Recent string of Emails to Smedley in regards to PS1 F2P Status

[Death2All]

A few days ago I emailed Smedley in regards to PS1 going F2P. The email I got back isn't exactly encouraging but I figured I'd share it with the community just to give you guys an update on PS1's F2P status.


Me:A few months ago you made the tweet saying that PS1 would go F2P by June. Is there a possibility that PS1 could officially go F2P by May 20th (PS's 10th's anniversary). Thank you for taking the time to read this email.

Smed:We haven't worked on it at all. No one is playing the game. It's not because its not f2p though.


Me:I hope I'm not misinterpreting this, but is PS1 still going to go F2P by June? Or does the fact that you haven't begun working on it translate to "it's not going to happen?"

Smed:it's going to happen. not sure if it will be by June.

seriously. no one is playing it. It's not high on our list.

In response to this I emailed Smed back a rather long winded message about the PS1 community and his doubts surrounding it, but unfortunately it got no response.

Me:Incoming wall of text:

TL;DR: Many people are willing to play the game, the subscription fee is the strongest barrier.


Many people have stated that the main barrier that keeps them from playing the game is the fact that the game has a $15 subscription fee. Most people can't justify paying $15/mo for a game with little to no dev support.

There's plenty of talks on PSU of people who expressed interest in coming back to the game if it were to go F2P (http://www.planetside-universe.com/s...ad.php?t=51638). There was even a petition started to make PS1 go F2P/lowered sub cost that got over 300 signatures (http://www.change.org/petitions/sony...charge-2#share).

People definitely want to play the game. To say that "No one is playing the game, not because it's not F2P" is an ignorant statement. Many people have deep sentiment and respect for the game. The only reason people aren't playing the game as of right now, as I said before, is because there's the $15 subscription fee. People aren't going to pay $15/mo for a game that gets absolutely no support.

I hope this post didn't come off as overly aggressive. It's just that PS1 is very near and dear to mine, and many other people's hearts. Many of us have been playing the game since is first launched in '03 til present. To be deprived of it now is very disappointing and frustrating for much of the PS1 community. If PS1 were to go F2P/lowered sub fee I'm certain that many players would return and continue to play the game for years to come.

Please don't dismiss, undermine, or underestimate the PS1 community. Although it may be small in comparisson to other games, it's a very tight group of people who are very committed to the game.


It's really a kick in the balls to hear that work hasn't even begun on PS1's transition to F2P and that it's more than likely not going to meet the (rather loose) deadline Smed gave us to hope on a few months ago. I'm hoping that posting this here will maybe stir up a reaction within the PS1 community that will let SOE know that there are people who are wanting to play this game. Smedley seems pretty bent on the idea that "no one plays PS, and not because it's not F2P". I'm hoping that maybe we can get enough of reaction that perhaps it might sway Smedley's (or someone higher up that can do something with PS) opinion on PS1.

I know this in more than likely in vain and probably hopeless, but thanks for reading regardless.


EDIT: Link to the "Official forums" thread.

[p0intman]

I'll believe it when I see it. Smed and timelines don't go well together. When he said June, I was looking for the 2036 after it.

[Figment]

Have they even checked why people aren't playing it now? :/

[vieric]

Unfortunately the current problem is so clear and obvious to anyone who takes so much as a passing glance at PS1 that I feel its all but impossible to make it any more clear to SOE, To reason with them at this stage will likely be more difficult then reasoning with a brick wall...be that as it may, that is not a reason to stop trying, but a reason to try harder.

The fact that they fail to realize no one is playing due to the completely ridiculous sub strikes of complete ignorance, arrogance and carelessness, And it shows that they clearly don't feel like looking at the community for even two minutes to verify the obvious.

I still don't understand why they wont use the reserves program to test their little theory out...If we could make a case for them to bring that back on a temporary basis to gauge interest, it would give us as a community the chance to prove them wrong and show them that there is still demand for this. I feel this would be easier then getting them to go full F2P right off the bat. Even so, getting them to throw us even that bone will be tricky as they are so adamant they are right.

I don't actually know how to contact them over this or I'd do this myself. Twitter does not suffice for such long winded ideas as these.

[Crator]

Seriously, we don't need F2P. They don't need to do anything but offer trials (The Reserves) and lower the sub cost to around $5.99 a month or so. And give PS2 subs full access to PS1. What's so hard about doing that? If after doing that there's no players then I would take the statement that "No one is playing PS1 so we aren't worried about making it F2P" as valid.

EDIT: I would be happy to pay a full sub (even if it was still $15) if there were people to play with.

