Guaging Success – WildStar Launch

WildStar head start drops tonight at 3am EST. Best of luck to their team and the players partaking in it. This will be interesting and fun to watch – there are a lot of eyes on WildStar.

This is also the first MMO launch I have been a part of since Warhammer Online (and we all know how that turned out!) I have pretty much played them all but typically wait 60 days – I enjoyed the WS beta that much and see the value in starting from launch day. I am looking to exploring Nexus and the secrets and treasures it has (code words for Kill Ten Rats and FedEx quests..) They have a lot of lore to chew on and I am excited to be a part of the story as it unfolds in all the theme park glory.

I won’t be up at 3am to wait in queue but I’ll see how it held up bright and early in the morning. For those who haven’t seen it, this is a nice feature set video that showcases WS.

At bare minimum, extra writing material for me as I play!  I have relaxed expectations and refuse to hop on the hype train. WildStar wild have no long term measurable impact on World of Warcraft – and that is ok. Back on Warhammer’s release I made a really silly prediction they would get 1,000,000 subs in year one (based off of the beta experience – which wasn’t replicated once live) and sitting here today I am realizing the expectations should be more fair (not just for WildStar, for all MMO launches.)

Some ideas if we can agree:

  • A base population that is sustainable and profitable.
  • Population growth. (see: EVE Online). It doesn’t matter if there are 100,000 users or 1,000,000 users – its a healthy sign if that increases over time. The pace of growth isn’t that critical either. Doubling overnight doesn’t matter if you are churning.
  • No major change in payment types (F2P conversions, cash shops, etc.)
  • An official forums that is raging with every Nerf left right and centre. A caring population is good, right? =)

The adventure begins! If you are playing, let me know what server. I still haven’t decided that yet. A final side note:  I have been listening to the guys at WildStar Nation and they do a great job capturing WildStar with a pretty objective and levelheaded approach. It’s a good source of material if you are looking to learn more about the game.

See you on Nexus!

 

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