2014-07-30, 04:10 PM
It would require them to do a massive re-tooling of how you progress your gear and character in this game, because right now its all balanced around the assumption that you are playing for free. Thusly, your progress is supposed to be measured in time dedicated, which (in theory) should translate into better gear because you put in the time to run through many sets of gear required to achieve good stats.
So if they were to switch to a subscription based model, they would have to change their many different systems that occasionally reset your progress so you don't progress too quickly. Things such as destroying equipment, or a terrible potential pool that can not only give you stats you dont care about, but also give varying amounts of them, all of which is random. So you have to continue playing to optimize your gear in the long run. But, of course, you can allegedly shorten the required time by buying shortcuts through Cash Shop, such as pot resets, protection scrolls, etc. I say allegedly because even when buying this crap all you are doing is upping your chances, and not by much, so youre still left having to dedicate more time and money long-term to progress(all of which is intended, by the way).
Contrast this with other games that successfully run subscriptions, such as WoW, Wildstar, and Final Fantasy 14, whose progression is fairly linear and straight forward while also lacking the retarded prolonging gameplay mechanics such as destroying gear. Your ability to progress your character, whether it be in gear, levels, or in-game achievements, is measured by time put in and your ability to overcome the obstacle. Obstacles such as a raid boss, opposing players in Arena/Battlegrounds/open world, or dungeons. If you are able to overcome the obstacles, you get rewarded, and can enjoy your reward almost instantly. Almost instantly because there are obviously enhancements to use on it, such as enchanting from WoW or the various gem systems from across MMOs, but these sorts of systems, once again, dont destroy your gear and force you to start over.
Basically every facet of maplestory was designed to keep you playing, and hopefully keep you spending money to provide you with a sense of progression, which encourages spend money(to keep progressing, rinse and repeat). All the while distracting you from the fact that the entire progression system is designed to KEEP YOU FROM ACTUALLY ACHIEVING OPTIMAL GEAR(widely considered to be "goal" of maplestory).
So, these are the challenges maplestory would have to overcome before they can successfully adopt a subscription-based model. The entire game, the equipment, the upgrade systems, and the bosses, are all designed around the idea of fooling you into staying in the loop of acquiring gear and upgrading it to defeat bosses that are absurdly scaled to require you to have this near-perfect gear.
My opinion? I would love for Maplestory to switch to subscriptions. Ive played the game since I was 13, and it has always been a good platform for me to interact with my friends. But, it would be nearly impossible for Maplestory to make the switch because the entire game is designed to keep you in that constant loop I mentioned. The loop that does not exist in WoW, Wildstar, etc. In those games, you put in time, overcome challenges, get gear, and then optimize your character to overcome those obstacles more efficiently. Then, you wait for more content to be released to do it all again.
So if they were to switch to a subscription based model, they would have to change their many different systems that occasionally reset your progress so you don't progress too quickly. Things such as destroying equipment, or a terrible potential pool that can not only give you stats you dont care about, but also give varying amounts of them, all of which is random. So you have to continue playing to optimize your gear in the long run. But, of course, you can allegedly shorten the required time by buying shortcuts through Cash Shop, such as pot resets, protection scrolls, etc. I say allegedly because even when buying this crap all you are doing is upping your chances, and not by much, so youre still left having to dedicate more time and money long-term to progress(all of which is intended, by the way).
Contrast this with other games that successfully run subscriptions, such as WoW, Wildstar, and Final Fantasy 14, whose progression is fairly linear and straight forward while also lacking the retarded prolonging gameplay mechanics such as destroying gear. Your ability to progress your character, whether it be in gear, levels, or in-game achievements, is measured by time put in and your ability to overcome the obstacle. Obstacles such as a raid boss, opposing players in Arena/Battlegrounds/open world, or dungeons. If you are able to overcome the obstacles, you get rewarded, and can enjoy your reward almost instantly. Almost instantly because there are obviously enhancements to use on it, such as enchanting from WoW or the various gem systems from across MMOs, but these sorts of systems, once again, dont destroy your gear and force you to start over.
Basically every facet of maplestory was designed to keep you playing, and hopefully keep you spending money to provide you with a sense of progression, which encourages spend money(to keep progressing, rinse and repeat). All the while distracting you from the fact that the entire progression system is designed to KEEP YOU FROM ACTUALLY ACHIEVING OPTIMAL GEAR(widely considered to be "goal" of maplestory).
So, these are the challenges maplestory would have to overcome before they can successfully adopt a subscription-based model. The entire game, the equipment, the upgrade systems, and the bosses, are all designed around the idea of fooling you into staying in the loop of acquiring gear and upgrading it to defeat bosses that are absurdly scaled to require you to have this near-perfect gear.
My opinion? I would love for Maplestory to switch to subscriptions. Ive played the game since I was 13, and it has always been a good platform for me to interact with my friends. But, it would be nearly impossible for Maplestory to make the switch because the entire game is designed to keep you in that constant loop I mentioned. The loop that does not exist in WoW, Wildstar, etc. In those games, you put in time, overcome challenges, get gear, and then optimize your character to overcome those obstacles more efficiently. Then, you wait for more content to be released to do it all again.