I admit it. I was wrong about AoC.
I said it would be a blip that would quickly fall to the high system requirements and the World of Warcraft juggernaut. I said that WoW would be entirely unchallenged by AoC, and was only mildly worried about Warhammer Online.
I think I was wrong about every thing I said. Those people who called me clueless were right.
AoC is having the most successful launch I think I have ever seen, maybe even better than WoW back in 2004. Back then, of course, the market was a lot smaller, and WoW’s launch turned then-MMO champ EverQuest into a niche game, something Asheron’s Call and Dark Age of Camelot had not been able to do. So I don’t see AoC booting WoW to the curb.
It sure looks like WoW is weaker than I thought. Since all this interest must be largely coming from WoW (nobody else has that kind of presence), great crowds of people must have just been waiting for a new game to come out which wasn’t trying to be a WoW competitor but was just trying to be the best game possible. And with the welcome news of a very smooth launch and very playable game, more and more people will decide to take the plunge and join their friends.
I thought WoW had at least another year or two of unchallenged superiority. Maybe when people saw the next expansion would be nothing to really inspire passion, they became more willing to roll the dice and take the chance on something new?
Going to Warhammer Online, I expected. That is a game that I thought would appeal to WoW players (and probably will). AoC I disregarded as a blip, a quick MMO to play before choosing sides in the WoW vs WAR megashowdown at the end of the year – a battle I still expected to be won ultimately by WoW. Now, I am not so sure.
WoW is this giant walking around crushing villages and causing devastation wherever it turns, and all other MMOs are like people attacking the massive toes of the giant with clubs and pitchforks. Maybe the giant has finally met his Jack.
Blizzard acts like a leader in the MMO world, magnanimously hoping for decent competition. You can say that when you’re ahead. But Blizzard has shareholders to appease, and they can’t be liking the thought that another company would steal any of WoW’s thunder before they had a suitable replacement ready.
Is it time for Blizzard to pull back the curtain and show what they have planned for WoW’s second act? We’ve all seen how fast market leaders can become yesterday’s news.
So yeah, I was wrong and I admit I was wrong. Way to go, Funcom. I hope Age of Conan surprises and shocks EVERYONE by its wild success.