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Why does Daybreak games do so little on promotion for the game or its expansions?

Discussion in 'The Veterans' Lounge' started by MarttinPH, Sep 9, 2022.

  1. Benito EQ player since 2001.

    EG7 cancelled Planetside Arena and the Marvel Metaverse title. Those decisions that - I believe - helps EQ immensely.

    I believe LOTRO, Planetside 2, and DCUO seem to be standing on their own feet. If anything, EQ1 may be subsidizing EQ2 but they share the same studio and team.
  2. Stymie Pendragon

    I disagree. The vast majority of people on the internet today are not sitting at a computer desk. They are mobile internet users who may be looking for a new game to try out. Gaming forums can be a good indicator of participation and overall health of a game. I use it prior to buying/trying. /shrug

    You only get 1 chance at a first impression, and Daybreak falls short in this regard. They don't care, which is obvious. However, I felt a desire to point out where they have been inept in their duties as a company for over a decade.

    6.6 billion out of the 8 billion people on earth is where I pull the "vast" part of my statement.
    Source:
    https://www.oberlo.com/statistics/how-many-people-have-smartphones
  3. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    And the vast majority of people on the internet have no interest in playing a 23+ year old MMO regardless of them having a mobile friendly website or not. We are not going to be getting new members because they saw a fancy website. Sure it would be nice if they had upgraded their forums and website to be mobile friendly but that is not what is going to be attracting in new players. What is more critical is the game itself and there are plenty of ways to watch gameplay footage and see how dated almost everything about the game is.

    The problem attracting new players isn't in the website but the game itself.
  4. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    That doesn't mean the money is getting spent on EQ/EQ2 instead of some new unnamed project.
    Nennius likes this.
  5. Stymie Pendragon


    I agree with you for the most part. However, as I have already stated, it wouldn't cost much to bring the appearance of the franchise up to over a decade ago standards.

    Below is what the forums look like on mobile, but on a 5.6 inch screen in my case (so tiny). If you haven't experienced it yet, I encourage you to give it a try. I assume that either you, or someone you know has a smartphone? I may be overly presumptuous, but 82.5% of the world has one. It's an experience in truly knowing how to manipulate a touch screen. It is not a fun experience however, hence my signature.

    In the long run does it matter? No, but not much of what any of us do is worth the time we spent doing it. Many of the aircraft I helped build are now sitting in a desert somewhere, as an example.

    Upgrading their forum software would at least give the impression that they're an active gaming company that wants as many people as possible to try, purchase, subscribe, and enjoy the game that they've worked so hard to make.

    Bonus points for replying to me using the same form factor. :)
    https://imgur.com/a/Kkt9osF
  6. Benito EQ player since 2001.

    Are there any indications of an "unnamed project"?

    Massively reported that the Marvel title was cancelled. If anything, a Marvel game would have been EG7's next big thing.
  7. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    And I never said it wouldn't be nice to have a mobile version of the forums but you have to realize they are on a forums version that is over a decade old. Having or not having a mobile version won't do much to impact new players joining the game. Also just because a large portion of the population has a mobile device it doesn't mean that they are surfing the web on it or trying to make PC game decision from a mobile device. The decision to upgrade or not upgrade their web presence isn't just a matter of how much it costs but what other things they would have to stop doing in order to do that upgrade.

    Again, I agree with you a mobile version would be nice but that doesn't mean they see it as a high priority or should it be one.
    Stymie likes this.
  8. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    Is there any indication on how they are spending the profits at all? Just because they have canceled some projects we know about doesn't mean the money hasn't shifted to projects we don't know about. After all how many times over the year do we learn after the fact that they have been spending money on a new project and later canceled it.

    Until they come out and say that they are reinvesting in EQ we can't say for certain that they are.
  9. Benito EQ player since 2001.

    Ji Ham has stated that they are reinvesting in their core portfolio (EQ, DCUO, LOTRO). I am asking if you have seen evidence to the contrary.
  10. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    I have not seen that statement and that does not say how much they are investing and in which games. I am sorry but I am going to be a bit cynical considering how much has been syphoned out of EQ over the years. Sure the canceled some games but that does not mean that they did not just shift that money to some unannounced game or project.
  11. Benito EQ player since 2001.

    EG7 is based in Sweden which has very transparent business laws. This is how the media found out about the Marvel title (both its existence and cancellation).

    If you see a declaration or apportionment of money towards a "unnamed project", you will see it in EG7's reports. Let us know when you have that information.
  12. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    Sorry, just because they canceled some games doesn't mean that they are shifting that money back into EQ. Sure there are ways to find out about projects but that doesn't mean that they are known the instant they start.
  13. Stymie Pendragon

    That is a fact.

    Historically, all net profits have been spent elsewhere, and with questionable results, to be kind.

    It's fun to opine what this game would be today if they would have handled the money we gave them over the last couple of decades differently. Some people are still calling WoW a "new" game 18 years later, but they've been iterating the whole time. They aren't doing as well nowadays versus prior years, but Holly's team just released their PoPish TLP to a receptive audience. The tank is pretty much empty after this one, so who knows what's next for her, but I wish her the best. :)

    Back to EQ and the original topic; I ask again, what is there to advertise for someone that isn't a max level paying customer already? The last 3? expansions have pretty much ruled out grinding to catch up as a viable means, and a new or returning player is only wasting money by buying the latest expansion. I just don't get their long-term strategy, given the aging player base.
  14. Benito EQ player since 2001.


    Do you have the data for this?

    It would be helpful to cite for future discussions.
  15. Stymie Pendragon

    I will admit that I engaged in a bit of hyperbole in that statement. #busted:)
  16. Waring_McMarrin Augur

    At this point in the games life is it better to spend money on a game that is 23+ years old with tens of thousands of users that is shrinking over time or work on developing a new one with a potentially larger userbase and a game that can continue after the current games end.

    As much as I don't want it to happen eventually EQ will end and they will have to move on to a new game.
    Stymie likes this.
  17. Skrab East Cabilis #1 Realtor

    They said that same thing after 5 years of EQ. They’ve essentially struck out every time they try to build something new.
  18. Tarvas Redwall of Coirnav, now Drinal

    Whatever happen to that guy who doing all the EQ videos? That was free advertisement right there.
    Nennius likes this.
  19. Nennius Curmudgeon

    IIRC he got a new job or something and had to stop production of those videos. It's a shame because he is a professional and has considerable talent for it. I do wish (if you're watching) that you would be able to do some more. Here's a link to one for those videos for those who might not be familiar with them.

    Edit: I found this thread with a LOT more information about Fading Illusion who produced the videos.

    https://forums.daybreakgames.com/eq/index.php?threads/the-everquest-show-what-happened.258852/



    In another vein, Shawn Lord has done several videos that interview some of the folks who helped to create EQ and other games in the SOE/DBG universe. Here is a link to one of those.

    Stymie likes this.
  20. Iven Suggestions Bard

    It seems that even both EQ projects first have to die before a successor project could be developed. EQ is in a zombie state, not fully dead but also not fully alive anymore. About four other DB game projects got infused by its energy which should be the dream of every game company. Many paladins would be needed to end that curse and currently the necromancers [EG7] do have the upper hand.