Smed Says EverQuest II Up in Europe Since Free to Play Conversion

More tweets from Chairmen Smedley, this time about how EverQuest II is doing in Europe since the consolidation of the game into the F2P business model.

https://twitter.com/#!/j_smedley/status/156719353176391682

https://twitter.com/#!/j_smedley/status/156719770929074176

Summary:

  • 40% boost in daily logins
  • 300% increase in players [accounts]
  • 200% increase in item sales

Of course, that last might be tied to them having three Station Cash sales in December and there being a new expansion to buy.  But still good stuff.

And good competition might be things like… Star Wars: The Old Republic?

Anyway, it appears that EverQuest II and its customers are adapting to the new way of business.

3 thoughts on “Smed Says EverQuest II Up in Europe Since Free to Play Conversion”

  1. SynCaine

    I love how we always get these facts the day after the F2P go-live. Wow your MMO drew some attention from a one-time move, and during that one-time pop, you saw more people doing/buying stuff than previously (with previously being, you know, the game struggling and hence the need to go F2P).

    I also love % instead of hard numbers. 200% item sales huh? Was the previous rate one item per week, or a million hats per day?

    Lets see if Smed is still sharing in three months…

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  2. bhagpuss

    @SynCaine It’s not “the day after” it’s several weeks after but let’s not get bogged down with any facts.

    I can only comment on Freeport, which was already busy before the F2P conversion, seeing as it was F2P already. Freeport is now insanely busy. Almost unmanageably busy. The server has been exhibiting those odd little idiosyncrasies that I know and love from other games, where the seams are starting to split and the rivets begin to pop.

    I’ve been playing EQ2 since 2004 and I can honestly say I have never seen it busier. Whether that’s also true on the recently converted servers I can’t say.

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  3. Wilhelm Arcturus Post author

    @Bhagpuss – Well, they did also just merge one of the Live Gamer servers into Freeport. So you have to figure that boost helped population a bit.

    I am happy to hear (and occasionally see) that Freeport has remained a busy place. That is what made the EverQuest II Extended experiment a success, in my opinion; a live server that actually felt alive. Freeport is the server I consider my home now.

    And while SynCaine’s “day after” statement was clearly exaggeration to make a point, going free to play, having a new expansion, and having multiple Station Cash discount events does make it seem like that first month might not be the best baseline from which to declare success.

    But Smed has to get his cheers in when he can.

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