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Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

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Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#241

Post by nikanj »

zanny wrote: post #107
munchbunny wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's too bad, but arena shooters have been dying as a category ever since around UT3. I'm hopeful they'll make a resurgence in the future.

Arena shooters are "dying" for the same reason chess isn't as popular as online poker. Back in the day arena shooter popularity was because there was no low hanging fruit alternative like modern military shooters or Fortnite of today. But it turns out most people don't want to either participate in or watch games of absolute skill. The former requires a lot of commitment to get good at it, and there is no randomness…

Karaoke is more popular than playing in a symphony orchestra. Having a higher skill check / barrier of entry doesn't make the hobby any more entertaining.

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#242

Post by bane »

AJ007 wrote: post #210
lotyrin wrote: post #201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's really odd to watch people see them as "the Fortnite company" and ignore/discount the Unreal engine, etc.

I actually see them as the ZZT company.

There's a ton of ZZT mods out in the world BTW. It's kind of amazing what was possible with such a limited environment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZU4wR86h1E

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#243

Post by vecter »

thatoneuser wrote: post #215
lghh wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I agree that PUBG is a dumpster heap technically, it really is a legitimately fun game. I enjoy it much more than Fortnite, and if it performed halfway decently it would be one of my favorite games of all time. I think Fortnite's success is great and it is very clear why it is more popular than PUBG could have ever hoped to be, but I will always be partial to the slow, suffocating, horror of feeling alone in th…

PUBG was a truly unique gaming experience. It’s just a shame that they were so slow to rollout maps and make basic mechanical changes early enough. I got oversaturated and haven’t played it in about a year. Just can’t dedicate 15 mins on a single match to die from technical shortcomings.

Try it again, it's come so far in the past year. They've also just released a new snow map. I've been playing for more than a year now and I've never had more fun than I'm having now. For the first time in a year, its playerbase is starting to grow again also: https://steamcharts.com/app/578080

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#244

Post by vitaflo »

fredophile wrote: post #64
21 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What about Mario clones? (platformers) Doom clones? (first person shooters) Warcraft clones? (real time strategy) ...

I agree with your point but a funny thing about this list is that I can think of earlier games in the genre for both FPS and RTS off the top of my head. Dune 2 is the earliest RTS that I'm aware of and Wolfenstein is probably the earliest example of an FPS. I'd say this probably strengthens your point rather than weakening it.

Herzog Zwei was the influence for Dune 2, and Catacomb 3D was the precursor to Wolfenstein (both by id Software), so we can go even further in history if we like. Just goes to show there are large influences all over.

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#245

Post by Abishek_Muthian »

aphextron wrote: post #43

I don't really like Fortnite, but I'm really really happy for Epic's success. PUBG was a flaming dumpster heap that only caught on because the Battle Royale mechanic is naturally fun and people were clamoring for that type of game. But it was an unqualified mess from a subpar developer, and that always annoyed me because gamers deserved better. Now Epic has been rescued from sliding into obscurity and they've got mas…

PUBG has helped me recover from anxiety & panic attacks.

Background: I had undergone a major cervical spine fusion surgery to avoid becoming quadriplegic[1] & have been forced to close my startup which I have been running for ~ 5 years. I have been facing anxiety & panic attacks ~ 3 months after surgery.

I had decided to try gaming to aid with the recovery from panic attacks & also to monitor the dexterity of my fingers. I looked for multiplayer TPS games with some realism & accurate weapon mechanics. Fortnite was too colourful & lacked realistic maps (IMO); so I chose PUBG.

Initial game sessions made my anxiety worse, especially when a sniper takes you out (or) the impending threat of it. After several sessions, I've learnt to be calm & have improved my tactics.

I can definitely say that playing PUBG has definitely helped me recover from my anxiety & panic attacks. Of-course, this might have been the case even if I had played other games including Fornite; but as I said PUBG served my needs.

[1]: https://abishekmuthian.com/i-was-told-i-would-become-quadrip...

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#246

Post by makewavesnotwar »

aphextron wrote: post #43

I don't really like Fortnite, but I'm really really happy for Epic's success. PUBG was a flaming dumpster heap that only caught on because the Battle Royale mechanic is naturally fun and people were clamoring for that type of game. But it was an unqualified mess from a subpar developer, and that always annoyed me because gamers deserved better. Now Epic has been rescued from sliding into obscurity and they've got mas…

I think you're missing a lot of what contributed to Fortnite's success. Namely their ripping off of pretty much every one of Valve's most lucrative decisions of the past 10 years and in principle - Free to play.

Fortnite was pretty much a failure when it first launched. Sure they copied PUBG's last-man-standing game mode, but what really made it take off was that you didn't have to pay for the game.

