20 replies to this topic

[dante245]

dear PGI,

im sure others have reiterated this, but PGI, you need visibility. you NEED to be seen by people other then dedicated battletech fans and giant mech enthusiast. we need new blood in this game. not just for the sake of MWO, or even for the dedicated player base who has stuck around thru the good and the bad decisions, worked with you time and time again, and always striven to create a fun, positive community. we need new blood for you guys. this game clearly matters to you or you would not be doing all your doing now "despite what allot of disgruntled players may say", and, having seen some very toxic game producers over the years, i know in my heart your not one of them.

are you perfect? no. are you trying to get better? i believe so. but the single greatest opponent to this game staying alive is a stagnant player base. all these new FW events and such you are putting out to keep players involved in the game is not enough, cause there are only so many of us "and even fewer who still have hope for this game".

it is with this in mind i propose a variety of options you could consider going forward that could help bring in new blood and possibly bring new life to the game.

1. create/ hire an advertisement/marketing team that is using every available tool they can to get this game seen" i know money can be an issue, but with everything from web adverts, two TV commercials, to creating a community supporter program that helps MWO streamers and you-tubers get visibility and sponsorship" you have many options available. and the player based would understand that these could not happen over night and might take time.

2. "this goes off of the fist point" you can create a digital item/package deal that works to fund efforts to promote the game, such as you have done with the Solaris 7 mech pack, the tournament supporters pack "great deal by the way! keep it up!" and the more recent mech con pack. these are both good investments for the players and even better investments for you, making much needed money to help fund future MWO development. but you need a dedicated amount of funds going to advertising.

3. "also going of the first point" start collaborating with MWO streamers, personalities, and you tubers who promote and sponsor your game "often out of love for the game", and come up with a program that will benefit both you and the people involved. "use this as an example" https://wargaming.com/en/partners/ as world of tanks is currently one of the largest, most successful and financially prosperous MMO games currently in existence. and there "IMOO" are not as responsive to the player base and fans of there product as i believe you all at PGI are.


finally, i know that iv probably only scratched the surface of ideas that could work, and im opening this thread to both PGI and the player based to expand upon this and add too it where needed " constructive criticism welcome". please guys...hold back on toxic rebukes and comments...and lets really take a serious stab at this and see where we get.

PLEASE PGI, provide feedback/input.
sincerely...dante245, leader of RXD" Rasalhague x Dominion" and avid fan of big stompy mechs. please keep up the good work and please keep working with the player based to make this game great again.

[Nightbird]

Bad idea, gameplay doesn't allow retention of new consumers of Battletech, and most of the older fans have tried it and don't like it.

Maybe after AI is added to MWO2 and that 90% of people can PvE, because that's the usual percentage of people that hate losing in PvP and also never intend to get good at it.

[78star]

I agree with that mwo need some kind of advertising. I would even do a fundraising thing like they do for each new mech. Also a player give back system for players that get friends to pay like 20$ in game.

[arcana75]

PGI actually already has a community team, for example Tina Benoit and the 2 chaps from NGNGTV. But I think the strategy needs some reworking since they seem to be only focusing on the core group of fans, and not doing much to pull in new players.

[Dee Eight]

You cannot advertise a game that really isn't much improved from beta, to a world wide gaming community, and expect them to stick around once they learn the truth.

[Mech Ranger]

i guess if pgi can make chinese language version and server in east asia ( now i have to pay extra 10 dollar per month for VPN to play this game~, and the ping still 200+ not so good ) , more chinese gonna join this game.

Tank world have a lot of player in china as i know. Since this game is similar with tank world ,and much more complicated and more fun , players who even dont know about the mechwarrior story maybe r also interested in this game ------ like me , i dont give **** about story, it's all made up anyway,


if u watch the chinese comment of this game on steam, most of comment are about language and server problem instead of about "fun or "boring" .
they tried and they just gave up because of language and server.

this is the first page



as u can see, all negative comment is about "no chinese , cant read" , except one which is about "cant connect "

( i really dont know HOW PGI think，there is even japanese language board but no Chinese board on this forums--------all people know Japanese like Gundam， and willing to play game on play station instead of pc)

ps: graphic effect of the introduce video on steam looks bad. i dont know why, but the graphic is much better when game actually run on my pc
more chinese gonna join this game~

Edited by Mech Ranger, 29 September 2018 - 11:15 PM.

[LordNothing]

i dont think this is possible. it would cut into pgi's beer keg allotment.

