A newly released survey shows that most game developers aren’t so sure about live service video games Destiny 2 And Suicide Squad– represents a sustainable future for the industry and think the return of paid DLC might be a better option instead.
The Game Developers Collective is a panel of over 600 game developers created by Game developer, Omdia and GDC. These developers were interviewed about live service games earlier this year. For the purposes of the survey, live service games are defined as online titles that feature frequent updates and in-app purchases. When asked about such always-online games, most developers did not express a positive opinion.
As reported by Game developer39 percent of developers surveyed had “mild concerns” about current live service business models. Another 31 percent said they were “very” worried. Meanwhile, a total of 29 percent were unsure or had no fears.
When it comes to the impact of live service gaming on the industry, 45 percent view these online games negatively, while 44 percent have a more mixed opinion. By and large, this is not a compelling advocacy for our live services future from the people publishers ask to develop these expensive, time-consuming projects.
Developers say live service games are difficult to support
According to the study, the developers’ biggest concern is sustainability. 63 percent of developers fear that players will eventually lose interest. 62 percent also admitted that they were afraid that other big games would poach their players. The survey also found: 57 percent said it will be difficult to maintain player interest long-term.
No matter how a major online game loses players, the end result is rarely good for those involved. An outage and closure of a live service game may result in layoffs and studio closures. And with only a limited number of gamers in the world willing to spend time and money on these games, some developers seem worried that the endless battle for players’ time and money will only get worse as more and more publishers do so Adopt live service model.
Interestingly, 30 percent of developers said their studios are again considering paid DLC, a type of post-release content that has become rarer with the rise of live service games. What’s even more interesting is that 76 percent of developers considered offering games with an upfront payment instead of making them free to play.
Remember that what developers want to do and how they feel about it is not important to greedy publishers and executives who seem to be moving full steam ahead on live service games. as a survey showed in February. This survey found that there appeared to be over 500 studios working on live online video games. While some questioned the criteria of this study, the reality is this The publishers have made it clear that the live service model is here to stay, even if this new survey shows developers aren’t sure how sustainable it is Pivot to Forever Games will be at the end.
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