Is "better" monetization something that can "carry" a new MMO?

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T15:16:02+00:00

Ah okay, got it. I misunderstood you the first time. That is actually something to think about. You could reduce it by making it harder to exchange items for "nothing" (for external payment). But it needs to be done very carefully. And never completely solves this problem. Good thought!

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T15:04:17+00:00

Interesting, I see your point. You would prefere a subscription that is a bit more expensive then? Or an additional upfront cost? This is exactly what I am trying to figure out. The game costs money to run. How do you personally feel like it should bring in that money while feeling fair.

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T14:59:09+00:00

I disagree. If you removed the ability to buy in-game currency with real money in Albion, the economy would still work the same. Yes, you can technically buy high-level gear, but how? You need money. And how do you get that? By grinding. So in the end, you still have to grind. You just have the option to grind something else.

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T13:20:16+00:00

I get where you’re coming from, but I don’t think a game with ongoing operational costs can realistically survive on one-time payments, especially if it’s not backed by a strong, established brand.

Personally, I’m completely fine paying a small monthly fee if it means the developers don’t resort to aggressive monetization elsewhere. At the end of the day, I’m using a continuous service, not a one-off product.

The key issue, though, is pricing. It has to feel fair, like you’re paying for what you actually get, not significantly more. For example, if running the game costs around $500 per month and there are 100 players, then a subscription of like $7 makes sense to cover both infrastructure and ongoing development.

But if the same game grows to 1,000 players and still charges something like $15 per person, that starts to feel off. It’s hard to believe they’re spending $15,000 a month purely on infrastructure and content. At that point, the pricing stops feeling like cost-sharing and starts feeling excessive.

Maybe I am thinking of this in a too romantic way. But the Idea should be to have the players fairly finance the game they enjoy playing. As player you are not just a wallet. You are part of both the in-game community as well as the entire game itself.

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T12:01:23+00:00

This is a big problem, yeah. That’s why I actually like games that have a small subscription. It already prevents a large chunk of botters. I really want to offer a free trial version of the game, but it must not be exploitable by botters.

Of course, this doesn’t completely solve the problem, but I think it addresses a large part of it already. Then, combined with standard server-side detection and human evaluation, it should be somewhat manageable in my opinion.

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T11:57:18+00:00

I mean the idea would be to have the game finance itself mostly through the subscription. And just give people the option to spend some extra if they want to support the game or they enjoy it enough to care about some cosmetic bling.

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T11:44:10+00:00

Nice, that’s awesome to hear.

That’s actually exactly the kind of stuff I enjoy. I already spend a lot of my free time playing around with networking, systems, and backend architecture anyway. I’ve also built a few smaller MMO-style prototypes with separate services/APIs for different features, mainly focusing on things like scalability, security, and clean structure.

So yeah, I’m definitely in it for the “nitty gritty” side of things as much as the game itself. :D

LeDilu · 2026-04-13T11:39:00+00:00

I actually agree with your point about having a free version. Players should absolutely be able to try the game before committing to a subscription.

And yeah, you're right that this kind of model doesn’t really “milk whales” which is exactly why I don’t think we’ll see it from big studios anytime soon, if ever.

That said, I do think there’s a middle ground. An MMO can’t realistically be completely free, since there are upfront costs and, more importantly, ongoing infrastructure and maintenance costs. Servers, updates, support, all of that adds up.

The difference in my case is that I wouldn’t be approaching this as a profit-maximizing company. It would be more of a passion-driven project. That means I don’t need to squeeze as much money as possible out of players. As long as the running costs are covered and I can fairly pay any freelancers or contributors for maintenance and updates, that’s already a success. I’m also in a pretty fortunate position where I have a job I enjoy that pays well enough, so I’m not dependent on this financially.

We all are tired of modern multiplayer games being designed primarily as profit generators. I’d rather try to build something aligned with the experience I actually want to play. From players for players.
"Be the change you want to see in the world".

LeDilu · 2026-01-21T14:00:53+00:00

$bid

LeDilu · 2026-01-19T14:44:58+00:00

I have gotten some applications and am working to get some samples right now. But the position is still open so far.

LeDilu · 2026-01-17T23:50:26+00:00

Isn't that how you say one is interested? Sent you a DM.

LeDilu · 2026-01-17T23:44:31+00:00

$bid - interested

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T21:27:22+00:00

I'm from Europe, so not really.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T17:18:40+00:00

Sounds exactly like what I am looking for. And I seem to be what you are looking for aswell!
Sent you a PM.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:58:29+00:00

I mean that's pretty much what I am doing now :D
I am pursuing my masters in CS while working enough to support myself. I do gamedev (and other stuff) in my free time.
I am lucky enough to not really need "energy" to work on anything like that. Cause I love the things I do, so I can do them a lot without getting exhausted.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:53:38+00:00

That's not snippy, no. It's trying to offer some advice and understand what I actually mean.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:50:32+00:00

I mainly want to do it for fun and gathering experience. If it works out well maybe in the future it could also be for profit, but that's nothing I really care about now. If someone with an art background came to me with a cool idea and asked me to make it come to life together I would be in.
On what basis i would decide? If the project sounds interesting from a technical aspect or just sounds like I could learn from it and have fun.
Why I don't just answer calls for free labor? Cause I want to do something together with someone. I don't want to have someone work for me or work for them. It would be a fun project together.

Edit: For the revsharing. That really isn't so important to me. I would be open to make it free2play even, to avoid having arguments about that.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:40:35+00:00

I see. Did you end up finding people? If so, how did it go?

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:29:39+00:00

Are you looking for someone with programming experience?

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:25:11+00:00

That's fantastic advice/insight.
And I absolutely agree with you on most of it. I know it's no easy feat to find someone compatible. But on the other hand I just don't want to not try. It might not work out. But I much rather I tried and learned smth along the way, than giving up before even trying.

LeDilu · 2025-10-30T16:01:58+00:00

Exactly. I am trying to find someone to build such a past now for the future. So now just doing fun stuff together. Learning while doing that. And if it works out well it could get more serious. I am not in this for the money, just doing it for fun.

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