There must be a ”certain value on certain work,” argued Comte. Big studios can’t afford to cater to ”fashion for a couple of years,” they must look 10 to 20 years ahead.
Expectations from consumers through the free-to-play model is eroding triple-A development, says the Namco Bandai executive. It could have damaging long term effects.
”We need to put certain value on certain work,” he offered. ”When you’re a big company… you can’t take risks too quickly, you can’t make a change just because there’s a fashion for a couple of years; you want to be there in 20 or 30 years.”
There’s no denying that previously subscription-based titles have benefited from the lucrative boost to revenue via the ‘freemium’ philosophy. Sony Online Entertainment believes that Star Wars: The Old Republic will be the last big MMO release using monthly subs.
Is this the next battlefield for the industry, now that the physical versus digital skirmish has tapered off?