[dante245]

hell...ive talked to many units "and players" who would be willing to either/or buy content that helps pay for advertising "like the mech con pack mentioned above" or even do go fund me or similar fund raising to help them cover the cost" if they really can not budget it". doing nothing is just as bad as doing the wrong thing.

Mech Ranger, on 29 September 2018 - 10:07 PM, said:

i guess if pgi can make chinese language version and server in east asia ( now i have to pay extra 10 dollar per month for VPN to play this game~, and the ping still 200+ not so good )

more chinese gonna join this game~ tank world have a lot of player in china as i know, and i think this game is similar as tank world ,and much more complicated and more fun ( dont give **** about the story , it's all made up any way )


if u watch the chinese comment of this game on steam, most of them r about language problem and server instead of about "fun or "boring" .

they tried and they just gave up because of language and server

( ps: graphic effect of the introduce video on steam looks bad. i dont know why, but the graphic is much better when game actually run on my pc)

ok...one idea...advertisement in other languages " or even just other regions" would be a good idea.

arcana75, on 29 September 2018 - 09:37 PM, said:

PGI actually already has a community team, for example Tina Benoit and the 2 chaps from NGNGTV. But I think the strategy needs some reworking since they seem to be only focusing on the core group of fans, and not doing much to pull in new players.

exactly...they need something more..either more people...different approach..or allocation of funds. not sure what but something along those lines.

78star, on 29 September 2018 - 09:28 PM, said:

I agree with that mwo need some kind of advertising. I would even do a fundraising thing like they do for each new mech. Also a player give back system for players that get friends to pay like 20$ in game.

World of Tanks has a program like this..the invite a friend program..get bonuses for inviting players after they are 1 active for a certain amount of time and 2 have spent so much in game.

Edited by dante245, 29 September 2018 - 10:46 PM.

[Dogstar]

Why on earth would they spend money on promoting a game they're driving into the ground? The sooner MWO folds the more money they make out of it.

[Daggett]

In my opinion MWOs main problem regarding advertising is it's accessibility and high skill floor. New players need much longer to get into the game and have fun than in similar other games.

For example before MWO i played WoT and there my first match was just fun and motivating. I had no problems controlling my tank and this enabled me to deal damage and get kills.

In MWO beta however it took me about 20 matches until i was able to deal 3-digit damage and even longer to get my first kill. I even gave up after the first evening and it was only because of a good friend who convinced me to give it another try that i'm here today.

Sure, PGI improved several accessibility aspects since then (the most important one was probably throttle decay) but it's still lacking and gives new blood a hard time. And this in turn makes it much more expensive to advertise because it's harder to find players who stick with the game. I think it's so expensive that PGI won't get a return on investment if they try to advertise MWO more.

I think it needs drastic changes to make this game more accessible and player acquisition financially worthwhile. For example a main hurdle is the requirement of the first person camera which leads to massive problems in keeping track on legs and torso movement for new players.
PGI had a chance to provide a proper 3rd person camera but the community pressured too much aganist this back then which lead to the worst 3PV implementation possible.
Most of us did not see how important a proper 3rd person camera is to get today's gamers into a game with independent leg/torso movement. Almost all similar games use 3rd person view as default or even as the only camera for a reason.

Now it's probably too late to do such changes. I really hope for PGI that they will implement a proper 3rd person into MW5 if they want to sell copies to other players than old die-hard veterans.

arcana75, on 29 September 2018 - 09:37 PM, said:

PGI actually already has a community team, for example Tina Benoit and the 2 chaps from NGNGTV. But I think the strategy needs some reworking since they seem to be only focusing on the core group of fans, and not doing much to pull in new players.

Community management and marketing are two different departments in game companies. The first one (together with support department) is focusing on existing players, the latter one to get new players into the game. You will never see a community manager doing advertising campaigns.

Edited by Daggett, 30 September 2018 - 02:21 AM.

[MW Waldorf Statler]

im not understand the problems of the Modern Cell/smart phone generation with First person View ...thats guys all run in reallity with a Drone behind to come Trough the Real life ? a Cell phone app thats they must not look out from her Cell phone????When MWO is to hard for thats Kids, better play further Console Games and Android games..we have enough Kids thats not understand to aim without a Controller or Weaponranges ,press R ,Tactical awarness and Teamplay or come with Trollbuilds like a Cougar with only a single Gauss...thats guys better lays GTA IV and other FPS

Edited by Old MW4 Ranger, 30 September 2018 - 04:30 AM.

