Back on MMORPGs, recently there was news that Microsoft has canceled the once announced Marvel based MMORPG. This particular game was being developed by Cryptic studios, the same dev house that made another super hero MMORPG, City of heroes.  If you remember, back in the original Xbox days, there was a MMORPG in development for a long while call True Fantasy live Online. That game was nearing completion when Microsoft gave it the axe. You would think that a system like the Xbo 360, which boasts online play capabilities to be a perfect fit for an MMORPG. Imagine the users a game like WOW would pull into the console universe if it was available to play on your Tv in your living room.

Why is it that there hasn’t been a MMORPG for consoles yet?

I think I know why, and I also think I know why the Marvel MMO was canceled. First I want to ask you this question, have you ever got hooked on an MMORPG? I have, I played Everquest for about 6 months when it came out. guess what other games I played in that time? None!!! I was really big into PC FPS’s before I bought Everquest. When I was playing Everquest, I didn’t buy any FPS games, or any other games. I completely lost touch with all gaming other than Everquest. When I was done with EQ, I had to go back and catch up with everything.

I think that is a problem you would have for any MMO that becomes popular. The time investment needed to keep up with MMO’s is great, and once hooked, its hard to keep up with other gaming. For a company like Blizzard, where the MMO is their business, thats a good thing. They get dedicated players that are paying the $12-$15 bucks a month to play the game. When you look at console makers, like Microsoft or Sony, they don’t want to release a game that will inevitably stop gamers from buying other games as they are released. I know you’ve heard it before, but the way console manufacturers work is they sell the system at a lost, and make the real money on game sales.

Microsoft now has about 16 million Xbox 360 userbase, with an attach rate of about 2 games per console sale. Lets say that a game like WOW is released on the 360. The 360 version of WOW may add about 3 million more users. Out of the whole install base, lets say 10 million 360 owners are now playing and addicted to WOW. That would be a little over half of the Xbox 360 owners not buying games, not buying XBLA titles, not buying TV shows and Movies, not buying gamer pics, or themes. Half of the userbase would be inactive, other than paying the monthly fee to Blizzard for playing WOW.

Again, that would be great for Blizzard, but very bad for Microsoft. The only way Microsoft benefits is if they get a substantial cut of the monthly fee’s, which in turn would have to be done by virtually ripping off Blizzard. I guess that these games get canceled when they get to the dealing stage. Microsoft probably ask for too much, but what they would need to make the MMO a good fit. The MMO developer are probably telling Microsoft that they aren’t going to run an MMO and give them as much as they are asking. Eventually they just say forget it and the game is canceled.

Its a shame too, cause I would love to play a MMO in my livingroom.