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Console versions and currenly subscribed players
olkan227
Member Posts: 2 Arc User
Hi, I have no idea if the Dev's read these posts but I hope they do and could possibly shed some light on something I have wondered since finding out STO was coming to consoles.
Will current subscribers and lifers get to keep their subscribed status on the consoles or would they have to pay again?
Will current subscribers and lifers get to keep their subscribed status on the consoles or would they have to pay again?
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Accounts on STO PC and STO Console are completely separate. If you wish to play STO Console, then you will need to need to create a new account on the specific console and start from scratch.
Cryptic does not offer a service to transfer a STO PC account over to STO Console. Additionally, using Neverwinter as a benchmark, there will be no LTS for STO Console. Presumably Microsoft and Sony would prefer to only get a cut from monthly subscriber fees rather than a one time cut of the LTS price because revenue from monthly subs are more consistent and predictable.
That statement must be false. A one-time LTS lump sum is, by its very nature, endlessly more predictable than a 'maybe-they-will-pay-next-month-too' subscription model.
But Microsoft and Sony want to get their cut of the action which is one of the reasons why we can't use our current accounts.
As far as no LTS for consoles, we will just have to see. What Neverwinter does on a console has no bearing to what STO does on a console. Neverwinter was built to be a console game while STO was built to be a PC game. Neverwinter never had LTS so it was easy to make it a F2P game while STO had to be a Freemium game due to the LTS.
There is a lot in the LTS and Veteran system that can be put in a console bundle. So it would be a complete waste to not make those items somehow available even if there is no LTS for consoles. Also, there is the issue of what they plan to do with the difference between Gold Membership and F2P. Will every console player get the same benefits of subscribing in STO or will subscriptions still exist.
And that part sucks, tbh. Not that I'm remotely interested in a console (unless I can fit it on my ship); but you should be able to logon to the same game server with the account of your choice, regardless of what client you use. The same went for Mac users.
No, it is not false.
As you stated, the LTS is a lump sum one time payment. Once a player pays it, then that is it. There is no more revenue stream in terms of sub fees forever from that player. So in a way you are correct, the future subscription revenue is predictable because it will be $0. You cannot predict when another player will decide to purchase a LTS, unless of course there is a LTS sale. But at that point you are also cutting into your revenue.
A monthly subscription is more predictable at least until the player decides to end the subscription. Someone may only want to sub for get perks and retrain token until all their characters are max level, then end the sub. Other players may decide to sub to get the veteran rewards, therefore those players will be a very reliable source of long term revenue. At least until they decide to end their sub after receiving all their rewards.
Additionally, Cryptic is betting on more player subbing, compared to player dropping their sub over time which would be the correct business plan. Of course, there will be those players who are simply F2P. But that is the nature of F2P games, the players willing to pay money are the ones who are actually supporting the game's continued existence.
y purchase
However, in a Priority One Podcast interview with Steve Ricossa (EP of STO), he explicitly stated the main goal of STO Console is not to offer a different platform for current STO PC players, but to tap into a larger customer base that STO has no presence in.
Steve Ricossa also stated that in gaming industry each platform version of a game is considered a separate product and they have their SKU #. Therefore, when STO Console is rolled out, STO would actually be considered to have 3 different products; one is PC (the original), STO PS4 and STO XBone would be the other two products. Since according to Steve Ricossa, they are separate products there is an implied possibility that there could be slightly different services offered to each product. Namely the existing LTS for STO PC and no LTS for STO Console.
Here is the link to the interview:
http://priorityonepodcast.com/po271/
Money now is almost always better than money later. If I buy a $200 LTS for the console version, then Microsoft or Sony are guaranteed their cut of the $200. It doesn't matter if I play only for a couple of months or for years to come. With monthly subscriptions, they are only guaranteed a cut until I decide to cancel my subscription. It could be a couple of years or it could be just a month.
Considering how terrible monthly subscription is in this game for more than a month, then most people will just level up their characters during a month and cancel after their character reaches level 50. So the only choice for this game is do I go LTS or do I go F2P.
From a business perspective, businesses prefer a steady stream of revenue rather than bursts of one time large sums of cash. It is much more easier to build a financial model to gauge the profitability of a product when revenue is more predictable.
Additionally, as I have stated, once a player has purchased a LTS, there is no guarantee that the player will ever spend real money on the game. On top of that Cryptic can actually loose potential future revenue because the LTS rewards those who have purchased it a $5 monthly stipend. After 60 months (for $300) the net dollar value of the $300 given to Cryptic for the LTS and the $5 worth of Zen per month over will equal $0 after 60 month. Beyond that point Cryptic is "paying" $5 per month worth of Zen to the LTS purchaser to continue to play STO.
On the other hand with a $15 monthly fee (and excluding MS / Sony cut) Cryptic earns $10 per month after netting out $5 worth of Zen. Over 60 months that nets out to $600 assuming the player stays subscribed for that period of time.
Therefore, from a business perspective, it is in Cryptic best interest not to offer a LTS on the console. Naturally, the monthly sub fee of $15 would be less if the player chooses the option to sub for 3 / 6 months at a time or whatever subscription plan they have in place.
Also, as others have stated, Cryptic gets more of a return in subscription fees "in the long term" than they do from LTS subscribers. It's one thing to have a large amount of money in the short term, but as a business, they need a constant inflow of money in order to keep the game running each month. Once a LTS is purchased, the revenue stream from that person is gone, except for the occasional micro-transaction. But a company can't base its monthly income on the hopes that LTS people will buy Zen every month on top of their monthly stipend.
Join Date: Tuesday, February 2, 2010
From a programming standpoint it's easily done it's really nothing special on the side of the development of the game and it's entirely highway robbery for them not to implement it. Case and point.
I'm not even talking about the monthly stipend I'm simply talking about the hundreds of dollars spent on ships, the costume unlocks, the benefits of previously being a lifetime member on the pc side. Those can all be unlocked using an already in place an widely used dual account system that simply causes the console version to communicate with their billing servers to discover yes you unlocked this item and you may download it on this account.
The fact that they are not doing that is simply because of greed nothing more. There is no technical reasoning why they can't implement such a widely used and common practice in the console world.
When I buy a PS3 game I don't get the X360, PS4, PC or Nintendo version. When I buy a PC game I don't get the X1, PS4, or iOS version. When I buy a movie ticket I don't get the blu-ray.
For a subscription service financial models are built around the fact that not everyone who subscribes will stay subscribed forever. The point is that they want to have a net increase in subscription revenue month over month. As long as new subs out paces old subs that decides to cancel there is a growth in revenue. That based on whatever predictive algorithms to mine player base data and forecasted growth of the business / services provided.
Naturally, overtime as STO matures on the consoles revenue growth will plateau until Cryptic either releases content that either gives new players incentives to try out the game or content that causes current players to simply stop playing STO altogether... which has never happened...<cough>, <cough>... Delta Rising...
Personally I was talking about the benefits of the subscribed lifetime pc members.
Every game out there has a veterans rewards program on the console who've come over from the pc side and has supported the team.
It's really not as difficult as the apologists love to suggest.
I am not an apologist... I am a realist.
And personally I do not care about consoles. The last time I touched a console was when Halo 2 was released and I was over at a friend's place who decided to do a "Halo Party". It was kinda boring if I remember correctly.