[Grizzlebeard]

Originally Posted by eticket109

This is what I was referring too. A simple news post about repackaged software turned into the same old flame thread and trolling about people leaving the game and low number on the server.

Some of the people who have left still believe there could be changes made for the better. Ultimately as customers when you have no real discourse with a supplier you can only vote with your feet. That doesn't mean a number of us didn't enjoy the game immensely and miss many aspects of it.

As to the flaming, I agree Little Ninja's initial post was a tad inflammatory but that wasn't justification to subsequently attack him personally.

[Murphie]

Nah, I'll post on here thank you. As to cluttering up the forums, a few points. Firstly, you aren't a moderator or someone whose opinion I overly give a damn about. Secondly, I make probably 5-10 posts a week on here as opposed to the 3200 you have amassed in roughly three months, I don't think I'm the one in danger of cluttering up anything. Lastly, anyone taking a cursory glance through your posts will see more than enough little digs at people, at least three on this thread alone. You should practice what you preach lest you be accused of hypocrisy.

A few more points.

1.) July 2005, not 2006, genius. For someone so good at finding fault, you should have noticed that.

2.) How often I post has absolutely no relevance here. Some people have more time to post. Who cares how many I have versus how many you have?

3.) If you look at my posting history (which you seems to be so clearly obsessed with), you'd find that the majority of my posts here have been very friendly and helpful. You'd also find that most posters here don't think that I'm the same monster of a poster that you think I am.

4.) My digs at LN were a bit out of line, perhaps, but in light of his random trolling in this thread, I don't feel so bad about it. Anything else has merely been response to your lovely presence, since you seem so determined to tell me how I should be posting. I'd like to remind you that you aren't a moderator either.

Regardless, hugs and kisses, and thanks for posting at FFXIO!

[Grizzlebeard]

Originally Posted by Murphie

A few more points.
1.) July 2005, not 2006, genius. For someone so good at finding fault, you should have noticed that.

Your posts, or the majority of them, were amassed under Aelthir until you had them merged with your old, and barely used, Murphie account, I seem to recall. Or, are you now claiming the bulk of your posts were made over the space of a year as opposed to the last three months? When was it you received your title for 1k posts, 2k posts, and subsequently 3k posts? I'm sure a mod could confirm that quite easily.

Again, the post count reference was made to convey a point, which appears to elude you, not to persecute you.

Although, despite refraining from insults myself, I see you were unable to resist yet another. You should really follow your own advice.

Originally Posted by Murphie

If you have any further problems with what I have to say, just PM it to me, please. There is absolutely no reason to clutter up the forum with your little digs.

Now, let's try and get this topic back on course.

Are there any scheduled plans to run a Return to Vana'diel in conjunction with this Collection launch?

[Jarre]

Does it matter?

The thread is veering way off....

[little ninja]

Hmm yes i feel i was trolling because i notice server declines for the past few months, that S.E bans a number of players. Then says " here ya guys go. all 4 discs in a new purdy box"

I am so sorry if u think im bashing your favortie game. For the way some of you act. youd think i had called your moms a street walker or something.

So i posted S.E's poorly obvious marketing ploy to keep server numbers up, followed by proof that yeah my servers numbers were down..

Murph u may now remove your foot from your mouth....

[Murphie]

Jarre - No it doesn't matter.

Little Ninja - My foot isn't in my mouth. I saw your post, acknowledged that what I said was out of line and moved on.

Grizzlebeard - I love you too.

[Taskmage]

Trying to keep their customers happy and get more people to buy their products is kindof what companies do. When you watch TV, do you go "lol Two mediums pizzas for $15? omg and you get a free crappy DVD too? Obvious marketing ploy! Guess sales must be down, huh Pizza Hut? Papa John's 4eva!"

Seriously, calling out a company for marketing is like calling out cows for eating grass. It's not graceful, it's just what they do.

[Murphie]

Originally Posted by Taskmage

Trying to keep their customers happy and get more people to buy their products is kindof what companies do. When you watch TV, do you go "lol Two mediums pizzas for $15? omg and you get a free crappy DVD too? Guess sales must be down, huh Pizza Hut? Papa John's 4eva!"

Exactly Taskmage.

As I mentioned above, Blizzard recently lowered the price of WoW to $19.99. They didn't have to, but they did anyway. It's just a smart business decision. They still make money on the sale, and they get more subscriptions. I don't see why SE doing this is some sort of sign that the game is on it's way out. Heck, if that were the case, it would have died when the first Vanadiel Collection came out.

