CrockdaddyAoD, on 21 January 2015 - 09:06 AM, said:
"[color=#959595]2) A niche release for the elitist minority?"[/color]
How exactly does your very slanted comment help with the discussion? All team based FPS games need PUGs to grease the wheels of game play. This isn't news exactly. However your supposed "elitist minority" would typically be referred to as "whales" in F2P speak. These are the guys and gals whom actually fund the game. Ya know buy the new packs ... premium time, get into it so to speak.
I would have to say, that your guess that the whole game is being funded by the elitist minority is off. There's not enough of them to pay for this, or any other, game to keep going. The PUG is the one who isn't online much. They want the new shiny mech, but are never going to play enough to buy it outright. They have to have premium time to make C-Bills, they have to pay for mechs if they hope to ever have their own DireWhale.
I put money into this game even though it's my 3rd or 4th choice to play it. Mechbays, premium time, Founders package, etc... There's a lot more like me than the players that devote lots of time to the game. At least it's my opinion that is true. I have no numbers to back me up. Logic is my only backing.
I salute those that post here daily, and help to shape this game, but forums warriors, and elite players, have always been the biggest minority, and usually most vocal. Still, without them, we wouldn't have the game we do today. The PUGs (yes I am with a house unit, but still solo mostly) are the bread and butter, and you wouldn't enjoy a steak as much without a roll.