[kubacheski]

<rant>

Figures as much. The very idea that they need to analyze why people don't play PS1 is insane. Its quite obvious to everyone. Which do you choose:

1) Free PS2 with some of the old familiar features and amazing graphics, new technology and full SOE support and development teams assigned to it.
or
2) $15 sub for an almost decade old game with no support at all.

The argument needs to be changed if anyone wants to see F2P for PS1. Switch up sub models on the 2 games and ask the same question - Which would you choose:

1) Free decade old game that many of us absolutely love
or
2) $15 sub for the brand new, shiny, precious PS2

Heck make it an apples to apples comparison. Switch on the reserves again so people can make new accounts and then give all accounts a free 45 days or something so there's no level cap. Put the word out and let the players decide. I'd be willing to bet SOE doesn't want to see how much competition that brings to PS2.

In the end, its a money game. There's no easy way to squeak out any revenue from PS1. There's simply not. The cost to implement a F2P isn't going to bring in the cash that PS2 currently is. So it's an easy decision where you're going to invest development resources - the one making money. Duh.

The fact of the matter is that someone is going to have to buy the rights/license to host PS1 from SOE and then take on the full burden of that cost. Is anyone willing to do that?

I love PS1 over PS2. Its an easy choice as they're completely different games. I have not played PS2 in months because I simply don't care to play that style of game. It's not a warfare game, its just a lot of skirmishes that don't really mean anything. It's an exercize in the zerg. Granted, occasionally that was extremely fun in PS1, but it's been a long time since there was the pop to maintain a properly directed zerg-fest with Orbital Strikes not fouling up the endless stream of bullets (beams for you dirty Vanu) and bodies.

Do you see how fast the map changes hands between factions now? When I last played, it only took a couple hours for one or 2 weakly managed (e.g. "all in max, go here, all in tanks, go here, all in HA, go here") outfits to change the surface to another color. Maybe it's different now. I don't know and don't care. I'd rather be remembering the fun we had in PS1 than playing PS2.

SOE and Smed can suck a big one for all I care. Too much hype and too many broken promises. I understand its business and they have to make a buck and i also understand their reasoning for the decisions they made to implement PS2 the way they did and not putting any effort into PS1 F2P, but dang, don't tease the population with a carrot that PS2 will be like PS1 and not deliver in any way shape or form. PS2 is a great game for what it is, it's just not what was presented by Higby and Hackney over a year ago when they were just talking about the in house testing, and noone outside SOE had played it.

Now we're talking about the next statement from Smed about F2P...and yet again it's a letdown to hear they haven't done anything towards it. June isn't far away and everyone knows how deadlines and promises about time are with Smed, just look at how long Planetside Next was on the table (would have been a better use of time than PS2) and how long it took PS2 to come out.

None of it matters, they're just words to SOE. PS1 is gone and will be severely missed when PS2 is a constant reminder of how Planetside went quietly into a dark cavern to die a slow death, killed by the cash available from twitchy kids and a few big non-instanced "battlefield" maps.

</rant>

Well enough complaining for one day. Have fun and smile for the memories PS1 gave ya.

Loyalty 'til death

[ChipMHazard]

If only SOE would just come out and state if they are ever going to actually make PS1 more attractive to new customers; by giving an actual window. (Whatever financial restructioning that might require)
To me, this still just looks like stalling in hopes of people forgetting/not caring about it at some point.

[Koadster]

Wasn't Smed gonna add PS1 onto PS2 subs. That would be a 10min job and might entice more ppl to sub, I sub to this game and get its original free? Sweet! It would let SOE atleast see interest without losing money from using the reserves system because they already are getting the sub.

At the very least on PS1s birthday have it free for a day or so, see how many people log on.

I think, as already been said.. they just wanna keep pushing it away hoping it dies.

[Effective]

Simply put, Smedly is dishonest.

[ChipMHazard]

So far he hasn't been dishonest about anything relating to PS1 going F2P, or some other change to the subscription model. So let's NOT call him something without first having a valid reason to do so.

[Death2All]

Originally Posted by vieric

Unfortunately the current problem is so clear and obvious to anyone who takes so much as a passing glance at PS1 that I feel its all but impossible to make it any more clear to SOE, To reason with them at this stage will likely be more difficult then reasoning with a brick wall...be that as it may, that is not a reason to stop trying, but a reason to try harder.

The fact that they fail to realize no one is playing due to the completely ridiculous sub strikes of complete ignorance, arrogance and carelessness, And it shows that they clearly don't feel like looking at the community for even two minutes to verify the obvious.

I still don't understand why they wont use the reserves program to test their little theory out...If we could make a case for them to bring that back on a temporary basis to gauge interest, it would give us as a community the chance to prove them wrong and show them that there is still demand for this. I feel this would be easier then getting them to go full F2P right off the bat. Even so, getting them to throw us even that bone will be tricky as they are so adamant they are right.

