On comparing DDI to an mmo - All things being equal (I don't suddenly come into a lot of money), I'll probably be making a choice between the mmo that I sometimes play and DDI. So I can't help but make that comparison, even just a little bit.
They don't have to be the same thing for me to make an Opportunity Cost comparison. Just as I can make a comparison between, say, riding public transportation or making a car payment. Or living in an apartment or trying to make a house payment. Different things, but occupying the same 'opportunity cost' category.
Now, as a roleplayer, obviously the stronger inclination is toward DDI because the content is free-form and player-made. My character can do what he wants and say what he wants. He doesn't have to kill the bad guy when he can seal him inside the tomb. He doesn't even have to confront the bad guy (railroading DMs aside.) It's freedom to roleplay. I can build worlds and scenarios.
But then, looking at the technology, I'm building a flat world that I have to populate using flat tokens, or pay extra for miniatures - and even with the flat tokens in the flat world, after a certain number of tokens, I'm presumably buying more.
Flat... basically, I'm paying a subscription for a virtual table. That, and two magazines that won't ever be fully useful to me that I can only access online and lose access to if I unsubscribe, and a character creator / visualizer.
It is true that DDI is not an MMO, because the nature of the gameplay is different and without a lot of work by a group of people working together, it will never be anything approaching 'persistent'. But a comparison can be drawn in terms of technology and value because they are both online computer software for gaming.
Basically, what they are asking me to do is spend $10 a month for a table on the Internet:
DDI
- 2-D environment with extra money for 3-D miniatures on a 2-D world map.
- I am completely dependent on whatever community WotC can build in order to play - the equivalent of always being in "LFG" mode or looking for a group IRL.
- To integrate the rules and the (2-D) environment, I have to pay extra money. Otherwise I'm trying to use a stack of books at my computer desk.
- The character creator that every character-driven game comes with - whether it's MMO, single player, online, offline, 2d, 3d, etc. All information has to come from external, analog sources unless I pay extra. Not all options are available, unless I pay extra. So without the extra fee, I'm basically creating the characters the same way I would at an actual table: limited by the books I have and having to leaf through the books to do so.
As opposed to a 3-D world with continually updating content, available 24/7 regardless of whether anyone I want to play with is around, that like all character-driven games has a character generator and visualizer, tool-tips and rules integrated into the system. For $0-$15.95 a month. Yes, $0, if you include games like Guild Wars or Neverwinter Nights.
Speaking of Neverwinter... there's a more direct comparison. It's D&D. You can build a 3-D world with DM tools that can allow almost free-form play (the DM can override or change the world based on the character's actions), rules and character generator included, populated with 3-D NPCs and enemies and an interactive environment. You can also play any time you want, regardless of the availability of any other players, with either the pre-built, more limiting official campaign, or an adventure made by another end-user. One time fee from $20-$50, depending on where and when you buy the game. No monthly fee. Occasionally, there are expansion packs - sometimes they include the original game as well.
The community thing is a big issue. Even if you feel it is worth it to plunk down the money for this, if you are in the minority, you're not going to have a whole lot to do in DDI. To make it sustainable, they've got to have a scheme that has broad appeal so that there are players and DMs available so subscribers can actually play the game on DDI. You can't 'solo' D&D. So those saying it is reasonable in cost, well, you've got each other and that's about it.
$10 a month for a chat room / virtual table and character generator, with everything else costing extra, just seems insane - no matter what you compare it to.
I'm not even including the Dungeon and Dragon subscriptions because I see even less value there. Magazines I can only access online and will only be able to access as long as I pay the upkeep on my subscription, that will have to include a variety of content for the broadest appeal, of which I may only use 10% (optimistially)?
But even if we call that the 'content update' equivalent of an online computer game... there's still no way that DDI compares in value to anything else available.
Even with all of this, I still might consider paying that fee if I can get in some good D&D gaming with it. I'll feel ripped off, but if it's decent enough I still might do it for a flat subscription. But all the extras are killing it for me. That will be the deal breaker. Paying extra for everything in addition to that monthly fee? They're nickle-and-diming this thing to death, milking it way out of proportion.
I see two ways to make it viable:
1) Make DDI a virtual storefront where you pay for all these extras or to unlock the content in your rulebook. Make the table-top gameplay area free. This is not unlike book stores where you can sit and browse through books before buying them, or gaming stores that host events from time to time and have gaming tables available.
Essentially, a store with a free gaming table. The stuff you buy, you can use at the free gaming table.
"Going to DDI" is like going to Barnes and Noble or your friendly gaming store and finding they've set up a table for you to play at. Which isn't far off from being able to go into the coffee shop area or sitting in one of their chairs and reading the book, talking about it with friends also in the store, and so forth.
They sell magazines, books, dice, miniatures, and all the other stuff but anyone can come in and browse, chat with the other customers, arrange to play a game somewhere, and so forth - for free - as though they are walking through a virtual store. When you buy something, it is "yours"... not something that you are renting with your subscription.
2) Make DDI a monthly pay-to-play gaming environment with an equal or lower subscription to what you have now, with no cost to unlock the virtual content from the physical books you've already bought, or any other content.
A flat-rate subscription.
One of those two options above makes it appealing enough that I would do it. But a flat-rate subscription plus a store front kills it for me. One or the other, please.
