Project Lore

Marvel announced this week plans to develop at least two new MMOs, joining a growing list of possible competitors to WoW. A few months ago, iTZkooPA posted on whether Blizzard should be worried about other MMORPGs that already have been released. It looked like, at that time, they weren’t too concerned. Maybe they had no reason to be. Since then, WotLK became the fastest-selling PC game of all time (beating out the Burning Crusade expansion, which previously held that title), and propelled WoW to a base of 11.5 million subscribers. But there’s a long list of upcoming MMOs that are still a ways from hitting the market. Do these pose a challenge for Blizzard’s dominant stance in the market? It seems to me that several of the upcoming MMO titles depend on an already-existing fan base. Let’s take a look at the Marvel announcement for an example:

“Gazillion's new licensing agreement with Marvel calls for the development and publishing of MMO games featuring Marvel's iconic universe super heroes. The first game in development is a casual MMO for younger audiences based on Marvel's Super Hero Squad property. Super Hero Squad features an exciting, super-stylized look for the greatest Super Heroes, including Iron Man, Hulk, Wolverine, Thor, Fantastic Four, Captain America and many others.”

Undoubtedly, Marvel has a built-in fan base already salivating over the possibilities. And some of those fans also may play WoW. So would a Super Hero Squad MMO pull WoW players away? Perhaps some, if they don’t want to pay two monthly fees for games. (Marvel hasn’t yet stated whether the new games will have a monthly fee. I’m guessing they will.) But WoW’s fan base also might not be excited about a game proposed for “younger audiences.” This is just the first of what Marvel has announced, though, and subsequent games such as the “major new Marvel Universe PC and Console MMO” may pursue the franchise’s not-so-young audiences, as well. With team members from Blizzard, Pixar and Apple, I’m sure they’re well aware that an MMO done well can reach a much wider audience. A lot has changed since my first introduction to MMORPGs through Ragnarok Online many years ago. It looks like MMOs are becoming the popular thing to do. Or perhaps I should say the profitable thing to do (especially when superheroes are in the mix). Several other companies with pre-made audiences also have jumped onto the MMO bandwagon prior to Marvel’s announcement. Sony Online Entertainment is developing a DC Universe Online, Lucasarts and Bioware are working on Star Wars: The Old Republic, and let’s not forget about the LEGO Group’s upcoming MMOG, LEGO Universe (which has revealed its own interpretation of /chicken). With as-of-yet limited details on what any of these games will entail, it’s difficult to say where their place will be in the market. Perhaps that will be determined not only by the new games’ strengths, but also by what Blizzard continues to bring to keep WoW audiences enthralled. So what do you all think? Will these games’ pre-made audiences be enough to propel them into the mainstream? And do any of them sound intriguing enough to pull you or your buddies away from WoW?

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