On the next page: A huge hit with a money problem …
Flop 4: WildStar – the timing was just off
Not only did we consider WildStar before its release to be a hot title that would entertain MMORPG fans for years. And when the first reviews came, the impression was confirmed: WildStar is really good! But barely launched, the rocket fell apart into its individual parts. Many bought it, but very few played it in the second month.
The switch from a development studio to a live team failed at Carbine.
Instead of delivering content patches from the start as actually planned – a lot of time was now needed to fix bugs, address issues in the structure of the game, and make WildStar more accessible and beginner-friendly. For the few who liked it, they offered too little “new.”
Was 2014 already a valley of tears for WildStar, 2015 was a tragedy. One waited forever until the inevitable free-to-play switch was announced. When it finally happened, 2015 was already well underway, and the MMORPG market was buzzing again after three-quarters of a year: With Heart of Thorns in Guild Wars 2 and a growing hype for Black Desert and Blade and Soul.
And WildStar still lacks that “X-factor” that brings a mass of players to log in day after day.
The numbers had been getting worse and worse before the start of the free-to-play switch, the likable public developers of the game are all gone now, the free-to-play switch has fizzled out – it doesn’t look good.
For 2015, a small miracle would have been needed – that did not happen. Such a great game with strong approaches, we concluded again in our F2P test of WildStar … it’s disappointing.
On the next page: A huge hit with a money problem …
