How many MMO's do you play?

[Gutboy Barrelhouse]

1) 48
2) Male
3) 1 (SWG)
4) Price does not matter to me if I enjoy the game

[Redgiant]

1) 48
2) Male
3) 5 (LotRO lifetime sub, CoX, AoC, DAoC, Aion) - I am dropping DAoC and probably AoC at least until the expansion. DAoC is just too dated and I am way too far behinnd to bother with Ywain.
4) $15 seems the general limit per game, and since I almost always have 3+ subs to something going on its quite enough. As others said, if a game is really worth it I don't think there is a limit, but it would have ot be something beyond what anyone has now. Don't tell me its great, show me its great if you want my money.

I would pay anything for a RvR game with a motivating and ongoing endgame.

Edit: I would pay 2x anything for DAoC II updated to Aion-like standards, or any game with 3+ playable sides.

[March]

1) 40+
2) Male
3) 3 (WoW, CoH, Aion) dropping CoH
4) IainC put it best... I'd pay whatever price delivers good value.

Personally I would prefer a hybrid model: Box Sales, lower monthly maintenance fee ($5-$9), paid enhancements - options - add-ons; Paid Expansions, etc.  - Not quite micro-transactions, but something closer to GW - I don't mind funding the game, but I'm more likely to drop games that need a lot of work than I once was.

The bloom has worn off the MMO rose; I find myself dabbling in more games (since initial investment $$ don't impact my finances), but rarely find the new games worth a long term financial or personal commitment... If I could keep access to an open account to check in on the progress of games, I'd be much more likely to invest new $$ in the form of new content or new characters or other options to play for another segment.

[Zzulo]

1) 23
2) Male
3) 1, but I'm not actually paying for it. Got a free subscription to WAR for sending a trial thing to a friend of mine.
4) 15 dollars. Or euro, as I am paying for every MMO out there. I already think it costs too much, as we usually don't seem to get much interesting content for it.

[Montague]

1.  41
2.   M
3.   1, soon to be zero. I'm subscribed to WoW for the few hours a month I may log in to help my wife with something. I played dozens of hours a week for 4 years, but I'm utterly bored with it.

4. If I were to pay more than $15 a month it would have to offer me something more than "the WoW experience". It would have to be something where I could do all the content either solo or with just my wife or with a small group. If I wanted to be cockblocked out of content because I have to join up with 10 or 20 mouthbreathers over Vent I could just play WoW. So yeah to put it plainly to charge more than $15 a month you would need to cater to my playstyle AND be as polished and smooth as the most successful video game of all time. Good luck with that.

[Tmon]

1) 45
2) M
3) 1
4) $15 a month, somewhere close to $30 if I don't have to buy a box.  You could probably sell me a new $45 game every 4 months or so if you did the GW model. 

[naum]

1) 40-something
2) M
3) 0 (burned out and nothing appealing or more polished available than WoW still)
4) $20? Depends, as Musashi said about quality but also just tired of the whack-a-mole elves and dorfs fantasy realms and would love to see a Wild West theme or a decent sci-fi game (no, SWG was not that). Also, would like a MMO that doesn't privilege those who w/no RL pursuits can be logged in 24/7 over players w/ <10 hour per week.

[Yegolev]

1) 36
2) M
3) 2 or 3: LotRO and Fallen Earth, I can't remember if I'm subbed to Conan or not.  I might need to check on that.  You may or may not count DDO since I haven't given them any money but I have a character.
4) Price depends entirely on product.  Most things are not worth more than $9.95 to me.  LotRO is worth my $15 and probably more, although that depends on the direction they take the game.  I'd say FE is worth the $15 also but I do hope they purchase some high-res textures one day.  Make something with PvE, atmosphere and polish better than LotRO and I'll sub.  Make a better Fallen Earth and I'll sub.  Good luck, sir.

[Prospero]

31
M
1 (Fallen Earth)
15 is pushing it. I can buy a decent quality game on Steam for $20, so I expect to get a similar amount of value from my MMO sub.

[Bandit]

1) 33
2) M
3) 2 MMOs at the moment. A lifetime CO & multi-month sub with LOTRO.  I Couldn't fathom playing more than 2.  LOTRO hasn't been getting enough love from me as it is.
4) Highest I would go is $20-monthly but it would obviously have to be a quality shit/high content update situation.  I do like the option of lifetime subs. I should also mention that I probably average $20 - $30 a month on Steam, which could also be easily coaxed into a properly done RMT.

[Nonentity]

1) 25
2) M
3) 2 - Aion and WoW
4) I'm generally willing to pay out the ass as a consumer for my entertainment (I'm sure I'll get over that eventually), but I don't see myself paying any more than 20-25 for an MMO. I might pay higher if there were features that I feel would honestly warrant the extra money, but with MMOs being packaged and sold the way they are, that's the price point I'm comfortable with.

[Evildrider]

1) 35
2) Male
3) 1, I prefer to focus my energies on one MMO at a time.  If I leave a game, I will most likely never go back to it. 
4) 15 bucks is about right.  I don't think I've played a game that delivers enough content to pay more.  However, I'd be willing to go up to 20-25 if there was.  I'm also not a huge fan of the whole RMT thing.  I'd rather have a straight up full pay method.

