Funcom is effectively wrapping up with its MMORPG classics Age of Conan and Anarchy Online.
Funcom has released its quarterly report for Q4/2016. There are comments on the individual games as there are every year.
Clearly, Conan Exiles is Funcom’s new favorite. There are high hopes for this survival MMO. According to the Norwegians, it is expected to generate a lot of revenue on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, if everything goes as planned.
The MMORPG The Secret World is getting another chance. The MMORPG from 2012 is set to receive a relaunch, which should bring in new paying customers. A significant amount of work will go into the MMORPG for this.
Things look bleak for the MMORPG classics Anarchy Online and Age of Conan
Things don’t look so good for Funcom’s two older MMORPGs, Age of Conan (2008) and Anarchy Online (2001).
In the annual report for both MMORPG classics, it is noted that Funcom no longer expects to invest “significant work” into the projects in the future.
For Anarchy Online, the Steam launch, a cash shop overhaul, and some events are listed as “what we did in Q4 2016.” The balance for Age of Conan looks similar for the last quarter.
Mein-MMO says: For years it has been stated that while the MMORPGs are still profitable, the profits have been declining year by year. Therefore, this news is not a surprise but rather a documentation of a trend that has been seen coming for a long time.
However, it is not the end, and that has not been announced either. Other MMORPGs have at some point switched to a “maintenance mode”, no longer receiving updates, but could still be played for several more years.
Perhaps Funcom is planning something similar for its MMORPGs.
Have you ever played any of these MMORPGs and do you have memories associated with Anarchy Online or Age of Conan?
Just last month, at the end of January, a classic was affected with “Asheron’s Call”:
