Where do MMOs go to die?

Tanuki · Post by **Tanuki** » 11 Sep 2007, 03:21

I have never been down with the subscription games but I must ask this question. What happens when they die? Do the developers just close up shop and that is it or do some release offline or private server patches?

Just curious.

(It might be a good idea for someone to invest in a gaming network that specializes in defunct MMOs. They could charge a flat rate for the service.)

Microtia · Post by **Microtia** » 11 Sep 2007, 03:27

They just die. The only way private servers pop up are if people took the time to emulate the servers for the game.

Elios · Post by **Elios** » 11 Sep 2007, 03:39

thay just go poof
chances are if an MMO died no one cares in most cases
and at that point it was costing more to keep it running then it was making from people playing

the only MMO to close down that had a good number of active players was Earth and Beyond

Microtia · Post by **Microtia** » 11 Sep 2007, 03:48

Mhm. It's usually quite easy to tell when an MMO is going to die, by the time they get there subs are at rediculously low numbers.

Tanuki · Post by **Tanuki** » 11 Sep 2007, 06:29

That has to suck for some diehard players. You buy the game, spend hundreds to play a game you already bought, and then, poof! You cannot play a game you spent hundreds on. :(

Flo · Post by **Flo** » 11 Sep 2007, 17:10

There actually aren't that many precedences for "high profile" western MMOs being closed. The oldest "real" MMOs (Meridian 59, Ultima Online, EverQuest) are still running.

The best known cases for MMOs being shut down are Asheron's Call 2 (being survived by its predecessor) and the recently closed Auto Assault.

Some MMOs have emulators (and thus private servers) available. For the rest, I suppose people just move on to another game.

skeeder · Post by **skeeder** » 12 Sep 2007, 02:59

thats true with all games. UT2004 used to be packed..now its hard to find a good server.

Post by **Paradigm Shifter** » 12 Sep 2007, 19:32

Auto Assault is how old? It's a relatively new game, I thought?

Microtia · Post by **Microtia** » 12 Sep 2007, 20:34

Mhm. Released April 2006, closed August 31st 2007.

Post by **g00seberry** » 12 Sep 2007, 22:10

It's a shame you know, i beta tested that and it had huge potential, it was really fun. Gawd knows what they did to it to make it fail so horrendously.

Tanuki · Post by **Tanuki** » 12 Sep 2007, 22:49

Auto Assault.

I was at EB a while back and they said they had a special where everyone who bought something gets a free copy of Auto Assault. I said okay. And then they told me that most people had refused to take the game free. :shock:

I still have the sealed box laying around here somewhere.

Post by **Paradigm Shifter** » 13 Sep 2007, 15:16

Damn, that was one short-lived MMO...

Flo · Post by **Flo** » 13 Sep 2007, 22:49

It's a shame you know, i beta tested that and it had huge potential, it was really fun. Gawd knows what they did to it to make it fail so horrendously.

It wasn't the kind of game that people were willing to pay $15/month for. It might have done better at a lower price point. Or even without a monthly fee, like Guild Wars.

Mesh · Post by **Mesh** » 15 Sep 2007, 03:56

I was in the AA beta too, ever since I've never been able to play other mmo's, walking everywhere just feels... wrong.

Shame they can't take the AA content, make a loopback server and let people play it locally/standalone. Heck, release the server soft and let people manage it, allegiance has been running that way for years!

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