I wanna build me a space station

What if it was just a billboard outside every space station rotating real world products and for this FD get 2 million per year to develop the game and keep it running.
Might depend on the products. I'd get unhappily distracted by adverts for hemorroid creams, the Lynx Effect, tampons and Wonga.
 
Are you saying you would not played the game just because of a few adverts?

Correct - it is annoying, I dislike adverts where false people try to sell you something you don't need, so when I play a game one of the reasons is to avoid advertising. If FD are stupid enough to put real life adverts in the game I would stop playing - it's that simple.

Guess I can't see the big picture - must be because I am small minded, right ? :rolleyes:
 
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It's meant to be a game - a retreat from the daily grind of work. I don't understand why anyone would want to turn it into work.

I actively avoid advertising whenever I can - and if I'm in a club or wherever and there is a free bar - I'll go to the pay bar. I value my time/leisure more than a freebie and jostle and queue at the understaffed free bar. So yes - I would avoid Elite Dangerous working in partnership with Cillit Bong!

It's a short step from "monetising" game referrals to becoming one of those annoying people you meet from time to time who seems unusually interested in you until you realise they are actually trying to sell you something or get you in on some multilevel marketing scheme or whatever. The sort of person who monetises their family and friends.

Why waste a social occasion when there's money to be made?
 
Horrible community,

Classy. ;)

For myself i did read exactly what he wrote (in a number of threads no less), and as someone that studies the games industry for a living i do actually know what he is talking about. Monetization. It would kill this game for me, as it does in pretty much most games it is used in (check the state of Zynga etc).

Even if you hit the odd rich vein of gold that can generate crazy profits for the companies involved in the process, something like Puzzle & Dragons:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/...imated_2M_daily_from_a_single_mobile_game.php

Those are always the exception to the rule, and often when you dig down into the numbers you find hidden things that pull the figures down.

Basically this 'evolution' in the games industry is a bit like the old Gold Rush syndrome, and there are lots of pundits wanting in on those kind of band-wagons, most will lose and pretty much the gamer is the biggest loser in terms of gameplay effect and just how much they can end up spending on 'nothing', in very real terms.

Monetization in games, in whatever guise you wish to dress it (F2P, DLC etc) is really hard to do well, so that you don't put gamers off, and each game has it's own specific profile on how best to bring this culture into the games design. Some games are easy to design this into and some are impossible.

IF Elite: Dangerous wants to stay close to it's roots, then it falls more into the later category, as it is 'culturally' almost the opposite of a 'pay-to-win' game.

The 'vision' of a completely linked in to real advertising version of Elite is in this trajectory. It would have profound implications for the gameplay (either by design or by feature creep as greater returns are sought) and massively change the theme of the game from the gamers perspective. The sheer effort (re investment cost) to do this kind of thing well, so that it does not get in the way of the gamer or the theme of the game world, is too prohibitive to be undertaken.

So you would end up with a cheap-to-implement version, as this is the only way you could see your returns on the advertising revenue stream. It's a pipe dream in other words, and one that while it might have it's place in Second Life (how is that doing currently you would be wise to check out, how many bigger brands have pulled out of that etc) really does not fit naturally into the Elite world at all, and most likely would end up destroying it, as you see in Second Life now.
 
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thanks Zack for that!

That actually made perfect sense! I am no Guru marketer but I like a bit of a challenge so would give it a crack to try and get referrals.

Okay I'm done on this subject now and I won't be mentioning it again! It's all down to you now NeilRoy to try and convert everybody on the Forum to your way of thinking! To be honest with you I think I would just concede defeat and just add to the excitement with the forthcoming release of Elite dangerous.
 
Maybe advertising is banned in the future?

I especially would not want any real world ads plastered everywhere after paying £100 for the game to be made.

And this voucher code scheme would not create any buzz / would be a waste of time to develop and would be used by about 2 people. I am sure Frontier can do a bit of a PR push once the game is in beta testing.

In-game ads for in-game markets/shipyards is a different matter. Although the black market will not be advertised openly :)
 
Changed mind?

Thanks -- I'm not that interested in making money from Elite by playing the game, by advertising etc.
Due to professional and family commitments I would not have time to do this.

