Hate to critique or suggest because I have no graphic design skills, but some pointers:
-Aim these ads at people that might not know about CoH or that its closed.
-Call out NCsoft by name.
-Most importantly...thanks so much for fighting for CoH.
Hear hear.
You know how many people I come across that actually play games including MMO, serious MMO players that never even heard about COX or the closure situation? Too many. On the surface, sure this is about NCsoft vs the ex-COX players. In the bigger scheme of things it's about ALL MMOs that with the decision of a few over any reason they choose can shut down an entire game on the whim. While many probably dont wont and never will, the choice is still there. It's like a person having a nuclear missle that can wipe LA (the city of Los Angeles and Louisiana) off the face of the planet if they chose to. Maybe they have no intentions at the moment but what happens if they decide to exercise that choice? Right now, there is nothing stopping game companies from nuking game communities. And maybe it's about time that there should be some checks and balances of some sort where it works out for both parties instead of a pat on the back from game corporation for the dozens of millions that they recieved each year and the players that many thought they was investing in something suddenly lose it all not knowing that is how it works or can work. Up until COX closed, it seemed that what NCSoft did was something that was very unlikely to happen. Less likely than N.Korea becoming part of the UN by next month. But the COX closing showed the amount of power a game corporation actually have at it's disposal.
If more people knew that corporations would nuke their game at anytime any reason stated in a clear a precise manner that is could happen would people still spend thousands on MMOs? Maybe maybe not. I think many people would think twice then think twice again, and MMOs will make less money. But say if word gets out enough to even people that never played COX, that game corporations have no choice but to remind players that they are not throwing away money for years to end in it being all a waste and have their interest and respect for the player choosing to partake in their product then they could make even more. But as long as this situation stays mainly within ex-COXers and word dont get out, then it's not doing much good as a whole. What then, other game companies see NCSoft get away with it with not much major fuss (yes there is a fuss but not major fuss...yet) then what is to stop them from pulling the same "realignment" stunt? Nothing at the moment. For many COXers that been dealing with NCsoft it took what, about 5 shutdowns before it got to this point to decide to do something? Better late than never but how many more must go before the game community realize they are potentially just giving money away to charity?
Some say MMOs are dying. Maybe maybe not. But why do most gamers stick to console gaming? Because even if the game maker decides to pull out they still are able to play the game, albiet without the updates and probably not much online features anymore but still able to play the core game that they purchased. MMO games, plug pulled, useless disk set sitting around. Both are games, MMO players probably put much more money over the time into the game than any console player put into their games, yet why is MMO players end up feeling like their money is lost when some suit or a group of suits decides that "We are tired of this game" and close shop? If a person still have the original Atari and cartridges, they are able to pick it up, plug it in and play. How many of us can play COX, less than half the age of Atari, can do so now? Yet within the life span, I can bet that most of us spent more money within the short span of 8-4 years more than an entire collection of Atari games and the Atari device itself.
We can change all of that but we have to demand it. We have to move beyond the usual SGs/VGs and fellow COXers and get the word out about this especially to our fellow MMO players and gamers. Hell, even general consumers that buy anything. There are a lot of people thta buy products with warranties only to realize the company decides to stop making said product and now the warranty is "void" even if the consumer paid extra for it, so when it breaks they have to pay out of pocket for repairs assuming there is anyone around with parts to repair it. And there is nothing to stop the company from doing that over and over again. Many people just accept it as "that is how the world is." which is true but the reason that it's like that because these companies have consumers believeing they are powerless and at the mercy of consumers when in reality they should be at the mercy of the consumer. Without the consumer they cant make money and the consumer can continue to live normally just as they were before the product was offered. They need us more than we need them but they got consumers thinking it's the other way around that we need them and they dont need us so we must pay to get what we need. The one that have the money hold the power, but no company in the history of corporations gained a bunch of money that didnt come from consumers, whetehr tax money bail outs or people buying their products. Yet we let them, yes let them treat us like yesterday garbage. Here, it seems, many of us said, no more, enough, we are not going to take this anymore. And that is lovely, but we must gain more. Let people know it;s ok to be pissed when jerked around and to say so. When we get enough people saying that, what can game