Category: Editorials

Funcom Q1 2012 Finances


Funcom today released the financial details for the first quarter of 2012, and the results are mixed. Age of Conan continues to be Funcom’s major source of income, although revenue is down due to the release of a “large competitor.” Revenues dropped from 3,389 TUSD in Q1 2011 to 2,293 TUSD this quarter. The Secret World continues to be a major drain on Funcom’s finances.

On the good side, Funcom’s current flock of titles (Age of Conan, Anarchy Online, Bloodline Champions) continue to remain at a positive cash flow, bringing in some much needed funds to keep The Secret World going. Funcom notes much more positive reactions to The Secret World than Age of Conan at the same time before its launch, and projects a higher retention rate than Age of Conan.

At the current rate, The Secret World is projected to sell 30% more than Age of Conan, with in-game store sales marking 35% of the game’s projected revenue, and a healthy retention rate of 490 thousand subscribers. A poor retention rate would be around 280 thousand.

Additionally, Funcom has come upon $22 million in standby equity which can be drawn upon as the company desires.

Gameglobe Trailer: Create Your Own Worlds


Gameglobe is an upcoming free to play MMO by Square Enix. Published by Bigpoint Entertainment, Gameglobe will be a free to play MMO that tasks players with creating fun and interactive levels for others to play through, or simply playing through the levels that others have created. The game is currently in closed beta, and the short teaser trailer below gives a few small glimpses of action.

More information to come.

Falling Out #5: Hardcore Lag


Possibly the only thing keeping me from playing Diablo III in Hardcore mode is the fact that every single one of my deaths in standard mode had to do with server latency. I refuse to play by the rules of “you die, you lose your character,” when my biggest foe is the random dice roll of server stability.

Also Wobbuffet should accompany every game over screen.

The Old Republic May Merge To A Few Super Servers


Back when DC Universe Online lapsed in subscribers, Sony Online Entertainment merged all of the existing servers into four mega-servers. In a similar move, Bioware may just be gearing up for a similar response to dwindling server populations. In an interview with PC Gamer, Daniel Erickson had the following to say about the upcoming group-finder tool:

They will not be cross-server as we are coming up on a huge move to servers with massively higher population caps than we have today.

A win-win situation all around. There hopefully will be more information as Update 1.3 prepares to roll out.

(Source: PC Gamer)

Mortal Online Q1 2012: Sales Up, Mortal Online on "Major Gaming Platforms"


More news from the Star Vault…vault. The financial details for Star Vault’s first quarter have been released, and it appears the trend may finally break. Back in February, Henrik Nystrom announced a 50% increase in sales and an 80% increase in user activity. During the 2011 interim report, Star Vault revised its projection of breaking even in 2011 to a new prediction that the game would break even in the second quarter of 2012.

According to Star Vault’s reports, the number of monthly subscriptions increased slightly compared to the fourth quarter. The sale of licenses increased 68% from last quarter. Even with the increase in sales, Henrik notes that the game could still be friendlier to new players, which the company intends to accomplish with the release of Awakening in Q2 2012.

It is important to emphasize that the expansion includes enhancements and additions that we hope will appeal to the wider audience. Among other things, it will be easier to get into the game for new players. The expansion will also lead to the constant will be something interesting to do in the game, although it would not be interested in playing conflicts and / or war.

Henrik also mentions Mortal Online appearing on “major gaming platforms.”

According to our assessment, we, following the launch of “The Awakening”, to meet the standard requirements that exist for a game to be approved on the major gaming platforms.

More on Mortal Online as it appears.

(Source: Star Vault press email)

Mortal Online Q1 2012: Sales Up, Mortal Online on “Major Gaming Platforms”


More news from the Star Vault…vault. The financial details for Star Vault’s first quarter have been released, and it appears the trend may finally break. Back in February, Henrik Nystrom announced a 50% increase in sales and an 80% increase in user activity. During the 2011 interim report, Star Vault revised its projection of breaking even in 2011 to a new prediction that the game would break even in the second quarter of 2012.

According to Star Vault’s reports, the number of monthly subscriptions increased slightly compared to the fourth quarter. The sale of licenses increased 68% from last quarter. Even with the increase in sales, Henrik notes that the game could still be friendlier to new players, which the company intends to accomplish with the release of Awakening in Q2 2012.

It is important to emphasize that the expansion includes enhancements and additions that we hope will appeal to the wider audience. Among other things, it will be easier to get into the game for new players. The expansion will also lead to the constant will be something interesting to do in the game, although it would not be interested in playing conflicts and / or war.

Henrik also mentions Mortal Online appearing on “major gaming platforms.”

According to our assessment, we, following the launch of “The Awakening”, to meet the standard requirements that exist for a game to be approved on the major gaming platforms.

More on Mortal Online as it appears.

(Source: Star Vault press email)

Mortal Online: 450,000 Subscriptions In 5 Years


As an avid fan of the sandbox genre, I would love to see Mortal Online evolve from the money-losing machine that it is today to a powerful name in the industry. Who knows, maybe in a few years Star Vault will be powerful enough to make my death look like an accident. Sandboxer.org has posted a chat in which Star Vault CEO Henrik Nystrom talks about his vision for Mortal Online, not just the developer hitting more sales but the game eventually doing well enough to compete and even succeed Eve Online.

Now, Eve Online has an estimated 450,000 subscribers (plus PLEX traders), so the goal may seem a bit off in the distance. Mortal Online’s Awakening expansion will bring with it drugs. What kind of drugs, you ask? The illegal kind, more illegal than a Pepsi machine in a grade school hallway.

We await Mortal Online’s next expansion with anticipation.

(Source: Sandboxer)

Falling Out #4: Lawyering Around


Being an amateur and an idiot, I am consistently playing around with the style of Falling Out. The boring white backdrop is out, and specific locations are now in. Take, for instance, the crypt office of MMO Fallout’s lawyer, the Black Wizard.

New episodes of Falling Out every sometime at the place.

Ubisoft Hiring For Online RPG, Could Be MMO


The world of Assassin’s Creed is frightening enough with just what characters we have, but thousands of would-be assassins running around? Horrifying. According to Gamespy, Ubisoft is hiring for a next generation online RPG, and rumors are floating around that this may be an Assassin’s Creed MMO.

Given Ubisoft’s wide array of IPs, the game could be just about anything, including the possibility of a new/outside IP altogether. Of course, the game could just wind up being a fantasy MMO based around the Might and Magic series.

Let the speculation begin!

(Source: Gamespy)