[Daggett]

Old MW4 Ranger, on 30 September 2018 - 03:37 AM, said:

im not understand the problems of the Modern Cell/smart phone generation with First person View ...thats guys all run in reallity with a Drone behind to come Trough the Real life ? a Cell phone app thats they must not look out from her Cell phone????When MWO is to hard for thats Kids, better play further Console Games and Android games

The problems have been the same since 3D games emerged decades ago, we are simply too old to remember our own struggle. I'm pretty sure every single one of us needed some time to get used to the old Mechwarrior games.

The only real difference is the availability of other games. Back then we played hard-to-learn games much longer, we had no alternatives. Today a game has to catch players within a few hours or we will just try another one. We don't even need to leave home today to try out new games.

So no, the smartphone-generation is not to blame, they are equally (or even more) capable in gaming then we old farts are. For example MOBAs are much more complex and have a much higher skill-ceiling than MWO, but are still much easier to control and play.

Great games are deep, but not complicated. Each game can be made accessible, regardless of complexity. It's the task of the developer to make sure that a deep, complex game does not become too complicated.

Also note that i specifically referred to FPS with independent leg/torso movement which is a whole different level as typical FPS movement like in Fortnite or CoD.

[MW Waldorf Statler]

in that is MWO not a FPS and more a Tankgame with mor as one Weaponsystem in the Turret ...its the problem thats MW/BT more for Simulation Fans as for FPS Players with only a Game/Soldiermodel (hitmodel/Movement,Size) ,and a Maingun...very different and not for the FPS Community...MW more ARMA or Battlefield ,a s Cod or UT ...Hawken for FPS gamer better and when convert MW to a FPS game its not longer a MW Game ..that like to try to make Wing Commander convert to a Flying racing Game.Im played 20 Years Singleplayer Simulations and strategic games before im feeling good enough to play with UT 2004 my first Multiplayer game.
the kids today want to be good right now and in everything without having to learn or gain experience ... they want to be superheroes without ever having to learn or Train ...tharts a Bad and stupid way

Edited by Old MW4 Ranger, 30 September 2018 - 08:06 AM.

[dante245]

Daggett, on 30 September 2018 - 02:16 AM, said:

Community management and marketing are two different departments in game companies. The first one (together with support department) is focusing on existing players, the latter one to get new players into the game. You will never see a community manager doing advertising campaigns.

Exactly my point. Advertisement is not what Tina does, she focuses " as far as i understand" inside with current player, not externally bringing in new ones as for funding, there are several options to go with. Could sell digital content/pack that specifically goes towards advertisement, or do community fund raisers to get it, and etc. Do i believe they have the money right now? No. Do i believe that can change with a few simple sales? Yes

Edited by dante245, 30 September 2018 - 06:46 PM.

[arcana75]

Daggett, on 30 September 2018 - 02:16 AM, said:

Community management and marketing are two different departments in game companies. The first one (together with support department) is focusing on existing players, the latter one to get new players into the game. You will never see a community manager doing advertising campaigns.

And that's probably why it fails or performs badly. Today's digital business, there should not be any separation between community engagement and marketing. Both are digital business. Bad or good engagement equals negative or positive publicity and publicity and handling the community are all parts of marketing in today's modern business, esp if they want to survive. All the wonderful marketing you do can be flushed down the toilet by a bad community manager poorly handling engagement matters.

Consider this, if Tina's job is to focus on existing players, eg say a streamer Baradul, and Baradul's Daily Doses and streams pulls in new players, should Tina now pass Baradul off to her colleague and back and forth?? Makes no sense whatsoever. A solid digital marketing strategy involves all aspects of outreach.

Old MW4 Ranger, on 30 September 2018 - 07:57 AM, said:

in that is MWO not a FPS and more a Tankgame with mor as one Weaponsystem in the Turret ...its the problem thats MW/BT more for Simulation Fans as for FPS Players with only a Game/Soldiermodel (hitmodel/Movement,Size) ,and a Maingun...very different and not for the FPS Community...

Daggett, on 30 September 2018 - 04:40 AM, said:

Also note that i specifically referred to FPS with independent leg/torso movement which is a whole different level as typical FPS movement like in Fortnite or CoD.

