The sandbox MMO Black Desert has entered open beta in Korea and apparently is not being received as well as hoped.
A few days ago, the sandbox MMO Black Desert started its open beta in Korea. Various US online media have now reported on the sentiment they believe is prevailing in the open beta. It could probably be summarized as “not quite as hot as hoped”.
Although Black Desert started with relatively high interest, this seems to be cooling off during the open beta instead of continuing to rise, as manufacturers would prefer, to reach a peak at release.
Interest in the Open Beta is waning
So mmoculture reports that the player count has already dropped by 8% since the start of the open beta within a week. Publisher Daum attributes this to problems with the user interface, which is presumably quite difficult to get used to. Publisher Daum has already signaled a desire to improve this.
However, Black Desert is the most played MMORPG in internet cafes in the country and the fourth most played game overall (though it only reaches about one-seventh of the player count that League of Legends attracts).
Too weak in terms of content?
More concerning is a report from mmo-site. It also mentions a dwindling enthusiasm for the closed beta. Back then, Blade & Soul and Tera attracted significantly more attention during their first weekend in open beta. However, this waning enthusiasm is not attributed to UI problems, but rather to a lack of content. The content in the open beta hardly differs from that of the closed beta.
Players could reach the maximum level of 50 in a single day and then have little to do.
Here too, Daum has promised to deliver additional content with new areas, crafting content, and a guild system.
Mein MMO believes: UI problems could be resolved relatively easily. However, a lack of content is something that fans – especially here in the West – do not forgive. Asian MMOs tend to launch with relatively little content, and the publisher aims to expand further over the years.
How things can go wrong was seen in Europe with Tera , where a legal dispute prevented the game from being developed further for years. This hindered the game’s potential success and threatens to end up as a footnote in MMO history.
On the other hand, ArcheAge, the latest Asian import, could not be accused of lacking content. However, the game had already been on the market in Korea for a considerable time before it came to Europe, allowing it to be further developed. Since Black Desert is aiming for a quick launch in the West, this could become tighter.
Before the open beta, a report from the Korea Times stated that publisher Daum was under financial pressure.
One can only hope for the MMO genre that this does not lead to another MMO stumbling at the start of its chance to become something bigger. Many (including us) wish for more “patience” from players, for them to give an MMO time to mature. However, reality is different. The past has shown that MMOs need to offer something from the start. Otherwise, a large part of the player base will disappear without a trace after six weeks.
Therefore, it seems wiser to hold back an MMO for longer to truly ensure that the first impression does not disappoint. On the other hand, publishers want and need to release their MMOs as quickly as possible, as they incur costs every month of development time without knowing if it will ever make a profit.
We are curious where the journey for Black Desert will lead. It is certainly one of the two or three most interesting MMORPGs in the next two years.
