Subs down 25%

I'm just curious what constitutes a "true MMOer"?

Annnnnd that's why I said that what happens from here out is what's important. BioWare has stayed above the dropoff curve. Awesome.

Now, they have to perform some fancy footwork to actually increase numbers, which is atypical. And it has to be ingame. Ad campaigns won't increase subs permanently.

I've already said this in this very thread.

But also could be a reason why the game will continue to lose subs and will never reach it's true potential.

Well, I have to look at it from two view points.

1. From a gamer point of view, a 1.3 million sub base for a non-WoW MMO is a good number.

2. From a business point of view, any business, regardless of industry type, that lost 25% of its paying customers in one quarter, is in trouble. I think it is a very safe bet to say that there are some unhappy suits over at EA. I expect a shake up or two incoming.

Ya, but it = potential player base.

Think of it this way. almost 50% of the people who were excited enough to pay $60-$150 for this game are not willing to continue to pay for it.

That's not good enough considering the budget invested into this game.

These numbers would be fantastic for a no name studio with a shoestring budget.

This is BIOWARE though, a studio that was renowned when they were independent, and is now a household name (as far as game developers go) and arm of one of the biggest game publishers in the business, and they had a huge budget.

They sqauandered it to make WoW with lightsabers and mass effect dialogue wheels with voice acting that people spacebar through after their first character..

I didn't sign up for a game I hated. In fact just the opposite. I pre-ordered the CE and was subbed until 1.2 released. I have 4 level 50's, two of them above valor 60. Yes, I dare say I have given this game more than a fair shot. I have invested both considerable time and money in this title, but I no longer feel it's headed in a positive direction. Just too many problems for me to continue giving my support, and I don't think I'm alone. I've seen a guild that averaged over 80 members online during weekend primetime, dwindle to 10 or less since launch. Color it however you wish, but that just isn't right...

And also tells us that TOR had VERY little to do with their stock drop.

eh the Doom Sayers will see what they want to see regardless ... it could have said subs were up 500 percent and they would just twist it and make up some reason that it was proof the game is dying...

Of course this thread will be catnip for the game haters, probably for the next week or two. But hey, some topic is ALWAYS catnip for the haters in these forums. I remember when it was "no grace period!" at launch, and "server queues, how dare they!!", etc. etc. yada, yada. As they always say, haters gonna hate.

Setting aside all the hyperbole (on either side of the discussion), The published data points in the earnings call are SOX compliant (or they go to prison for fraud), so they can be taken as fact (whether you like it or not, on either side of the discussion).

Now, MMOData.net (who correlates EA data to Xfire, and uses his long years of experience to gleen believable data projections) already nailed the retention track numbers in their last prediction (March 8, 2012) when he plotted SWTOR at ~ 1.4 million (as of first half of March), having peaked from early enthusiasm peak of 1.7 million. MOData also commented that he considers the game stabilized now having passed its launch frenzy peak (you can read his special comments on SWTOR here: http://mmodata.blogspot.com/ ).

All that said, this game is alive and well. It's one of only a handful of MMOs to occupy the 1M+ subs for MMOs [ http://users.telenet.be/mmodata/Charts/Subs-1.png ] It needs to pare down the number of launch servers (which is a pretty normal even for new MMOs that launch with pent up demand). And if ever there was an MMO with pent up demand, this would be the mother of them all. The developers have said since day one it is profitable at 500k subs. They have nearly three times that right now, and the game is still very young. Subs may go up, or they may go down over tie, but they are still very healthy, so the game is not dying, just some serves (mostly PvP) are dying. That will be fixe here in 6-8 weeks when they launch automated server transfer mechanics.

While it does not matter who is leaving or why, it's fun to talk about. So, we know from all the venom on the forum that hardcore anyone has pretty much left the game or will shortly. Good riddance, because this is not a hardcore centered game, it's a game for a wide variety of "non-extreme" tastes. As a person who used to hardcore PvP and hardcore PvE in earlier years, I find the content, approach, and pace/challenge of SWTOR to be refreshing, as I am sure many other do. Some will not and will leave in a huff and a growl, which is fine by me.

Only EA will every know the actual numbers. Everyone here, regardless of your view of the game and subscription discussions are playing the old blindfold game of pin the tail on the donkey. It's pointless, and it's divisive discussion, but I certainly do not expect it to go away until most of the malcontents walk the talk and actually leave.