Erepublik's Population in Dramatic Decline. But does it matter?
Day 980, 15:20
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Published in USA 
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by
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by M A V 1 C
The Numbers Go Down
On June 1, 2010, the citizen count for Erepublik was just over 368,000. For the past few days, the number has been just over 328,000.
It's clear v.2 or the "Rising" version of this game has turned many people away. The war module is buggy. The admins have made several technological choices that are bad for us citizens. (I will be writing about those in the coming weeks.) The fundamental flaws in the economy still exist, while they're masked with a greater layer of complexity.
Does it Matter?
With so many browser based strategy games available using the "freemium" model, it's easy for players to simply switch to another game if they don't like this one. With the admins making large changes that result in more effort and more cost, it's not surprising to see a mass exodus.
For many of us, it may matter. But for the business that is Erepublik, it's a good thing. They rode the wave of free to play, growing to nearly 400k citizens. The ease of game play, and the low cost to play, made it easier to build a larger player base. Now they can afford to lose 40,000+ players, because they can increase their revenue off of the remaining players. They then have fewer players which reduces their overhead, while increasing their revenue per player. It's a win-win, for them.
It's important to remember this game is not about you, the citizen. It's about how a business can attract and retain a user base that is profitable. While some companies choose to do this by rewarding players with well built features they'll pay for, others choose to use more of a draconian leadership style, where they try to optimize the game for their own profit.
-M A V 1 C
On June 1, 2010, the citizen count for Erepublik was just over 368,000. For the past few days, the number has been just over 328,000.
It's clear v.2 or the "Rising" version of this game has turned many people away. The war module is buggy. The admins have made several technological choices that are bad for us citizens. (I will be writing about those in the coming weeks.) The fundamental flaws in the economy still exist, while they're masked with a greater layer of complexity.
Does it Matter?
With so many browser based strategy games available using the "freemium" model, it's easy for players to simply switch to another game if they don't like this one. With the admins making large changes that result in more effort and more cost, it's not surprising to see a mass exodus.
For many of us, it may matter. But for the business that is Erepublik, it's a good thing. They rode the wave of free to play, growing to nearly 400k citizens. The ease of game play, and the low cost to play, made it easier to build a larger player base. Now they can afford to lose 40,000+ players, because they can increase their revenue off of the remaining players. They then have fewer players which reduces their overhead, while increasing their revenue per player. It's a win-win, for them.
It's important to remember this game is not about you, the citizen. It's about how a business can attract and retain a user base that is profitable. While some companies choose to do this by rewarding players with well built features they'll pay for, others choose to use more of a draconian leadership style, where they try to optimize the game for their own profit.
-M A V 1 C
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Comments
Very true. Voted.
voted
Good article. But do you know about my Phoenix spy partners- loserhailose, PizzatheHut and chickenguys?
Supporting Pizza the Hut, loserhailose, chickenguys and myself is supporting Treason against the United States. Support all four of us because we are here to misguide and misdirect newbies. Pizza the Hut and myself also makes dozens of multies everday because we have no life.
Vote Republican Party! Vote Phoenix! Because treason is my and Pizza the Hut's modus operandi. 😛
yup, that's right
If you count how many citizens were fighting in all the most important battles of USA and Croatia 60-70k at most.
A lot of citizens already quit and from the rest another 70% is not happy at all.
True😐
i want back to v1... aaaaa
"It's important to remember this game is not about you, the citizen."
Well put!!