The Diablo-like action MMORPG Devilian is launching into another beta phase this week, this time with a German client, and there are cheaper founder packages available.
The prices that MMORPGs charge for founder packages really have gone up. Cortyn has already complained extensively about this. For guaranteed beta access, studios are charging 50 euros – and this is for games that actually advertise themselves as free-to-play.
With Devilian, a game that seems to be more positioned in the second tier and has been temporarily discontinued in its home country Korea, the policy does not seem to have paid off this time.
Trion Worlds is now offering a cheaper starter package. “They have heard the players’ feedback,” says Trion Worlds. There is now a €20 early start package that also guarantees beta access. Much cheaper than the previously “smallest” founder package, which was priced at 50 euros. Those who want access to the permanently open alpha are still looking at 150€.
This week marks the start of the next beta, which begins on November 12 and ends on November 16, each day at 4:00 PM. The beta will also be available in German and French for the first time.
Has Devilian flopped?
Mein MMO thinks: “It’s been said that they have “listened to player feedback” – that is something to consider.
The player feedback must have been “Make it cheaper.” And now they have listened to that? That seems to be the feedback from players about pretty much everything. The “standard price” of €50 for a founder package with guaranteed beta access seems to be becoming standard now with Black Desert and other games.
€50 for guaranteed beta access and a few goodies – most players are likely to find that way too high and will pass along this feedback. But it seems they hardly pay attention to that. With ArcheAge, they stuck to the founder prices until the end, and that was the same company that now claims to listen to feedback.
In this case, I can imagine that the “feedback” from players did not come from forums or social media, but rather through their wallets. Probably the founder packages were not sold enough; otherwise, the sudden “Then let’s offer it for €20” is hard to understand.
Especially since for most players with such founder packages, the “exclusive” access is the primary concern, and only secondarily the size of the “add-on package.” If the larger packages had sold like hotcakes, they probably wouldn’t have acknowledged that feedback, no matter how loud it might have been.
