Menu
25587 steamcharts players pic are many potential buyers for a dlc with new race
AstartesUltra
Just remember that at his start, the game as reached 25 k players pic according steamcharts, far more Warhammer total war is doing now for example.
Many of those players would probably buy a dlc with a new race because precisely they have left the game due to lake of content.
In reality, the number of potential customers is far above because the game have been sold to more than 1 million copies. Anyway, let's concentrate only about those 25k players.
If we suppose that a dlc with a new race cost around 250k (6 devo for 6 months), and this dlc would be sold to 25 k players to a price around 20 euros, then this going very profitable (25 k * 20 = 500 k sales).
In addition, this would boost the game and allow new developpments which would attract more and more players.
Honesty, I don't understand SEGA stragegy. Better to capitalize on a solf already existing and developp it than to abandon it and act loses (which is bad for reputation too).
The guy who cares about strategic marketing and financials underestands nothing to video games and should be fired !
Comments
HARRYY
yep.
people already bought, they will buy the XP for sure. Foot-in-the-door.
And YES, its bad for the reputation as well. They should really not do it like this. And even if a new product/add-on/DLC for DOW3 wouldnt leave them a BIG CUT its better to sustain their ongoing products: credibility, reputation, loyalty, trust, which leads to a general good standing as a company.
What theyre doing now is not a 'rational decision' or theyre ignoring the effects of their action. Pretending it is a number driven decision ignores the eventual negative impact on futher relic/SEGA-products and the communities trust into them. Its a weird suicide-commando to me.
summa summarum Its definately not a wise decision here.
nachocheese
6 devs for 6 months is nowhere near enough for a race, its more like 30 people + voice actors. And since way too many people left the game due to the core gameplay, the amount of potential buyers isnt high enough to justify the investment.
AstartesUltra
Totaly agree with you : their decision is only driven by steamcharts statistics which don't include the potential developpment that a dlc would bring, for a game which precisely lake of content.
This is really an irrational and stupid decision. DOW1 and 2 have built their reputation in many years, not only 1 year.
DOW3 have so much potential. Just think about this amazing realisation of this game, the most beautiful of dow serie for me : incredible action, beautiful animation and music too.
In my close friends circle, I know lot of people who haven't played the game a lot because they were waiting for Chaos, they told me ! That was so obvious that Relic had provided a such content !!! And now that they have learnt SEGA decision, they are so stuned and sad !
Draconix
Indeed, Dow3 had huge potential. Sadly it was wasted by financial thirst of sales. Thought Relic actually stated that they didn't had enough players for a foundation.
Not sure if we might see new DoW, but considering that some franchise have rises and fall, then who knows?
I think it would be a not bad idea to give development of Dow3 to other studio Sega have, like Creative Assembly. But that's wishfull thinking.
Renner
"Here's Necroooooons!"
"DAYUM! But I wanted Chaos..."
"I want my Tau!"
"Where's the Imperial Guard!?"
You can just see how all those potential buyers are flying away...
AstartesUltra
That's what i said, people has left the game because not enough content at start. DLC with news races would have solved the problem.
CQFD
MrJade
DoW was successful at launch.
This game wasn't even profitable at launch. Suffice to say the best that this game could have made is $36M and this game cost anywhere from $50M-100M to make.
Spirit
You only state the obvious we know everything you should better state why it is like that. Because they released a unfinished game with 0 content.
GiggleHz
this game i think has flopped so much harder than any of us realize....so much so that Relic have deemed it unworthy of ANY further support...thats bad...thats really bad either that OR maybe they are seeing more $$$ just moving everyone on to AOE IV especially considering that DoW 3 tanked.....
I wonder if AOE IV kinda helped put an axe in the head of DOW3....ie...they had no reason to try to make DoW3 better they had this big cash cow to work on....
Ololo111
1 flocking sound engineer and 1 narrator for Tyranids and Necrons as well.
They have a shitload of recycled content, just look at WW's shells - isn't it Airbursting shells from CoH? Isn't plasma-blinking is the same effect since DoW2?
They could have recycled a lot and they had already did it.
There was no need to produce SP content in the same cycle - look at CoH2 brits, btw. So many new models, animations and VFX\SFX and the whole team of, ehmm, 4 voice actors or five? And recycled USF ATG as 6 pounder ATG and not a single soul carring for this. WAAAAAAAAAAGH.
They had engine, framework for balance - everything set and ready for further production. Even pre-producted content, forever burried in the game's assests as of now.
When I still played CoH2 at the same time, a lot of people were like "I'm returning in DoW3 when they will bring IG and buildable covers". By no means, was it too hard to implement? A Macha's aura permaprojected by the building would have been A-ok.
No, they could have done this with minimal effort. They didn't have all the bug and desyncs CoH2 had.
They had a pool held in the whole 4 countries, somehow (no, the major buyers, all but Spain).
vindicarex
You're delusional if you think DoW3 was a $50+ million game...
Pretty sure SEGA bought Relic for like $30 million... so now I'm suppose to believe Relic is now producing games at more than double or triple the cost of their entire worth as a company?
