The Daily Grind: Would a cheaper subscription get you playing more?

by Krystalle Voecks on Apr 8th 2009 8:00AM

Economy, MMO industry, Opinion, The Daily Grind

Let's face it - things are rough insofar as the general economy goes. People are being much more cautious with their cash, and especially now, they want much more value for their dollar when it comes to entertainment spending. What used to be OK at $15 may no longer be such a good deal, and with more free-to-play games coming all the time, players have a lot more options for entertainment.

In the comments for the poll we ran the other morning, there were some who noted that they've kept Lord of the Rings Online accounts in part because they felt it was a good value for an MMO. Others noted that they've switched to free-to-play games like Runes of Magic, or pay-once like Guild Wars to get their gaming on. Beyond that I also know a few parents who have opted to switch to FusionFall for family gaming, since it gives you the ability to have four different accounts for $9.95 a month. With that under consideration, this morning we thought we'd ask you - would a cheaper subscription cost for MMOs across the board (say, all of them drop to the $9.95 model of Lord of the Rings Online - or maybe even offer some lifetime options) get you to play more games - or perhaps jump around and try out other games? Would a cheaper subscription rate bring you back to a game account you may have let lapse due to harder times?

Tags: cost, economic-slump, economy, free-to-play, subscription, tdg, the-daily-grind, value

Reader Comments (27)

Definitely, I think that the current MMOs subscription cost is ridiculous. With the huge player base, the price should drop to 5 or 10$. I've been playing MMOs since 1997 and the subscriptions are only going up. Put a stop on this.

They have to make a profit, or at least cover maintenance costs and future development.

But yes, I do feel it's a bit pricey.

Some people are against micro transaction, but I really think it's the future of MMOs.

To me, microtransactions feel like some cheap scam where it’s next to nothing to get in the amusement park but you need to pay three dollars to get on all the best rides and hot dogs cost seven dollars a pop. Paying real-life money to rent a mount for a day? No thank you. I’d rather spend one solid, easy-to -rack monthly fee for the whole game and have the freedom to make my experience whatever I want without paying more.

If you're referring to Runes of Magic, you can permanently buy a mount. It costs roughly 1 month of WoW play time. $15 bucks.

And really, if you feel you need the mount, that's all you really need to buy from the shop. The rest for impatient people.

C'mon, what would you really do if you'd want to save 15$ in a month: skip a movie + popcorn/cola (2 hours) or stop playing your favorite MMORPG (x hours)?

Not all mmo players earn their life in USD or Euros so skiping a movie won't cover 15$

My house isn't in any fincial duress atm. Actually, with sales and prices of things dropping so much, we're better off now then we've ever been. Saving more and spending more, so a price drop would mean little to me currently.

I pay about $60 - 75 a month in subs. Between Netflix, MMO's and Gamefly. I toggle them all on/off depending on what I want, but I've always felt I get more then $15 worht of entertainment from each.

I'd welcome a lower price (of course) but it wouldn't be the deciding facto in any game I play.

I can't afford any kind of sub at the moment but I don't think MMO subs are too high, I think that subscription games offer great value for money when you look at the cost per hour of entertainment there is little that beats them.

I am very grateful that there are Free to play games I can access as it allows me to have fun where I couldn't otherwise, but as soon as my situation changes I'll be subbing to a game.

Of course it makes a difference. Initially the LOTRO price was very influential when I left WoW. At $9.53 I feel like I get a good price for a lot of fun. For some reason the $15 price tag has always seemed a tad high. As my son gets older I know it will be a factor if he gets into MMOs.

While $15 a month may not be alot, prices on subscriptions have gone up over the years. The first generation MMOs started at 9.95 a month. I always have at least 1 subscrition going, sometimes 2. If prices dropped some I'd be more willing to keep more subscritions/accounts going for games I'd only play occassionally

I wouldn't mind a slightly lower subscription charge, but I tend to end up paying a little less for my WoW (3-month gamecards + tax-deductible gaming FTW) than most people. I actually stopped playing for a while recently in the face of paying full-price, so I suppose I actually mean that.

