Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Funcom tops Oslo stock exchange, invests heavily in The Secret World]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/02/funcom-tops-oslo-stock-exchange-invests-heavily-in-the-secret-w/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/02/funcom-tops-oslo-stock-exchange-invests-heavily-in-the-secret-w/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/02/funcom-tops-oslo-stock-exchange-invests-heavily-in-the-secret-w/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

The Secret World - Dude with a big shotgun
Funcom's future is looking pretty bright according to a report at Views and News from Norway. The site says the development firm behind Anarchy Online, Age of Conan, and The Secret World topped the Oslo stock exchange last year and saw its share price rise by 227%.

AoC has "sold well and still generates income for Funcom," says the report, but the real cause for optimism is the positive buzz surrounding The Secret World. Funcom head honcho Trond Arne Aas says that the firm has received "very good feedback" from both testers and journalists, and it's a good thing since the company absorbed a third quarter loss despite its share price increase.

"We're investing heavily in The Secret World now, therefore the loss," Aas explained. "But we're hoping for major income after the launch in April."

MassivelyFuncom tops Oslo stock exchange, invests heavily in The Secret World originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>age-of-conanaocbusinesseconomicsfailcomfantasyfuncomhorrormmo-industrystock-performancethe-secret-worldtrond-arne-aastswMon, 02 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Secret World lures half a million potential beta testers into the underworld]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/the-secret-world-lures-half-a-million-potential-beta-testers-int/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/the-secret-world-lures-half-a-million-potential-beta-testers-int/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/the-secret-world-lures-half-a-million-potential-beta-testers-int/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

The Secret World
Funcom's The Secret World may be about underworld societies waging a "behind the curtains" war against forces of darkness, but the beta signup is anything but secret. Over 500,000 potential testers have signed up on the MMO's website since Funcom opened beta registrations a month ago.

Funcom CEO Trond Arne Aas says this is bigger than anything the studio has seen to date: "We are thrilled to see the amount of interest The Secret World is generating among gamers and the press, and exceeding half a million beta registrations six months before release is definitely something we are proud of. The gamer interest in The Secret World and the community size for the game is even greater than we experienced with Age of Conan at the same stage of development. We expect the community size to keep on expanding at an ever faster pace in the coming months as we approach open beta and launch."

The Secret World is scheduled to launch April 2012 and will be subscription-based with optional microtransactions on top of that.

MassivelyThe Secret World lures half a million potential beta testers into the underworld originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>500000age-of-conanbetabeta-registrationbeta-registrationsbeta-signupsclosed-betafuncomhalf-millionsecret-warthe-secret-warthe-secret-worldTrond-Arne-AastswTue, 25 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Age of Conan: Unchained conquers 300,000 new players, doubles revenue in a month]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/11/age-of-conan-unchained-conquers-300-000-new-players-doubles-re/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/11/age-of-conan-unchained-conquers-300-000-new-players-doubles-re/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/08/11/age-of-conan-unchained-conquers-300-000-new-players-doubles-re/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Age of Conan
The secret is out and the jig is up: MMO studios have solid evidence that adding a free-to-play option on top of a subscription model is the way to bring in hordes of new players. Age of Conan: Unchained proved this today as Funcom announced the addition of over 300,000 players to its bloody family in the first month of service.

Apparently the servers are packed full and Funcom is raking in the moolah, too. The studio announced that servers have quadrupled activity during this time period, and revenues have more then doubled. This is certainly good news for the 2008 title, which is now being supported by a mix of subscription and cash shop options.

Funcom CEO Trond Arne Aas is pleased as (a) punch: "The launch of the hybrid business model has been very successful so far. The activity levels on the servers are booming with a fourfold increase in players during July, we more than doubled the revenue generated from the game, and we have experienced a positive development in subscriber numbers. This definitely gives us great hope for the game's future."

Age of Conan is set to release a movie tie-in update later this month called Savage Coast of Turan to take advantage of the Conan the Barbarian movie coming to theaters on the 18th.