You could get it, play it, and then upgrade or not upgrade your character as you desired. This is what made it so wildly popular with its base audience of 7-15 year olds. They can't drive, they don't have money, they might have hyper controlling parents that won't let them go out and be proper kids, but if they have a desktop and a reliable internet connection, they can be a part of this game. That's a big selling point for kids. Not to mention if they watch Twitch/Youtube, it would appear to be a potential career path for them to sit on their ass consuming content in an interesting way as they see people like Ninja and Muselk getting rich.

As for Fortnite's financial success, again I think this comes down to them ripping off Valve - principally Team Fortress 2. When Valve made the game free to play in 2011, they added other monetization mechanisms like premium cosmetics and taunts. This is exactly how Fortnite has become so huge.

Instead of having major entrance barriers like having to own a console or forking over $60 - $100 for a game. You can get it for free and maybe pay a few bucks here or there when it suits you. And parents love it because it gives them a passive way to control their kids at little to no cost. (Unless their the absurd type of people who pay for Fortnite tutors)

Not that Gabe Newell or Valve need the money, but Epic has ripped off almost everything from other games for Fortnite. With their massive budget they're basically like Facebook in that they can steal any concept to be produced in house and fight legal battles as necessary. And I think their success compared to what they've ripped off is largely a matter of timing with the rise of services like Twitch, Youtube and Discord than anything specific to their IP.

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#247

Post by sushid »

Jarwain wrote: post #115
hackerman12345 wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Heroes. A good hero selection is p2w because you may not have a reasonable counter to xyz enemy. They used to sell Runes too (I believe an update made this invalid). Of course, you can get all this stuff for free just by playing 100s of hours, if you have the time/will.

Champion advantages can be mitigated with playstyle and itemization. You can do well in League without having too many characters; Champs aren't hard counters to each other in the same way Dota heroes can be. Buying a certain champion is no guarantee of victory, especially if you don't play them well. Skill plays a much larger role than the champ you play. As for runes, IIRC you couldn't buy them with the paid curren…

It's true that this disadvantage can be mitigated but we should be clear. Riot does limit your play style if you choose not to pay (or grind to get certain champions).

You don't have the same pool of characters as other players who've chosen to pay for their favorite champions and this is clearly a disadvantage.

This is different from games like, say, Overwatch, where the entire hero pool is available to everyone (different game, sure but the point stands).

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#248

Post by disposedtrolley »

makewavesnotwar wrote: post #246
aphextron wrote: post #43

I don't really like Fortnite, but I'm really really happy for Epic's success. PUBG was a flaming dumpster heap that only caught on because the Battle Royale mechanic is naturally fun and people were clamoring for that type of game. But it was an unqualified mess from a subpar developer, and that always annoyed me because gamers deserved better. Now Epic has been rescued from sliding into obscurity and they've got mas…

I think you're missing a lot of what contributed to Fortnite's success. Namely their ripping off of pretty much every one of Valve's most lucrative decisions of the past 10 years and in principle - Free to play. Fortnite was pretty much a failure when it first launched. Sure they copied PUBG's last-man-standing game mode, but what really made it take off was that you didn't have to pay for the game. You could get it,…

Not even a desktop; a phone, tablet, console, and god knows what else they release it on.

I think another major contributor to Fortnite’s success is the scale of cross-platform play that we’ve rarely seen before. Chances are if you have a thing that can connect to the internet, that thing is capable of running Fortnite.

They’re like Facebook not just because they have the money to steal any concept and build it in house, but because in some ways they are a social network. It’s as much as a game as a platform to hang out with your friends and chill.

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#249

Post by gameswithgo »

aphextron wrote: post #43

I don't really like Fortnite, but I'm really really happy for Epic's success. PUBG was a flaming dumpster heap that only caught on because the Battle Royale mechanic is naturally fun and people were clamoring for that type of game. But it was an unqualified mess from a subpar developer, and that always annoyed me because gamers deserved better. Now Epic has been rescued from sliding into obscurity and they've got mas…

Pubg has a lot of genius to it that people don’t notice because the implementation was buggy. If you play the game a lot you start to appreciate how good the gunplay is, the weapon balance, the layout of the maps. Every building and bush is carefully considered. Ever notice a tree branch often obscures a window you want to peek? No accident!

Re: Epic Games banked a $3B profit in 2018

#250

Post by gameswithgo »

elif wrote: post #192
kaoD wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd like to add gun mechanics. PUBG has the best gunplay I've ever played. For me PUBG fights are thrilling, like I was there getting shot at, while Fortnite's (or any other game for that matter) are plain old arcadey. I dislike the building mechanic too. I'd genuinely love for a developer to step up and do a better milsim BR but so far PUBG is king in that niche.

cod blackout is significantly better mechanically, and just as much of a 'milsim.' twitch has largely pivoted already.. CSGO has a BR now, too. PUBG doesn't have much special left, and its new peers haven't been very successful at unseating fortnite for popularity. The building mechanic you dislike, seems to me to be a crucial ingredient that makes so many love it [0]. The continually evolving meta-game and diverse g…

Fortnite is free, pubg isn’t. Keep that in mind when comparing.
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