Some business models just need to die.

One of my hobbies is playing online Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) and therefore it’s the perfect platform for the game developer to release their game entirely online. I mean most of these types of games are a service based subscription and the value is in the service, not the client used to interact with the service.

So the reason I’m pissed is that Turbine are releasing Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO). Me being a Tolkien fan cant wait to play the game. Turbine has stated that they are going to give pre order customers some additional benefits for pre ordering the game. One of those benefits is an exclusive 7 days access to the game prior to an open beta starting, which they are trying to invite 1 000 000 players to try out. So this seven day period is a chance to get through the lower levels of the game before every man and his dog starts trying to get through the very same levels. Oh the other thing is that pre order customers get to keep their characters when the game goes live, however you are restricted to making level 15 on the beta phase of the game.

Hence my frustration and the point of this post. To buy the pre order for the game and get your license key that identifies you to Turbine as a pre order customer you need to go to your local bricks and mortal store where you purchase all your gaming entertainment from. Or you can buy it online at a North American based online web store. Problem number one is 95% of the online North American web stores won’t sell it to you unless you have a physical address located in a US post code.

So your next plan of action is to go to the Turbine web site for LOTRO and see if anyone else located in your region (none US or Canadian location) is having the same issue and if someone has resolved it. Upon doing this I discover this is a well known issue and that the local bricks and mortal stores in Australia (my location if you didn’t know it) will be getting the pre order offer and will be selling it to any happy vegemite that want to go down to the store and purchase it.

So me playing by the rule book (I didn’t of course but Ill cover that in a minute) go down to my local EB store and ask the local EB store counter jockey if they have the LOTRO pre order and if not when do they think they will have it. Not really to my surprise I am told they haven’t heard of it and the PC doesn’t appear to have any information relating to my request. However the dude behind the counter has heard something about it, but doesn’t know anymore. So disgusted I am wondering out of the store when I spy a sign advertising the very thing I had just asked about. So I sing out to the counter jockey that maybe he needs to delve a little deeper as he has an advertisement for the LOTRO pre order offer hanging right here.

So I mentioned that 95% of the US based web site wouldn’t sell to you unless you where based in the US, however a one I found did, in fact they bought a heap of the pre order licence keys and where reselling them at just over cost online. I decided I’d take the gamble and by my pre order license key online at this excellent site. Within 10 minutes of buying the key I had it in my inbox and it worked. I then Googled the beta client and within a couple of hours was up and running.

Why the bloody hell are developers still betrothed to these ridiculously old business models. There is no longer a requirement for me to go into the store and pick out a game, I can find a game I like and all the reviews I can read online. The company making the software could lower their costs by selling to me direct. If they don’t want to put in the infrastructure to facilitate the direct business to customer transaction then I more than sure there would be a line up of digital service providers that would love to do it for the company while they focus on their core competency making and delivering the game and service.

EB games are the primary bricks and mortal games retailer in Australia and my experience with them every time relating to MMORPG has been nothing short of distasteful and leaving with the urge to blow their stores to kingdom come. Please for the mother of god can we drag ourselves into the 21 century and start utilising the digital infrastructure that surrounds us, you know that new whiz-bang thing called the Internet to streamline the process for selling digital assets to customers.

Cheers
Shane