I don't actually know how to contact them over this or I'd do this myself. Twitter does not suffice for such long winded ideas as these.

Smedley's email is [email protected]. I hope I don't get in trouble for posting his email (mods already removed the link to the petition because petitions are against the rules for crying out loud). Smedley does freely announce his email on his twitter account quite often.

I'd like to encourage you guys to email Smedley. Like I said before, maybe if we can get enough of a reaction we can sway their opinion.

[vieric]

My thanks...and you are right, no matter how slim the odds are, we as a community owe it to PS1 to fight tooth and nail for any chance it might be able to get. SOE seems to want to think we don't exist, we need to show them otherwise.

[Effective]

Originally Posted by ChipMHazard

So far he hasn't been dishonest about anything relating to PS1 going F2P, or some other change to the subscription model. So let's NOT call him something without first having a valid reason to do so.

We do though, he can not be stupid enough to honestly believe that a 15$ sub for a 10 year old game with 0 support is a major reason people wouldn't play it. Look at EVERY post/tweet/email he's made regarding PS1. He's said it wasn't the subs quite a bit, but he's never told us WHY he thinks it not the subs.

He' s never asked the players if they want PS1 f2p, he either assumes we don't in which case he's an idiot, or he's lying, in which he's dishonest.

[Furber]

I really hope they plan on doing SOMETHING for the decade anniversary of their game. I kept telling myself, surely it will become f2p on the 10 year anniversary, what a perfect time to make that change. But with this new information, it's doubtful they have any strong intention of making PS1 F2P at all. Most of it seems to come down to Smedley's inability to realize that there are, in fact, tons of people who want to play this game. The lack of current subscribers is due to the perpetuating problem of 'no one playing the game because no one is playing the game'. I would gladly pay $15/month if there were other people playing, but the lack of current players creates the problem of no one subbing. It's painfully obvious that the sub fee is by far what is keeping this game in this sort of empty stasis. The PS2 devs said it all the time, "The players create the content", they understood at least that much about how Planetside works. The game is essentially deprived of its content by this sub fee barrier. It seems as though Smedley does not care for PS1's content, it's just some old outdated game that no one should like because modern fpses are the best. But many vets still long for PS1's content, and Smedly is now basically the only person who can provide it.

I think it would be a good idea if for the anniversary they did one of those "Free month for all past subscribers", that way maybe Smed would see just how many people want to play it. They've done this sort of thing several times in the past, it should be a no-brainer. Maybe once Smedley realizes he's wrong about no one liking the game, he'll muster the strength to make the switch to f2p.

Either way though, I have a feeling we, the Planetside 1 community, are the only ones who can convince smedley that the game is worth making F2P. If we just sit around and wait, I honestly don't think it will ever go F2P. Fewer and fewer people will remain subbed to the game, and he may eventually just pull the plug.

[vieric]

Well, I sent an Email to him....I suppose all I can do now is hope he actually reads the thing.

Greetings, first off I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this.

As you are well aware, PlanetSide 1 as it is now is quite barren, I feel the problem is twofold. I understand that you feel the low population is not due to an issue with the subscription model, with all due respect I disagree. I will, however state that the subscription is but one side of the issue at hand, and will readily admit it would not be as bad if not for the other part of the problem. (though 15$ is quite high for a sub these days in general, let alone for a decade old game)

The other part, is in fact the population number in and of itself. Simply put, no one wants to sub because the game is empty, yet at the same time the game is empty because no one subs (again, this is because the game is empty). You may note a cycle here, and indeed I feel the problem is self sustaining.

Allow me to put it this way, would you pay 15$ monthly to play on an empty server? Frankly I don't know of many people who would, its a tall order for even the most dedicated of players in any game, not just PS1.


I feel that this cycle can be broken, getting people to subscribe while at the same time providing somewhat of a test on just how popular a F2P PS1 could be, though It will likely still require some work on SOE's part, I feel it would be very much worthwhile, and take far less resources than other options.

In my opinion, the answer is to bring back the reserves system for a temporary period. I feel this would get people into the game, and break the aforementioned cycle, getting people to subscribe again, while at the same time serving as a useful tool to SOE for gauging how popular a "true" F2P conversion could be.

The demand for a F2P PS1 is there, the community just needs a chance to prove it. This can be that chance, while at the same time providing a much needed breath of life to the game as it is now.

P.S. If you still feel that the subscription model is not the issue, could you perhaps give me your reasoning as to why? the PS1 community at large has actually been quite curious about this, and would greatly appreciate insight.

Again, thank you for your time, and my apologies for the long Email.

I would encourage others to send him their input as well, It serves as proof of our existence if nothing else.