Seriously though, I hate Pizza Hut and Papa John's. Local pizza places ftw!

[Taskmage]

Originally Posted by Murphie

Local pizza places ftw!

Truth.

[Raydeus]

Originally Posted by little ninja

By the peak of NA primetime it will be 2k at the most, When it hits JPN primetime it wont even hit 2k. Dont worry i will keep posting diff times just to shut ur trap.

Fridays have always been slow so you can't really expect more than 3k players tonight.

Even so, right now (19:18 central) there's 2564 players online in Fenrir.

Originally Posted by Grizzlebeard

As to server numbers, I know Fenrir's has also declined noticeably of late as evidenced by an increasing number of goodbye posts and discussions with friends still playing.

That's evidence of nothing really, I have seen many of my friends quit, but I've also found many new players who just started not long ago. Also, it's much more likely for someone to post a goodbye than a "Hi i'm new" so the amount of posts isn't very solid evidence.

Now, maybe the number of subcriptions has reduced, but it seems most of the players who quit were people who didn't play much anyway, because the number of players online at a given time has actually increased (at least in Fenrir).

Edit>

Originally Posted by Murphie

Seriously though, I hate Pizza Hut and Papa John's. Local pizza places ftw!

ZOMG blasphemy!

[little ninja]

Originally Posted by Murphie

Exactly Taskmage.
As I mentioned above, Blizzard recently lowered the price of WoW to $19.99. They didn't have to, but they did anyway. It's just a smart business decision. They still make money on the sale, and they get more subscriptions. I don't see why SE doing this is some sort of sign that the game is on it's way out. Heck, if that were the case, it would have died when the first Vanadiel Collection came out.
Seriously though, I hate Pizza Hut and Papa John's. Local pizza places ftw!

Dropping down the price to 19.99 was a smart marketing ploy. Compared to throwing the same 4 discs in a new box. Blizz figured FFXI is gonna come out with the same marketing ploy they did last year. how can we keep players away from them. or choose our product more.

[Drive]

Originally Posted by Raydeus

Edit>
ZOMG blasphemy!

Real Truth

[Taskmage]

I don't believe either SE's move or Blizzard's move had anything to do with eachother.

Most likely the sales of the expansion-only discs to existing players had tapered off, so they bundled that value together with the base product to make that package more attractive to new customers and so people buying the collection don't feel like they're getting an incomplete product. Blizzard did the exact same thing with Diablo and Starcraft except they threw the strategy guides in there. Bundling expansions together is a very common move in the industry to squeeze more sales out of an aging product, especially since it costs significantly less to manufacture and shelve one package instead of two.

It's equally absurd to think that Blizzard saw that repackage and thought "zomg we've gotta cut these bastards off" and dropped the price. They probably didn't even care or notice. WoW is a product that's been around for a long time and has already established an enormous user base. Demand for new copies of the game is probably slowing down considerably, so they dropped the price to give sales a little kick. Actually, Blizzard probably had nothing to do with that decision at all, it's usually the publisher that makes marketing and pricing decisions.

[little ninja]

Its not absurd. its common marketing strat. An it is done across all media's. Tv shows do it to get teh rating.to boost its profits from commercials. Radio is the same way. So why wouldnt MMO companies be trying to do it.

[Pai Pai Master]

The concept of these All-In-One packs lies in the fact that a vast majority of the expansion's sales come within the first month of its release. Especially with an expansion as major as Aht Urhgan, it's hard to think of anyone who didn't want to pick it up ASAP.

When an expansion's been out for this long, it obviously won't be flying off shelves anymore. Stuff it in an All-In-One pack and you've suddenly got an easy way to make profit off a few new players, some returning players, and a lot of people who want to own it either for the novelty or for the ease of a single installation disc.

There's really no need to run around blaming Square Enix for releasing an All-In-One pack, saying it's because of dwindling server population or something. The fact remains that FFXI is still successful (#4 in the world is pretty impressive, particularly for the very first console-based MMORPG ever. People tend to forget that.) and it will remain successful for some time. Square Enix has been releasing All-In-One packs in Japan since the day Rise of the Zilart came out, and have released on alongside each expansion since.

Blizzard will probably release an All-In-One pack for World of Warcraft and Burning Crusade. That's not to say their population is at a decline. We all know that's not happening any time soon.