14 DAY TRIAL // Bobby Kotick, the current Chief Executive Officer at publisher Activision Blizzard, has attacked the upcoming MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic from BioWare and Electronic Arts, saying that he does not understand the business fundamentals that underpin the game.
Speaking at the Reuters Media Summit Bobby Kotick stated, “Lucas is going to be the principal beneficiary of the success of Star Wars. We've been in business with Lucas for a long time and the economics will always accrue to the benefit of Lucas, so I don't really understand how the economics work for Electronic Arts.”
The executive also believes that there’s little chance of The Old Republic stealing players away from World of Warcraft, adding, “If you look at the history of the people investing in an MMO and achieving success, it's a small number.”
Recently the Blizzard made MMO was revealed to have lost close to 1 million subscribers during the last few months and a report estimated that another 1.6 million might close or suspend their accounts in order to play the new Star Wars game.
Electronic Arts has not tried to pit Star Wars: The Old Republic directly against World of Warcraft, saying that the two games can co-exist in the same genre.
EA has estimated that it only needs to get a half a million players to enroll in long-term subscription in order to make their new release profitable.
The game will use familiar MMO mechanics to make sure that players feel at home while also emphasizing story elements that have become the cornerstone of most BioWare developed experiences.
The Old Republic has been hit by delays, justified by the game’s size, and the current launch date is set for December 20 of this year all over the world.
At the moment a select number of players can take part in a closed beta stage.