14 DAY TRIAL // We don't know much about the Warhammer 40,000 MMO that THQ will publish and that Vigial Games is developing. It seems that the squad-based nature of the setting will be maintained and that the team behind the game plans to emphasize complex firefights with cover and flanking mechanics.
But there's no word on the races, which will be featured or on whether vehicles will be included. And even though the game will not likely arrive before 2012, THQ is already pointing it out as a strong revenue stream.
Talking to investors after the company announced its financial results, Brian Farrell, who is the Chief Exeuctive Officer of THQ, said that the way the development team approached the Warhammer 40,000 MMO was designed to minimize the financial risk. He stated, “We started with a very small and experienced MMO team who gave us the very wise advice to prove out all the technology and world-building tools before you start adding to the team and really ramping up all of the content that an MMO requires. That's why we think our budget is going to be very competitive.”
He went on to cite some actual subscription numbers, saying that the million player mark is not required to get a profitable MMO. Given the popularity the Warhammer 40,000 setting enjoys among gamers and the very coherent, fun and respectful way developer Relic and publisher THQ treated it in the Dawn of War series, it's highly likely that the MMO might see subscription numbers way above the one million mark.
At the moment, the Blizzard made World of Warcraft is the leader of the subscription-based MMO field, with more than 11 million people paying to play it. Other games, like The Lord of the Rings Online and City of Heroes, have found a stable audience, which allows them to be further developed even if they are not directly threatening the market leader.