Thoughts On A Madden Subscription Model?

[Hooe]

Not sure if this has been previously discussed, but nothing relevant is coming up when I search.

Jumping straight to the question: how would you react to the idea of Madden abandoning the yearly boxed release and instead offering only a single disc / download which is routinely upgraded and patched regularly over the course of several years, similar to an MMO?

Assume the following for this hypothetical subscription service for this question:

• it's economically viable for EA to go this route; whether they financially can do this isn't what I am asking here
• you are a consumer who intends to purchase Madden; i.e. the quality of Madden as it currently exists isn't up for debate here, rather just the method of distribution and the means of sending game upgrades to the player
• there is a one-time cost for purchasing the initial software and a monthly fee for using the service, similar to an MMO
• the initial software which will be built upon over time is Madden NFL 25 (whatever that may be)
• roster updates are offered with the same frequency during the season and regularly during the offseason (including daily for the first week of the free agency period and weekly during the preseason)
• MUT has the same level of support it does right now with regard to cards, promotions, etc.
• minor new features are peppered into the game in throughout the year, a la the addition of fantasy draft into CCM for Madden NFL 13 with a title update this past year
• major system upgrades (ex. Infinity Engine addition, other "back of the box features") are still most likely to release in August, but are liable to appear at any given time
• game patches, tuning adjustments, and bugfixes are liable to release at any time during the calendar year; software support does not end after the Super Bowl
• assume some sort of throw-in from the NFL, maybe a month-long trial of NFL Game Rewind with each new subscription and/or renewal

Would you buy into a system like this for Madden? What, if any, additional concessions / adjustments related to this conversion would you want to see to sell you on such a change? To be clear, I'm not looking for responses such as "foot planting or I'm not buying Madden" or "bring back franchise mode or I'm not buying Madden", I'm simply interested in the means of distribution here.

[SageInfinite]

I think it could be decent for sports gaming in general. I don't think it should be monthly all year round tho, maybe a subscription each month during the season, or a flat fee for the whole season. As far as Madden is concerned it'd have to come on long way for me to approve of something like this.

[DUDERMAN]

I would not be thrilled with that method as I like having a physical disc. It may be something that is not needed but I like to hold onto them like I do with my old music cds that I never play anymore. However, just as music CDs have become largely obsolete with digital music services like iTunes, physical video game discs will soon be a thing of the past. From everything I have read, Sony and Microsoft are looking for this next generation of video game retail to become mostly digital. I believe Sony has already said they will be streaming games to the PS4 via their cloud service.

I can see many games switching to a free-to-play, micro-transaction type of model in the next couple years. If EA chooses to go with a monthly fee for Madden, so be it. They won't be the only ones in town to try it.

Some people who grow stale of Madden soon after the football season ends would likely benefit from a monthly license as they would maybe not have to pay the regularly full retail price.

[Grey_Osprey]

I'd be very interested. Obviously it would depend on what the montly/yearly fee was and whether it would require online connection to play the game, basically eliminating offline play entirely (ala the pc game Diablo 3).

On a side note, I've often wondered why game companies HAVE to release a "new" game every year instead of doing as you have proposed. I figured either the "new" release was highly profitable vs the cost of producing it, or they are required to by contract. You'd think eliminating the cost associated with getting the game to stores AND replacing it with a subscription model and periodic downloadable upgrades would be a win win.

[KBLover]

Quote: Originally Posted by CM Hooe

Jumping straight to the question: how would you react to the idea of Madden abandoning the yearly boxed release and instead offering only a single disc / download which is routinely upgraded and patched regularly over the course of several years, similar to an MMO?

Not for me.

If I have to pay $5 a month for a year - then it's $60 anyway. What's the difference?

If it's more than that, I'm paying more than for what the game would cost new each year.

I don't play MMORPGs either. Paying each month to play a game I bought doesn't appeal to me.

[ubernoob]

Except that most MMORPGS don't require a paid subscription now, that's just one of the tiers of play.

Anyways, if they did a PC release like this I'd be in from day one. It would be near impossible to implement though without horrendous DRM, and we know EAs recent track record there.

[Hooe]

Quote: Originally Posted by ubernoob

Except that most MMORPGS don't require a paid subscription now, that's just one of the tiers of play. Anyways, if they did a PC release like this I'd be in from day one. It would be near impossible to implement though without horrendous DRM, and we know EAs recent track record there.

That's something I completely forgot about (I obviously don't play many MMOs either). Perhaps Madden could go free-to-play for Play Nown and MUT, but require a fee for CCM and Online Team Play.

Agreed that anything dealing with EA on the PC is a mess right now with regard to DRM. They would have to improve in this area significantly for PC Madden to be an appealing option to this end (to me).

[Cryolemon]

How about instead of a monthly fee, you pay for roster updates and similar stuff? For people who like to keep the rosters up to date it would amount to near enough the same as a monthly fee anyway. Patches etc should still be free.