I used to pay $10 a month for Skotos, just to play a handful of text-only MMOs though, so you have to wonder if $5 (and a shed-load of immersion) is worth it for pretty graphics...

The only time I really found mmo subscription prices an issue was when I was unemployed for six months after graduating college. Every dollar counts when you’re paying college loans and car repairs with zero income even if it is something as small as $15 dollars a month.
However, now that I’m working, $15 dollars a month really doesn’t even make a blip on the radar. You can easily spend more than this on a trip to the movies or a round of drinks at the bar. If you’re financially stable on any level, you should be able to afford this fee. If you’re not, you should probably take a break like I did when the going got tough and save every dollar you got.

Is the monthly fee worth it? Depends on which game you’re playing. I’ve never felt cheated by World of Warcraft. Blizzard works hard to facilitate a positive developer-community relationship and they’re constantly creating new content between expansion packs and balancing the game. It honestly feels like I have a membership to something in the vein of a fitness gym or country club. As long as the facilities are maintained and they put in a new hot tub, I feel like I’m getting my money’s worth.

If it was cheaper I would probably play more MMOs, I love my stand-bys, but new experiences never hurt. As long as I get at least 4 hours a month (very rarely is it actually that low) out of each $15 sub it's worth the money compared to most other media. And if it does, I cancel till an x-pac, content patch, time frees up, w/e.

MMOs also occupy enough time that I don't throw money at random and technically more expensive singleplayer games just for something to do, I stick to the ones I know I want or I truly find intriguing.

That said, I can't see myself going past the 2 subs at a time with the current pricing scheme. Anymore and the value starts to dwindle.

Well when I love an MMO I don't care one jot about the current subscription rates, but when I merely like a game (or have no offline games on the go) then yes I'd be more likely to keep a subscription open if they were lower.

However, I'd definitely be thinking very low e.g. £3-4 a month for the likes of WAR.

I would be fine with such rates being for different packages altogether e.g.
* Maximum number of hours per day/month.
* Off-peak and weekends only.
* Lower level cap.
* Fewer character slots.
* Limited choice of servers
Even so, I cannot see companies starting up such options - for fear they'll prove too popular.

Last year i would have said paying $15 (£9 i'm in UK) a month was great value for money. However my circumstances have changed and I can now only realistically get online perhap 4 hours a week.... To me it's no longer great value for money.

I have cancelled my EVE sub (poor Pound to Euro means its close to £13 / $20), even though it's an awesome game, as well as my Warhammer account, again another excellent game.

I have since moved on to Runes of Magic, which is great fun considering it's free and it really suits my game time. Although I certainly miss the friends I've made playing EVE and WAR... Although I've only been playing ROM for 4 hours... =)

I'd love to see "light usage" subscription rates. I can't even guarantee I'll log in AT ALL during a month, which makes it $15 up in smoke...

Absolutely. You know why? I can't afford to pay $15 a month for more than one or two subscriptions. There are about 10 games I would love to play, but I have to chose just one or two.

$10 from $15 makes a big difference. I pay $30 for three months of LotRO. Granted, it was a special promotion, but I'm not about to give that up to come back at $15 either.

Every little thing in my life adds up. $5 here, $2 there and suddenly I've spent what could have been a couple of extra payments for bills.

Like someone else say not everybody earn their life in US $ or Euros and it's getting difficult for me to keep my subs going.So I'm joining Runes of Magic to have another MMO to play with the one I`m subbed right now.Lowering the sub fee is the most welcome.

For the amount I play video games in a month, WoW itself is well worth the $15 to me. It's the equivalent of buying one used xbox360 game every 3 months (~$45 for decent titles) and has way more content and replay value than a console game. WoW is the only MMO that I've played, so I can't comment on whether $15/month is worth it for *every* MMO, but I feel like I get my money's worth in WoW.

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The Daily Grind: Would a cheaper subscription get you playing more?

Reader Comments (27)

Posted: Apr 8th 2009 8:34AM djodars said

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Posted: Apr 8th 2009 10:11AM mko said

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