[Murgos]

The demographics of this slight are pretty screwy.

Only 3 of the respondents are under 30.  Only 1 of them female?

Heh, Schild you need to start running advertising for 4-door sedans, golf and viagra.

[SnakeCharmer]

Heh.  No kidding.  F13 is in no way any sort of representation of the average gamer.

[Lantyssa]

1) 36
2) Female
3) Technically Three*
4) I'm rapidly finding Free Realm's $5 is great if I'm doing multiple games

* WoW because of friends, Free Realms because $5 is worth it for all they have done right.  I have a sub to Fallen Earth and Aion at the moment.  The latter I am not going to renew past the free month.  I may sub to FE for a few months to support an indie dev which did a lot of things right and in a non-fantasy world.

I'm becoming less and less thrilled with the default $15 a month the industry has settled on as a price-point.  It's certainly not sustainable for the games which I would like to play, but will eventually give up simply because I'm not getting my money's worth out of them.

[Sky]

 

[naum]

Heh.  No kidding.  F13 is in no way any sort of representation of the average gamer.

Might have been true 10 years ago.

I think last demographic survey I noted said median gamer age was 30something on the closer to 40 end.

Plus, older gamer (on average) has more discretionary money to spend on games than younger gamer.

[Slyfeind]

Might have been true 10 years ago.

I think last demographic survey I noted said median gamer age was 30something on the closer to 40 end.

Plus, older gamer (on average) has more discretionary money to spend on games than younger gamer.

To build on that further, I've noticed the trend here is to try a new game, maybe sub for a month or two, then go looking elsewhere. A lot of us play just a few hours a week. We're borderline-casual. Core-casual? Something like that. Some of us are hardcore, but only with respect to specific games, and mostly in spurts. Some are hardcore towards a genre, but maybe a few are hardcore all games all the time.

Assumptions abound in that paragraph, to be sure. More surveys would be more fun!

[Evildrider]

Heh.  No kidding.  F13 is in no way any sort of representation of the average gamer.

Might have been true 10 years ago.

I think last demographic survey I noted said median gamer age was 30something on the closer to 40 end.

Plus, older gamer (on average) has more discretionary money to spend on games than younger gamer.

I'd actually agree somewhat with this.  My DDO guild was mainly 30+ year olds, and I'd say that in my WAR guild it was at least 60-70% over the age of 30.

[Righ]

Age: 43
Sex: Male
Locati oh hey, nice twist. Number of games subscribed to: 1 (and playing rarely)
How much would you pay for a game sub: Don't know. Show me the game and I'll tell you.

[IainC]

Might have been true 10 years ago.

I think last demographic survey I noted said median gamer age was 30something on the closer to 40 end.

Plus, older gamer (on average) has more discretionary money to spend on games than younger gamer.

To build on that further, I've noticed the trend here is to try a new game, maybe sub for a month or two, then go looking elsewhere. A lot of us play just a few hours a week. We're borderline-casual. Core-casual? Something like that. Some of us are hardcore, but only with respect to specific games, and mostly in spurts. Some are hardcore towards a genre, but maybe a few are hardcore all games all the time.

Assumptions abound in that paragraph, to be sure. More surveys would be more fun!

I did one a year and a half ago about how people choose an MMO. Curt is welcome to use those not-very scientific numbers too.

[Kail]

1) Age: 29
2) Sex: M
3) How many MMO's are you actively subscribed to: 2 (usually 1, overlapping subs ATM)
4) What is your 'price point' for MMO's: $15/mo.  Could probably go as high as $20 for some mythical robot jesus MMO without breaking the bank, but the instant the game got the least bit aggrivating I'd leave.

[Venkman]

1) 39
2) M
3) 1
4) $14.99

I only play one at a time. I don't mind the up-front plus monthly fee. And I'd give MTX a shot if there was a game to come along I thought worth playing. But there better be some chocolate love in that box if the game is going to try and violate the $14.99 barrier. I didn't mind the jump from $9.99 to $14.99 back in the day. But once you hit that $20 mark, now you're talking "hmm, try a new Steam game or keep a MMO subscription active?".

[dwindlehop]

1) ~30
2) M
3) 1 - Eve
4) There's some complex calculus of fun per hour per dollar here that is difficult to untangle. If a persistent game was capable of delivering new kinds of fun every month, it'd be worth $50/m. Realistically, $15/mo is price too high for most games as they all entail a fair amount of repetition, which both reduces the fun and the time spent in game for me. If I was paying $15/m for Eve I'd feel slightly ripped off, because I don't play it that much.

[ghost]

1.  35
2.  M
3.  3 subs-  WOW, Fallen Earth and Aion
    2 "others"-  LOTRO lifetime and Eve 1 year sub (don't play really)
4.  I don't really have a firm limit.  I would think probably around $30/ month, but it would have to be damned good.  Like crystal meth good.  