MassivelyAge of Conan: Unchained conquers 300,000 new players, doubles revenue in a month originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 11 Aug 2011 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>adventure-package-of-conanage-of-conan-unchainedaocconanconan-the-barbariancraig-morrisonf2pfree-to-playfuncommovie-tie-innew-playersrevenuesavage-coast-of-turansubscriber-numberssubscriberstrond-arne-aasunchainedThu, 11 Aug 2011 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[There's a conspiracy afoot: Funcom and EA co-publishing The Secret World]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/01/10/theres-a-conspiracy-afoot-funcom-and-ea-co-publishing-the-secr/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/01/10/theres-a-conspiracy-afoot-funcom-and-ea-co-publishing-the-secr/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/01/10/theres-a-conspiracy-afoot-funcom-and-ea-co-publishing-the-secr/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

The Secret World went dark a few months ago -- no doubt to hatch nefarious, world-ending plots that involve brain leeches and alien zombies -- so it's good to see Funcom's sinister child poke its head up for some solid news. It turns out that Funcom's been involved in a conspiracy of sorts: The company has signed a pact with EA Partners to co-publish The Secret World. EA Partners is a division of Electronic Arts that co-publishes third-party games such as Crysis and APB's first incarnation.

Funcom CEO Trond Arne Aas sees this as a way to propel the company's MMO to world domination: "We are tremendously excited to be working with what is undoubtedly the world-leading games publisher for the past decade, and it is also a great testament to the fantastic work of our development team. The experience and the knowledge that Electronic Arts brings to the table will be instrumental in allowing us to realize the full potential of The Secret World."

Funcom's had a rocky few years with its finances, which is why some doubted if The Secret World would ever make it to launch. Fortunately, this co-publishing deal seems to ensure that TSW will go the distance with two companies supporting it. We still have no word on the beta or release date, but this is at least a step toward the MMO seeing the light of day -- or the gloom of the night.

MassivelyThere's a conspiracy afoot: Funcom and EA co-publishing The Secret World originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 10 Jan 2011 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>all-points-bulletinapbbrain-leechesbreakingco-publishco-publishingcrysisdealeaea-partnerselectronic-artsfuncomlegalthe-secret-worldtrond-arne-aastswzombiesMon, 10 Jan 2011 08:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Funcom plans a more casual direction for future games]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/01/05/funcom-plans-a-more-casual-direction-for-future-games/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/01/05/funcom-plans-a-more-casual-direction-for-future-games/http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/01/05/funcom-plans-a-more-casual-direction-for-future-games/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Back in December, we talked a bit about Funcom's new studio SweetRobot, which will be designing games for a much younger market than the Age of Conan crowd. Pets vs. Monsters is the first offering from the studio, with the promise of more to come. Funcom CEO Trond Arne Aas took some time to sit down with gameindustry.biz and discuss where the company stands now, and how that has influenced their decision to explore this new opportunity.

Of course, Funcom had to employ some cost-cutting measures in 2009: "...it's become almost a default thing for businesses in the last year it seems." Tapping into the vast tween market could be a very lucrative move in the face of those measures -- while their cash reserves are more than comfortable, gaining new subscribers is the way to keep the company moving forward.

Make no mistake - the grownup side of Funcom isn't going anywhere. Age of Conan is here to stay and The Secret World is still coming, but Funcom is also giving plenty of attention to their more casual new studio as well. The full interview can be read here.

MassivelyFuncom plans a more casual direction for future games originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>age-of-conanfuncomgameindustry.bizpets-vs-monsterssweetrobotthe-secret-worldtrond-arne-aasTue, 05 Jan 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Funcom to open Montréal studio]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/09/01/funcom-to-open-montreal-studio/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/09/01/funcom-to-open-montreal-studio/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/09/01/funcom-to-open-montreal-studio/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Word got out earlier today that Funcom is establishing a new game development studio in Montréal. If your French is up to snuff, you can read all about it on Les Affaires, but Funcom was quick to make an announcement of their expansion plans. According to their official release, the new studio is being established in cooperation with Investissement Québec, with Ole Schreiner as CEO of the Montréal studio.

Funcom CEO Trond Arne Aas made a statement on Funcom's reasons for establishing a Québec studio: "We are excited about the opportunity that Montréal represents to our company, not only because of the great incentives offered by Québec, but also the authorities' strong commitment to training qualified video games personnel and building a video games cluster in Montréal and Québec."

Continue reading Funcom to open Montréal studio

MassivelyFuncom to open Montréal studio originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>age-of-conanceofuncommmo-industrymontrealole-schreinerquebecthe-secret-worldtrond-aastrond-arne-aasTue, 01 Sep 2009 20:00:00 EST