companies do? They can release so many games it fills the oceans but it will do them no good if people wont buy them. On the flip side of that token if people keep getting the feeling of being kicked, scream yell rant rave go on a mad internet forum angry spree yet go back to putting money into their pocket then nothign will change and even after this movement is said and done even with success, 5-10 years later either this group or another will being doing the exact same thing again about the same nonsense some company pull. The action is fresh, the action is clear, the action of NCsoft was bold, bolder than ever before. They are waiting for the usual, rant rave die down in a year and no one hears about it. We cant allow that to happen again. Then what will be next, a company shuts down a game and release official statement that plainly states "We shut down the game because we could. Shut up, deal with it. We'll see you again?" What are consumers waiting for? The time when it's too late to do anything? Waiting for game corporations to beat us to it and help create a law where we have to sign a contract for set amount of period to pay each month but anytime thye feel liek it they can close down game and dont have to give refund for even unplayed time due to the shutdown? While consumers continue to say "oh thye shut down that game over there, not my problem. My game is still up. It will never happen to us." Many people here thought the same thing when NCsoft was closign their other titles, that is until they closed ours. If a game company can close a game they can close any of their games at any moment at any time for any reason or for no reason at all and that can happen to any gamer at any time. Remember even with NCsoft, the first game they closed was the first and up until then it probably was thought that "oh NCsoft dont close games." Yep, up until then they didnt and probaby wouldnt and that statement was true. But the choice was always there and thus when they felt like using thta choice, they did. Maybe it was for financial reasons. People ate it up and went on. TR, iffy situation, yet people rationalized it. COX, yet still some people rationalized it. The trend is that the reasons are getting muddier and blurrier and eventually will they even need a reason? Many here have stated they see a trend in MMO where many game companies are chasing the new and shiny game. Even Cryptic and or PWE seems guilty of this. Although thye havent closed games yet, keyword yet. They could if they chose to especially if they feel their portfolio is getting full of old games that have been stagnating for years, like CO. Soon it may become common to build a game, make money, leave it, make new game, close old game, repeat process, as long as let them get away with the current behavior and continue to give them millions even while griping and complaining about it.
Of course no one person can do it alone, no one game community can do it alone and as long as we remain divided and blind or not worried about other game closings until it happen to the game we are currently playing, then nothing will change and game corporations will get bolder and bolder and make more and more money making it harder and harder to do anything about it. With the Project Zs, it can prove that you dont need to be a major corporation to release a good game. If more smaller game makers put out quality reliable products, then players will not feel they are pigeoned holed between the choice of "Well I dont like these corporations which can take my money and run off or some small upstart with a game full of bugs, odd artwork, and no tech support or not playing any game." We can give them a whole new choice with the project Zs as long as they do not turn into exactly like the major corporations where the players are mere numbers and think that players have no idea what a good game should have in it. Then it defeats the purpose.
This is the crossroads, and we either can stay on the course as a gaming community as a whole, or finally do something. I think, other game companies are probably watching this situation from time to time to see what happens. If it proves to be another group of angry gamers that griped for a while and made threats and it all turned out to be empty, then thery might think, "Well look at this. They had us worried for a second but it turned out all hot air. So we can close a game for any reason and in the end nothing happens? Bill, what the name of that game that have only 90,000 players? Fire Sword? Close that game down. While you at it, close down Empire of the Sea while you at it. Tell them we are doing some realignment. Dont worry, they'll raise a little fuss, get the news out in a few underground gaming websites, but we dotn care about them. We are aiming for new players anyways that probably never heard of Fire Sword or Empire of the Sea. The newbies dont know any better so that when I get tired of looking at that game on my graph, I'll shut that one down too. Easy money, Bill, easy money. Consumers will take any type of treatment we give them and they WILL like it. What are they going to do beside complain, moan groan, gripe, threaten to take their money elsewhere? Lol. How about we add a little fuel to their fire and tell them that they have been heard and we are taking their opinions in a serious manner. LOL. I barely can say that with a straight face. LOL. Oh yeah and tell them we tried to sell but couldnt find any serious buyers. That should put them in a frenzy for a bit. Now where is my popcorn to watch this entertainment while I count the money they gave me?"