To me, this game screams at me that it didn't get nearly enough funding... DoW3 is not a $50 million dollar game.... not even close...
Ololo111
They couldn't pick the right demography.
They had new CoH2 fans, DoW2 fans, some old CoH and DoW1 fans + add here DoW3 exclusive newcommers. It's not a coherent playerbase.
They could have brought Heavy Weapons, Morale, Veterancy - a ton of requested features within new races. Seriously, you can reshape EP-EsP system + faction-speciffic trait into everything, not just what DoW or CoH ever had, but AoE\AoM and CnCs as well.
They shouldn't have tried to appeal to these much of people at once, to my mind. Of course, brilliant community managment let DoTa-like simplistic graphic grow into "It's MOBA" wave, because there were too much neutral people in May-June and how social grounds were hosted didn't really motivate them to defend the game, to my mind.
Also, it may be just me hyphotesizing on things, but Sega might not give them a chance because of CoH2. Old Rank System promised them a mountain of Premium items sold, but they had to shift to the drops, with all the screetch, but still, and those might have been the money Sega put to purchase Relic-invest into CoH2 finalization. CoH2 hadn't been quite of commercial success whatever people around would say - too much keys for that digital brothel called Steam was available at the middle of 2014 because of sales. I got OKW for 2-3 USD at humble bundle, re-purchased the base CoH2 for about ~9 at keystore (got community ban for publishing market bot and had to sell old acc) and USF for 4,99 in the begining of 2015. Keystores are competing with each other, each new sale lowers the price + they are converting steam wallet money into the real one.
CoH2 might had rejuvenated it's playerbase with all the sales, but I doubt it brought too much profits with the premium content system failed at the launch.
Skulls were clearly designed as CoH2 supply eqioulent which came in the same year, but the they could only sell premium doctrines and Elites with that - one of the controversal part of the game around divided playerbase, instead of going striaght for the races like it was in DoW1.
So, instead of retrofitting the system, like they did in CoH2, Relic did nothing. They've just watched engaging fire, trying to extinguish it with free skins. And suprisingly, Sega didn't help this time. They put Rome II in 6 months on -75% sale, 1 month earlier than CoH2 promising new content, close to immediatally released free DLC for WH:TW and run Humble sale after it became "mixed" because of too much payed DLC's, sponsored community event for Amplitude when too much people became dissatisfied with Endless Space 2's EA.. and did round nothing for DoW3.
Seriously, I've expected for DoW2 to die within months after release under THQ, THQ died instead. I've expected for CoH2 to last less than an year, but it was original CoH playerbase lived this much instead (in majority and from my point view, of course).
They finally managed to make a game, but they failed at marketting it. It's like my trustworthy bank just flopped up and I can only guess what was the reason for that.
It's 26, I believe.
TokyoDream
I've been thinking along the same lines. I think DOW3 was rushed because of AOE4. AOE4 is money in the bank. It's a job for Microsoft who probably just wants it as an exclusive for the windows store. SEGA won't be freaking out if it doesn't sell well and everyone is gonna get paid. Relic couldn't risk losing that by delaying DOW3.
You're also right about how hard this game flopped. Philippe Boulle all but guaranteed DLC before launch. I was surprised to hear in the Q&A that the decision to not make paid DLC was made shortly after launch. They must have been pretty devastated by the sales numbers to change their plans that fast.
CANNED_F3TUS
Lets hope AOE does good. Relic learns from the mistakes and brings us a DoW 4 in a couple years.
AstartesUltra
Boycott AoE4
Draconix
Hope, so. Or maybe when another WH40K RTS will come, but will be interesting to me and successfull as DoW especially the first one? Nobody knows.
Still DoW franchise alongside Dow3 will always a special place in my heart. I don't regret buying Dow3 so much, its just sad to me that Relic had to abandon it due to finances. Thought I wish them good luck with their new projects.
CadisEtramaDiRaizel
I hope it does not. Check out gladius for a 4x 40k game. If it is good, ill say my farewells to dow3. Dont listen to your fans, well then you deserve to sink when they dont purchase your game in satisfactory amounts.
CadisEtramaDiRaizel
I think the reviews will be scrutinised.
GiggleHz
yah....these "reviews" these days are dubious....DoW3 was getting like 90% and 4 out of 5s all over the place....ooooookkkkkaaaay....I know steam has a fair bit of review trolls...but i do feel its a more accurate representation of how the consumer is feeling towards the game...Im not writing Relic off i mean they have made some master pieces but i will def not pre order anything again....they charged 60 bucks for DOW3...60 stinking dollars....1 game mode...a smattering of maps.....wow.
GiggleHz
yah i saw some footage on gladius it does look very promising....i hope they dont go the early access route, i hate early access games
Draconix
I'm not tempted to buy Gladius. Cause it just a 4x strategy, which it isn't in my taste.
Dandalus
Yes, I stopped playing much DoW3 cause I want CSM.
Draconix
So sorry to hear that.
But if you want to ease your pain, you can wait for Battlefleet Gothic Armada 2. Myself not interested, since its about space battles, but who likes something. So I will wait for Coh3 now.