I'd advise not taking an elitist view towards "typical FPS". In MWO we have standards of play we would say are low and high levels of play. In low levels of play in "typical FPS" you just swing the mouse around and press left mouse button, and WASD. But have you seen high levels of FPS play? Map mastery, high-accuracy shots, fire control, high-agility moves, teamwork/comms, map awareness of teams vs enemies relative to own positioning, etc. All terms you'd associate with high levels of play in MWO, the exact stuff happens in high level play in FPS. To say otherwise is just being ignorant. Or elitist.

[Daggett]

arcana75, on 03 October 2018 - 03:00 AM, said:

And that's probably why it fails or performs badly. Today's digital business, there should not be any separation between community engagement and marketing. Both are digital business. Bad or good engagement equals negative or positive publicity and publicity and handling the community are all parts of marketing in today's modern business, esp if they want to survive. All the wonderful marketing you do can be flushed down the toilet by a bad community manager poorly handling engagement matters.

Consider this, if Tina's job is to focus on existing players, eg say a streamer Baradul, and Baradul's Daily Doses and streams pulls in new players, should Tina now pass Baradul off to her colleague and back and forth?? Makes no sense whatsoever. A solid digital marketing strategy involves all aspects of outreach.

True, CM has to work in conjunction with marketing and a good CM can of cause help pulling in new players.
But CM and marketing are still toally different jobs which require different skills. Good luck finding a competent CM who also happens to have studied marketing.

So in reality you hire marketing specialists and CM specialists and organize them in departments where their expertise can be focused for better efficiency and effectiveness. This of cause does not mean that those departments do not communicate with each other, usually quite the contrary is the case.

arcana75, on 03 October 2018 - 03:00 AM, said:

I'd advise not taking an elitist view towards "typical FPS". In MWO we have standards of play we would say are low and high levels of play. In low levels of play in "typical FPS" you just swing the mouse around and press left mouse button, and WASD. But have you seen high levels of FPS play? Map mastery, high-accuracy shots, fire control, high-agility moves, teamwork/comms, map awareness of teams vs enemies relative to own positioning, etc. All terms you'd associate with high levels of play in MWO, the exact stuff happens in high level play in FPS. To say otherwise is just being ignorant. Or elitist.

Maybe we have an misunderstanding here? With "whole different level" i simply meant that it is much harder for a new player to learn controlling a mech in MWO than it is to control a character in CoD. I never wrote about high or low levels of play, my use of the word "level" simply refers to "difficulty level to learn a game".

Edited by Daggett, 03 October 2018 - 05:10 AM.

[Asym]

I have demo'd MWO in front of well over a hundred University students last fall. Several games were demo'd and MWO didn't get a single vote. "too boring" and after watching a match or two of the semi-finals of the year, "seriously, how stupid...."

Not a single vote ! The "veteran" players saw value in the concept but, the format just didn't make sense to them. Too many "WTF: that a FTL space capable society can't even......"

Heck, WoWs got a few votes....

What they liked and voted for were the LoL, WoW, Overwatch kind of games... I didn't have access to BT at the time so I'm not sure what that reaction would have been and I'm retired now so..........I just "advise" now.... GL on trying to make this game "exciting" without making it so alien to the MW single player base that even they would leave.....

[dwwolf]

If ita a niche genre you need a large market.

Japan and to a lesser extend Korea and China like robots.
Worth a shot IMHO.

[Anjian]

dwwolf, on 03 October 2018 - 06:40 AM, said:

If ita a niche genre you need a large market.

Japan and to a lesser extend Korea and China like robots.
Worth a shot IMHO.

To a large extent Korea and greater China-Taiwan-Hong Kong also like robots. That also goes with the South East Asia like Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and so on. They are also mobile intensive markets too.

Edited by Anjian, 03 October 2018 - 07:03 AM.

[Mystere]

arcana75, on 03 October 2018 - 03:00 AM, said:

I'd advise not taking an elitist view towards "typical FPS". In MWO we have standards of play we would say are low and high levels of play. In low levels of play in "typical FPS" you just swing the mouse around and press left mouse button, and WASD. But have you seen high levels of FPS play? Map mastery, high-accuracy shots, fire control, high-agility moves, teamwork/comms, map awareness of teams vs enemies relative to own positioning, etc. All terms you'd associate with high levels of play in MWO, the exact stuff happens in high level play in FPS. To say otherwise is just being ignorant. Or elitist.

And bunny-hopping. Don't forget about bunny-hopping.

Anjian, on 03 October 2018 - 07:01 AM, said:

greater China-Taiwan-Hong Kong

You just angered the folks at Beijing.

Edited by Mystere, 03 October 2018 - 07:30 AM.