Edit:  Forgot WOW   

[SnakeCharmer]

Heh.  No kidding.  F13 is in no way any sort of representation of the average gamer.

Might have been true 10 years ago.

I think last demographic survey I noted said median gamer age was 30something on the closer to 40 end.

Plus, older gamer (on average) has more discretionary money to spend on games than younger gamer.

Not what I was getting at.  I'm not talking about age, or discretionary income or anything of the sort.

The average F13 person is a more informed and intelligent gamer.  Much more refined, and less likely to put up with superfluous bullshit than the average person. 

Though, now I might have been wrong 

F13 is pretty much the niche of the niche.

[Kovacs]

1.   39
2.   M
3.   2'ish.  Until last month it's been Staion Pass (Vanguard or EQ2) plus one other game (Eve/WoW/Random MMO FOTM). 
4.   $15'ish.  It'd have to be a  pretty charming pig to get me to pay $29.99 again.

[kondratti]

1.  40
2.  Male
3.  1 and only ever 1.  If I am playing an MMO.... I wont play anything else.
4. $15 is good... I would pay to $30, but it would have to really rock, and have a reason it cost more.

[Tale]

1) 39
2) Male
3) 0
4) $15 is fine for a mainstream commercial title, higher for epic awesomeness with live actors among the NPCs or extra costs like that.

But I am now wary of MMOs, as I've experienced an out-of-control addiction to them in the past. I would still take an interest if someone took them to the next level (don't know what that is, but it sure doesn't involve being hunched over a computer desk, grinding).

[Count Nerfedalot]

1) 49 (for a few more days)
2) M
3) 1 (max was 4 - never again.  but open to two)
4) $10-15, generally, although I can almost imagine spending up to $25 if it was that much better than anything else out there now.  Start subtracting from the max if there is RMT stuff I need to buy to enjoy the game.  And chop it to $0 if it's an incomplete unbalanced buggy POS like the the last few AAA titles have been.  Strangely enough, at one time I was actually willing to pay a monthly fee to stay in beta if only they would have kept it in beta and actually fixed stuff (EQ), now I'm not willing to pay anything unless/until there is a complete and polished PvE game experience available.  AoC, WAR, H:L, TR and CO got none of my money.  FE actually might, I'm still researching.

[UnSub]

Not much science in it, not intended. The main question we were looking for some real world answers too is how many subs. Assuming EVERYONE at 0 is a potential 1 if you deliver a quality product, but also hearing those at 1+ talk about how their 1 is really 1.5 or 2.

Honest to god, I really hope this isn't your "understanding the market" phase of your business case. "Some doodz on the forums said they'd totally pay $20 a month! Let's roll!".

Here's my tip: get some real market research done. I'd suggest conjoint analysis to get at pricing trade-offs and market sizing potential, but MMO product features are a bit nebulous at times so there might be little bit more thinking required than the average type of that project. Since the target market is online, per-recruit collection costs wouldn't be that high. But holy hell, if you are pouring millions into this game, spend a portion on that to actually build a real business case based on target market evidence.

If you charge a cent more than $15, your title will have to be the best damn game of the year (or have the Blizzard name on the box) because you're competing with not only WoW as it stands, but the player's history with WoW and everything they've achieved in that game. In some cases that means they want something new, but that's the baseline for $15. The reality is you should be looking at charging $10 a month - if you even go for a monthly sub, which isn't something you have to do either - for the full game, with perhaps some extras to maybe attract more revenue in.

As for the other questions: my age is irrelevant since you don't understand any other phase of my life (for instance: do I have kids? A single 35 yo and a single 35 yo with kids are entirely different propositions), I'm subbed to 2 MMOs but play several more that are free / on trial / in beta and you've got the best chance of hooking me if your title doesn't have a monthly fee.

[Kovacs]

Not what I was getting at.  I'm not talking about age, or discretionary income or anything of the sort.

The average F13 person is a more informed and intelligent gamer.  Much more refined, and less likely to put up with superfluous bullshit than the average person. 

Though, now I might have been wrong 

F13 is pretty much the niche of the niche.

Oh jesus christ.  And more than a little self-congratulatory. 

*Fake edit:  Or more Green I guess.

[Kageh]

1.) 33, married, have kids (probably relevant)

2.) M

3.) 3 currently, but one is running out and one is with multiple accounts.

4.) About $15, although I would probably go higher if I feel the game is worth it.

[FatuousTwat]

1.) 23

2.) M

3.) 0

4.) This probably isn't relevant to you, but I will probably never pay a MMO subscription fee again. I can't remember the last time I've subbed and actually played the entire month. I really don't have a good tolerance for other players idiocy anymore, it just drains me of the will to play. Perhaps if a game actually finds a way to remove the ubiquitous "you've gotta have a group in order to experience all the content!" cockblock.

[tazelbain]

That's want single player games are for.  Some people need to learn that they just don't want to play multiplayer games.  I don't think the answer is to make all multilayer games single player.  CO is prime example.  It's a crappy single player that you sub for.  Pay more, get less.  It's maddening.