with a donations button and getting the monthly sub setup, once that is done people can start paying and giving them money, then they need to put all that cash into Marketting, once they have more people then they will have a steady income and be able to put more money into Marketing and Development.

Before people tell me that we should be marketting the game ourselves The Soul already has a website and we've actually brought people in from some of the others games The Soul plays. It is very hard to find Ryzom on any of the major MMO sites and if its hard for us it means its harder to get noticed for other people.

I have the same conversation with new folks to the game 4 or 5 times a week "wow this is amazing how long has it been out?", "its been out for 4-5 years", "Really wow i looks so new but i have never heard of it before and only accidently stumbled across it", after that is goes on as expected.

[fiach]

To all the people asking for transparency...I don't disagree with you, but what exactly are you asking for? Do you even know?



A roadmap? Well, they're focusing on fixing bugs first. Also they're adding small features and implementing assorted polishing tweaks. They want to centre Ryzom on its saga and restore the activity of that saga. This is not idle talk - already they've released not one but three patches, and events have been run (not as many on Arispotle as on the other servers due to the event team personnel shortage here).


So...what are you really asking for? What mere words and/or media can prove good will, ensure the future of Ryzom, and attract a sustaining subscriber base?

What you have outlined is not a road map, its just a list of things that are irrelevent to me.

Fixing bugs that never bothered me in the first place. woot.
Lore/Sage dont interest me in the slightest.

I want to know where they are intending to take Ryzom.

Will it become more PvP or PvE.
Will they create new maps.
Will there be an increase of the level cap.
Will there be new skills to learn.
Will they implement an Item Shop or premium servers.
Will they add more OP's.

I could add more but hopefully you will see what I mean now, by a roadmap.

[katriell]

Will it become more PvP or PvE.

Balance will be maintained.

Will they create new maps.
Will there be an increase of the level cap.
Will there be new skills to learn.

Don't be silly.

Will they implement an Item Shop or premium servers.

No.

Will they add more OP's.

Probably not.


Thanks for the examples, Valda, although they encourage my suspicion that the specific questions people might have tend to be easily answered by common sense.


Disclaimer: I don't represent Winch Gate and I don't know what their plans are. As implied, I'm just putting common sense to use.

[fiach]

Disclaimer: I don't represent Winch Gate and I don't know what their plans are. As implied, I'm just putting common sense to use.

Exactly, you dont know, so why bother answering in such a manner?

Why are my questions silly and how do they reflect a lack of common sense, when your "answers" are not based on any facts available.

How are these questions silly :

1. Will they create new maps.
2. Will there be an increase of the level cap.
3. Will there be new skills to learn.

1. Most if not all MMO's release expansions and new maps.
2. Most if not all MMO's raise their level cap.
3. Most if not all MMO's implement new skillsets.

So please, in future, if you dont know, then dont answer with lies and insult genuine posters in the thread.