A new study on developments in the online gaming market provides some fresh insights in 2015.
One thing that every study about the MMO market tells us by now is that Free2Play offers are growing and generating more revenue. Traditional subscription games are on the decline.
This is also revealed in the latest study by Superdata on the MMO market in 2015. The company thrives on creating analyses and selling them to developers. But there are also some insights for interested players, completely free of charge.
These are the things we already knew about the MMO market
Free2Play is growing and will likely continue to grow, while Pay2Play models are shrinking. We probably all know this by now. And if you recall the MMO news from the past months, such as about WildStar or TESO, you can only nod here.
Another insight that should now be known to every MMO enthusiast is: It is not only important to attract as many players as possible to a game, but it is equally crucial to turn as many as possible into “paying customers.” This is also stated in this study: League of Legends has a larger player base than World of Tanks, but they earn more per person. With a similar statement suggesting “I could halve the player base of LoL and double the profit,” an analyst briefly incurred the wrath of players last August.
There are three interesting insights from this study
So what new information does the study provide us?
New markets favor Free2Play
You no longer necessarily need North America and Europe to make money with an MMO. The new markets in Brazil, Russia, and Turkey are adopting Free2Play models and welcoming the corresponding games with open arms. This is also one of the reasons for the success of Free2Play.
Publishers are looking for ways to establish themselves in these new markets and are opting for the model that promises the most success: Free2Play.
In these countries, there are hardly any consoles. People play in internet cafes, for example. And here, traditional Free2Play MMOs shine.
The largest Free2Play market remains in Asia. Here, publishers already have plans to implement their business models in the West.
MOBAs are growing most rapidly in the MMO segment
MOBAs are making an increasingly significant share of the MMO market. Even though many players argue that they “don’t really count as MMOs,” studies by Superdata do not differentiate. Here, MOBAs are an extremely successful subcategory and have increased their share from 16% to 24% in a year.
For MMO players, the whole gaming industry matters, including blockbusters on consoles
MMO players do not live on the blessed island of MMOistan and ignore what else is happening in the gaming world. It would be a mistake to think that MMO players are only interested in MMOs and that for a WildStar player, only WoW or The Elder Scrolls Online would be interesting. Many MMO players are involved on multiple platforms and are keenly aware when a blockbuster launches somewhere.
Even though the MMO scene itself is swinging toward Free2Play, this does not mean that the market can be indifferent when “big titles” are released conventionally on consoles. They affect the gaming and consumption behavior of players.
The latter could be seen in the Raptr data from April: Then, GTA V on PC caused the power dynamics to shift dramatically.