I'm delighted to hear that NeilRoy - it's certainly not the impression you gave on that other thread..

"Now I'm a lot older with family responsibilities, to justify spending so much time playing a game, there would have to be some kind of financial / global betterment rationale behind it. I'd like to be able to profit from playing a game I enjoy.. " [NeilRoy, 4.25pm on 29/7 in Elite Trading Platform - How to monetize?]

(Sorry, don't know how to quote a post from another thread properly)

Personally, I'm in the crowd that is happy for FD to make lots of money from ED but for myself I just want to enjoy it as a (most excellent) game.
 
yup can see how that would be confusing.
So if I were to spend the amount of time I'd like to <-- such as in the old days when I had no responsibilities.. then there would have to be some kind of financial return for me / betterment of society <- greater goal.
Why?
If either of the above, I could reduce the amount of time I spend managing my current financial commitments / philanthropic work.

As it is set to be a game within an online universe with no link to the real world, then the amount of time I would get to play the game would be limited. Although I will enjoy that time.

Additionally, for the folks that want this as an escape from real life and a separation of the work life balance...
Don't you find that your work and personal calendars seem to merge, and that you have to be always available for both, and prioritisation occurs between the two? A lot of jobs are not 9-5 and switch off when you get home nowadays...

Also when I use the pronoun 'I' it is usually an attempt to put alternate points of view forwards, that may not necessarily be my own.. in an attempt to increase the subscriber base.
Don't forget that for me, I was thinking about ideas for Elite multiplayer years ago. And as I now know a bit about global economics and social sciences, my agenda is to make Elite the next big thing. It's becoming quite apparent that it wont be.
 
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And as I now know a bit about global economics and social sciences, my agenda is to make Elite the next big thing. It's becoming quite apparent that it wont be.
The next big thing in global economics and social sciences, or the next big thing in gaming?
 
Additionally, for the folks that want this as an escape from real life and a separation of the work life balance...
Don't you find that your work and personal calendars seem to merge, and that you have to be always available for both, and prioritisation occurs between the two? A lot of jobs are not 9-5 and switch off when you get home nowadays...

I work from home quite a bit - despite that I manage to separate the two things quite effectively.

Well that is to say I don't mind personal life stuff encroaching on my working day from time to time - but I won't allow work to encroach on personal time - against my wishes.

And as I'm fortunate enough to be in charge there isn't anyone who can challenge me on that.
 
Thanks -- I'm not that interested in making money from Elite by playing the game, by advertising etc.
Due to professional and family commitments I would not have time to do this.

and

So if I were to spend the amount of time I'd like to <-- such as in the old days when I had no responsibilities.. then there would have to be some kind of financial return for me / betterment of society <- greater goal.
Why?
If either of the above, I could reduce the amount of time I spend managing my current financial commitments / philanthropic work..

Now I really am confused. Probably I am being obtuse but please help me, are you looking to make money out of ED or not?

Don't forget that for me, I was thinking about ideas for Elite multiplayer years ago. And as I now know a bit about global economics and social sciences, my agenda is to make Elite the next big thing. It's becoming quite apparent that it wont be.

Sorry you feel that way NeilRoy, I really am. But I am coming to the conclusion that you are looking for something a little different than what most of the other commentaters want. That isn't to say one is right and one is wrong, and FD will have the final say...

But in any case I've no doubt your 'philanthropic' efforts are more effective and your limited time better spent campaigning in 2013 rather than in the fourth millenium?
 
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NeilRoy said:
"Now I'm a lot older with family responsibilities, to justify spending so much time playing a game, there would have to be some kind of financial / global betterment rationale behind it. I'd like to be able to profit from playing a game I enjoy.. " [NeilRoy, 4.25pm on 29/7 in Elite Trading Platform - How to monetize?]

Hey NeilRoy,

I suggest you check out Everquest Next - Landmark

That´s an upcoming MMO and crafting app from that little, not so well known company called Sony Online Entertainment

EQN Landmark will allow building structures like houses, castles, bridges and other stuff in a Minecraft way in their Voxel-tech enhanced Forgelight engine, and if the stuff you create gets approved, you can sell it to players to use in the main sandbox Everquest Next.

