• JOKE
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Topic: Dear Dev Calvin

Your game is fine as it is.

You don't hear that very often so I want to emphasize it - the game itself is fine. It needs some love, some changes and some extra content but right now there is nothing significantly wrong with it. The problem with retention is driven by a lack of new players, not new content. MMO's in general have very poor retention but from personal experiance I can tell you what makes a corp die is a lack of new blood that replaces the inevitable drain due to RL, not a lack of content.

So tell you something you don't *** know?

Well there is a few things that can be implemented that will help and be very little extra work.

1) Affiliate scheme

This is by far the biggest error made so far and the quickest win. Affiliates will advertise your game for you and will cost you nothing but a percentage of your income. Since your income is a potato and fifty *** post's from Ville I think your good.

Your competition is doing it:

http://communityclassic.eveonline.com/affiliate/

So what I suggest is this:

Set up an affiliate scheme that rewards people who get you subscriptions on a month by month basis. The competition pays up to 100% of the first month - what i'm suggesting is up to 50% of every month they stay subbed. This will not only bring people to the game but give people incentives to keep people in the game. Gaming guilds, folks like RPS and people who don't even play games but make money online will advertise your game for you.

something along the lines of:

20 people gets you 10% of monthly sub or 25% of the first month sub
50 people gets you 20% of monthly sub or 50% of the first month sub
100 people gets you 50% of monthly sub or 100% of the first month sub

You can amend the numbers to make them more economical in the future but for right now its got to be lucrative for people to want to do it. A half a pie is better than all the crumbs.

2) Make your communications and extra content periodical

I'm talking monthly Dev blogs and twice yearly expansions. It gives the players something to look forward to, some stability in the game and keeps people subbed for the next expansion. Firm expansion dates will also provide focus for the development team.

3) Daily doubles

This is probably the most work but is very successful in MMO's such as WOT. Every month you could have a week bonus to something such as Epriton yield or artifact loot, couple that with a once a week daily bonus to something and you give people reason to log in and play.

All these are small simple fix's that will generate new players and keep the people who are a part of this game playing. I hope you can bring them to us.

  • RAD
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

Maybe think about this, when we get on steam. Seems like a good idea.

Celebro's body guard
  • PHM
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

+1 to 50 posts from Ville.

  • JOKE
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

Please please please set up an affiliates scheme. If it costs money then give us a figure and I'll raise it myself. Its SO important the game has a self replicating source of marketing and players.

  • PHM
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

No content, please close.

  • JOKE
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

Fourfingers Frankie wrote:

Please please please set up an affiliates scheme. If it costs money then give us a figure and I'll raise it myself. Its SO important the game has a self replicating source of marketing and players.

We need a faster leaner client and a good assignment system, before attracting new players. Also single accounts needs to be more viable, if not new players are just going to leave, no point in doing this right now. Where are the corps in alpha-1 to support these players and get them started?

RIP PERPETUUM
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

Celebro wrote:
Fourfingers Frankie wrote:

Please please please set up an affiliates scheme. If it costs money then give us a figure and I'll raise it myself. Its SO important the game has a self replicating source of marketing and players.

We need a faster leaner client and a good assignment system, before attracting new players. Also single accounts needs to be more viable, if not new players are just going to leave, no point in doing this right now. Where are the corps in alpha-1 to support these players and get them started?

Actually, the client is pretty good now. There used to be a lot of crashes between viewing the map, going in and out of terminals and teleports, but none of that anymore. The damn thing runs 24/7 on my machine, no issues.

I will say the affiliate scheme is a good idea. Selling subscriptions is a special kind of challenge these days, I'm sure it can be done given the right incentives.

Maybe you can set up a kickstarter campaign, Frankie?

There are some structural economic issues preventing new players having a good time and sticking around, mostly due to the low population. If they come in as a group, it could potentially work (although, subsequently, other social dynamic forces come into play, e.g. powerblocks and their attitude towards perceived threats), but there's virtually no division of labour within the economy.

Like with EVE in the first few years, an NPC-driven commodity market could potentially alleviate or nullify said issues.

Perpetuum Killboard
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Re: Dear Dev Calvin

This is actually really good advice.

"People with opinions just go around bothering each other."

-Buddha