The Burning Crusade: No Digital Distribution, Server Queues Suck
Blizzard is not offering digital downloads for their World of Warcraft expansion that launches today, the Burning Crusade. The first time I heard that they wouldn’t be offering digital downloads of the expansion, I did a double-take. More like a triple-take. What online gaming company in their right mind would not offer the digital acquisition of their expansion?!
Then I thought: They’re going to deal with some massive, massive server queues already. If they offered digital downloads, it would make it even harder to play WoW for the first couple weeks after launch.
My thought is that they considered offering a digital download of the Burning Crusade, then decided not to in order to make it slightly harder to get the expansion on launch day, thus eliminating some of the ridiculous queue time we’ll see with just box sales.
WoW is suffering from its own success, and I think the lack of digital downloads is an intentional attempt to avoid a little bit of that suffering. Does that make it okay to have server queues or not to offer digital downloads like all companies these days should? Not really, but that’s that.
Like I’ve said before, they need to do something about the server queues. Whether that means more or better hardware, I’m not sure. If that’s not an option, there are still things you can do. For example, you could make it so you can’t create a character on high population servers unless: a) you already have a character on that server on that account, or b) you know someone on that server who gives you an invitation code.
You know that nice Suggest a Realm feature they have? I’ve tried it a few times lately, and it always suggest Draenor to me. WTF?! That’s the very server I’m trying to avoid, because I have to wait at least 20 minutes every night I try to play. So, there’s one problem that should be easily solved.
Anyway, there are a few things that Blizzard can do to help reduce the need for server queues that involve $0, and they should, at a minimum, work in some of those.
Maybe digital downloads wasn’t an option due to contractual agreements with the publisher.
Yeah, I would bet Garthilk is correct. Vivendi doesn’t want to piss off the major computer game retailers by cutting them out of the loop. Plus, they want boxes in stores as free advertising. If everyone buys online, no boxes in stores, no new customers by that route.
Also, I bet suggest a realm is suggesting the place you already have characters. It might only work if you are brand-new.
I’m fairly certain the suggest a realm thing only works when you have no characters on any server. The moment you have an existing character, its going to prioritize first on you playing an existing character (and not crowding up one of their other servers), and then by other criteria.
I think it’s also still suffering from some very bad topology. It’s less than a year from the AT&T debacle.
I think it’s more than “not wanting to piss off” the major game retailers. At every chain game shop I’ve gone into for the past year, these guys practically break out the pompoms and cheerlead WoW. Ask about any other MMO, and they’ll work WoW into their response. Ask about any non-online PC Game, and they’d find a way to work WoW into it.
When I went to pick up my City of Villains preorders last year, the stack of CoV boxes were waiting NOT behind the counter (no room) but behind the big cardboard WoW display next to it.
I can’t even imagine how much money’s been spent to maintain the Warcraft strategic placement in those stores. Now, by insuring that these stores wouldn’t lose out competing dollars to the digital downloads… by making certain that mall security will be called to handle the crowds outside the tiny closet of a boutique shop… how much more loyalty have they garnered?
The Burning Crusade: No Digital Distribution, Server Queues Suck
Chas has pretty much hit the nail on the head; every time I’ve trekked up to EB or GameStop, and its either a preorder for an EQ2 expansion or actually picking it up, the cashier rambles about how much better WoW is than EQ2. I didn’t know that it was a widespread thing however, just that the people in two game stores that are right next to each other in my mall were unabashed WoW Fanboys.
Further, I detest the WoW patcher. Maybe EQ2 has spoiled me,but having to go to FilePlanet to download the latest patch whenever I want to play a different game is a real pain.
I strongly agree with the other comments here.
In any business, advertising is key. Getting on the news showing line-ups at such & such a store is like free money for Blizzard. It makes people wonder what they are missing. Those big displays at Best Buy may not make someone buy the game outright but it sure does make people pick-up the $2 free trial sitting next to the cashier at checkout.
Its hard to find fault with a steadily growing population, I mean they have to be doing something right.
In my opinion there is no such thing as “Too many subscribers”. Thats like saying I have “Too much money”
No digital download as a means of slowing down users getting to the expansion. Wow, that’s more cynical than expected.
What gaming company in their right mind would not offer digital download? Perhaps the same company that would go over two years with an MMO without an expansion?
Blizzard is definitely doing things their own way, but in the way with which they have succeeded in the past. They do not see other MMO companies as their precedent, they see Diablo, Diablo II, WarCraft III, and StarCraft as how things should be done.
They have a track record of success and what MMO company has the legitimacy to tell them they are wrong? If you have 8 million subscribers, raise your hand. hrmm… Half that many? A quarter?
Blizzard makes the retailers very happy. They put products on the shelves that sell fast and go for full retail price long after most games are heavily discounted. The retailers, in turn, will do a lot for Blizzard to make sure they get their supply. Why would Blizzard want to sour that deal?
Furthermore, the digital distribution has its own set of costs and hurdles for little additional benefit.
If you want to explore a digital distribution mystery, explain why SOE made The Serpent’s Spine available only via download. It seems like an expansion designed to bring in new players, but nobody will ever see it sitting on a store shelf.
Yeah Digital download as an option for a game really causes stores to not carry your product. Thats why Halflife 2, Splinter Cell Double Agent, and virtually EVERY major PC game is not on store shelfs. I am sorry when you are a company that is selling a game that Requires an internet connection, people should beable to use that connection to get your game, from you. Besides even if its not available from Blizzard it is available from online Direct download retailers I am shure, so those that would normally use Blizzard’s server to get thier copy of Burning Crusade can just get it from them.
So, Kela, if I follow you, you’re saying somebody else has it covered, so Blizzard shouldn’t bother?
As for retailers, Halflife 2, Splinter Cell Double Agent, and virtually EVERY major PC game get a shelf spot and some space on an end cap when they release, and maybe not even that if it is a small retail location. There are a LOT of games out there.
My local Fry’s had four pallets of Burning Crusade boxes, 2 huge displays, several end caps, and half a dozen shipper displays featuring BC around the store. They also held a midnight launch event that got coverage in the local paper and on TV. That is what retailer loyalty gets you.
I don’t know, Blizzard looks pretty smart at the moment. I’m willing to believe that if they felt digital download was worth the investment, they would have it.
So just as an update, Blizzard is now offering the digital download ;p Looks like the ‘clog the servers’ theory was right on.