Of course, something like real money transactions would never work in Elite Dangerous, because everyone here is a lot smarter than this little indie company called Sony Online Entertainment.
 
... please help me, are you looking to make money out of ED or not?

Sorry you feel that way NeilRoy, I really am. But I am coming to the conclusion that you are looking for something a little different than what most of the other commentaters want. That isn't to say one is right and one is wrong, and FD will have the final say...

But in any case I've no doubt your 'philanthropic' efforts are more effective and your limited time better spent campaigning in 2013 rather than in the fourth millenium?

So am I looking to make money out of ED <-- me personally? By playing the game? No. By going to local shops to put up Elite friendly stickers? No. By organising advertising deals? No. By selling / buying real world items on Elite? No.

Would the 12 year old me.. or the looking for my first job me, or the student me be looking to make money from Elite? Yes, I'd find it very exciting.

As you say, I am looking for a different Elite than that is represented by most forum members.. and that's not entirely unexpected, as most forum members are nostalgic backers of the original.
But think we should represent the views of others here too if we want the game to be more successful.

2013 campaigning LOL.
it's just not everyday that a game which was revolutionary with technical, trading, society aspects gets re-invented.. and at a time where the world could do with capitalism becoming more socially inclusive.. and Elite together with modern technology and social media could end up being a very interesting experiment on how to achieve this.

Probably letting my nostalgia cloud my judgement.
I agree that I should spend my time in the real world of 2013 from now on.:eek:
 
As you say, I am looking for a different Elite than that is represented by most forum members.. and that's not entirely unexpected, as most forum members are nostalgic backers of the original.But think we should represent the views of others here too if we want the game to be more successful.

^this

now we have 30K backers, fine - a nice start. All the fans of the original wanting the original with nicer graphics are already here, therefore this place is mostly opposed to innovation in general - understandable.

But how to reach 100K ? Or even *gasp* 500 K ??? Not even talking about the 60 million accounts of World of Tanks. Sooner or later, FD should rather think how to get some fresh blood interested in ED who are now playing WoT, EvE, LoL, DOTA2, Team Fortress.. that´s where the big player numbers and the $$$ are.
 
But how to reach 100K ? Or even *gasp* 500 K ??? Not even talking about the 60 million accounts of World of Tanks. Sooner or later, FD should rather think how to get some fresh blood interested in ED who are now playing WoT, EvE, LoL, DOTA2, Team Fortress.. that´s where the big player numbers and the $$$ are.

Indeed! But don't forget this is the company that made Kinectimals and other successful hits that had nothing to do with the Elite series or nostalgia. They have expert marketing guys/gals and designers who have worked on a vast range of projects. I have a lot of faith in their ability to make a game that can please a number of audiences at once, including the nostalgics.
 

Philip Coutts

Volunteer Moderator
Pretty sure that Frontier will be trying to make ED appeal to as wide a range of player as possible and I'm not sure how real world advertising would help to attract people to play the game? I would have thought that building an amazing game and getting the PR right would be the best way to increase the user base but maybe I'm being too simplistic.

There may as always be a middle road and that would be to have a tick box asking if you want to receive real world offers or advertising in game. For me the answer is no, as has been stated by others I play computer games to get away from the real world, but I'm middle aged and grumpy, even the pop up ads on youtube annoy me!
 
Where's my rewards card!?

Since I find online commercials as obnoxious as the ones on TV, I have a sincere hope that they are not necessary for the survival or longevity of the game.

Realistically, there's no reason that they should be. Although the object of any business is to make profit, I have half a suspicion that this isn't the entire goal of the Elite Dangerous project. In Mr Braben's shoes, I would be willing to blow a sizeable chunk of my company's cash reserves on bringing such a long-standing dream to fruition, regardless of how much money it makes.

And when I mistakenly take the time to read some of the patronizing effluence from over-stimulated minds, which at first appear to be logical, progressive ideas, it doesn't take long before I come to the realization that I am a nostalgic, slightly grumpy parent with a lot less time than I once had.

Experiencing a game should be it's own reward. If it's not, I stop playing it.
 
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