ARR is a savior!Follow

unfortunately this topic would be an appropriate one for them to question the potential longevity of this success based on their current viewpoints. It wouldn't have the end result many of us would like.

Initial rush due to being a new MMO, the fact it's a PAID TO PLAY MMO, this really isn't surprising or "exciting" news honestly. What will be surprising is if this game survives.

It's fairly ...basic and nothing interesting lol. That will be a worthy news story. Hell XI kept SE afloat for many years, so they're probably banking on ARR to do the same.

eh, i think it'll bring in cash for awhile. there are enough fans, and while the game may not offer the most interesting or innovative gameplay, it is a nice fun little place for FF fans to hang out. thats kind of all i expect from it anymore.

also, i apologize for being a ****, but the word "Brew'd" in your sig is grinding my gears because the apostrophe saves literally zero time/space/effort. that is all.

Very nice to see this!

There's always room for improvement, but SE really knocked ARR out of the park, all things considered. I'm really excited for when we'll eventually learn more about the game's first expansion.

I think the convention for saying "brew'd" instead of "brewed" was that you were using a Primeval Brew on him, not that you were sticking him in a metal tank and fermenting him.

Technically, though, it's a legit use of the apostrophe to replace the missing letter, even if it's not actually saving any space or effort.

Edited, Feb 6th 2014 8:50am by Catwho

We can acknowledge the typical spike and downward slope of an MMO as par for the course.

What makes this situation special above others is that the spike was not financially anticipated by Square Enix, and the spike was inpactful enough to change the actuality far, far above the expected profit margin (which was in fact, predicted to be a significant loss. )

That tells you right now that the expected success of this game is already above and beyond what they had planned. If it was that much of a profit spike, how long of a decline would you expect to have to go on before the numbers meet their expected range? And that's not even including returning players due to additional content and updates coming fairly regularly.

This game could 'crash' in the eyes of the player-base and still be successful in the eyes of SE, which is what matters. Given their low expectations of success for the game, that's a likely scenario. Again, FFXI stabilized at a third of the bragged 1.5 million number and is still going on strong.

The risk/reward game for SE in this aspect had already been played out to a resounding success. Now it's just deciding what measurement of retention they want to go for, and what sort of growth pacing they can manage.

I'm confused by the stance that FFXIV dying would be a huge strike for SE in the first place? [:puzzled:]

I mean, one of the reasons every single company was jumping on the MMO bandwagon is that the profit margin for a successful game is huge. They're cheaper to produce for big budget titles, but then you get to charge a purchase price and subs for each additional month on top of the first month.

I can't get the link to load, but I'm guessing that the initial sales of FFXIV did quite a bit to cover their investment costs. FFXIII was wildly profitable (it sold the most of their titles, excepting FFVII, iirc. It probably wasn't as profitable as FFX, due to budget increases, but that's still a lot of profit).

If FFXIV sold one million copies in that early period before the heavy sales, I'd bet that fully covered their development costs for the game. Then each additional month is a lot of profit, because that's maintenance fees and the additional development costs.

So, even though it'll die eventually, this means FFXIV is probably in the period of its life where SE has recouped their investment, and the question now is how much profit they can actually generate from it. Sure, it's better for the company to get 6 years of high profits from the game, but even if the game peters out in 6 months, this would still probably be a very solid, profitable venture for the company.

So... I guess I don't really see what the fuss is about for the doomsayers? Obviously the death of ARR wouldn't kill SE, because the game made them a solid profit regardless of how long it went?

Sure, they need to judge their operating costs for the future, and it seems they're expecting a profit of 6b yen for this year. But ARR is only going to amount for a small part of that. Assuming a 1 -> 100 dollar to yen conversion, and a solid 12 months of 1 million subscribers, that's 18 billion yen. So unless they intend for ARR to be their sole source of revenue (doubtful, considering they have the FFX remaster and Lightning Returns both coming out early this year, before we even think about other titles), then I'm doubting that ARR is their crutch right now.

They'll ride the high, and they'll move on to something else when those profits start drying up.

I'll take your money. Any amount

And the last report that figured heavy losses were also majorly based on their failing arcade division and iirc they either gutted or removed that branch of entertainment entirely. FFXIV 1.0's flop didn't help matters but despite what people claimed back then it wasn't the sole reason for their taking a massive hit over the past two years. If anything, it's more the damage it did to the brand name than anything else that hurt their video game division.

Plus, prior to 1.0's launch they acquired quite a few studios that hadn't yet given a return on investment so they'd been operating in a hole for a while.

I just wish the cast of FFXV wasn't such a boy's club.

I want some more leading ladies, dammit.

[EDIT]

Or, you know, ANY leading ladies.

FFXIII was a relatively balanced cast. Not perfectly balanced, but closer than you generally see.

So then we get an all-male main cast. That makes sense.

.... Did I really hit new post instead of edit?

Don't mind me. Carry on.

Edited, Feb 6th 2014 2:50pm by idiggory

The fact that ARR was singled out is very meaningful. Rather than be a drag on SE's finances, ARR is turning into a boon for SE going forward.

You're right, the release didn't say ARR is the lone driving force... but it is one of the driving forces, or else it wouldn't have been named here.

Good news all around for SE and ARR fans.

Thayos if I ever run for office, I think I've found my PR man