Ideas on getting new players to stick around - from a new player

[JustinSane4]

The post below (with a bit less editing) was originally in this thread http://forums.anarchy-online.com/forumdisplay.php?f=503, and another poster suggested I post it here.

I signed up for AO about 6 weeks ago, first as a froob then with a paid account a few days later. It is the first and only MMORPG I have played. I very much liked Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic and the sequel, Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: Sith Lords, and was disappointed to find out there would be no KOTOR 3, rather an MMO. I decided to look for another Sci-fi themed game and wound up here. I was basically hoping I could treat it as a single player game, as I have little interest in team play.

I love AO, my lvl 45 MP is coming along nicely. The depth and complexity is fantastic, there is a lot of content, and it is a mature game with a lot of online resources (these forums, AOuniverse, AOpocket, Auno.org, etc) for a new player starting from scratch. The clan OOC channel on RK1 has also had a lot of patient players willing to answer questions (thanks to all of you).

That said, I almost quit after I warped from noob island to the mainland. It was like hitting a brick wall. If I hadn't already signed up for a paid account, I probably would have left. On the island, there are NPCs that tell you where to go next, assign missions, there are many level appropriate mobs and nothing too dangerous.

RK? Not so much. A new player (even one who read the noob guides and saved up a few thousand credits before leaving the island) starts with few credits and no good way of getting more (at least not without doing a lot of asking about how to make money, whether in-game or on the forums - or "crdz plz thx" for those willing to beg/be annoying), no idea what to do next, no idea what implants are or how to equip them, no idea that elements of their profession's tool kit even exist, let alone how to use them. Many players wandering around are TL7 (not that I new the term at that time) and have clearly been around forever, and there is no discernible way to get from where you are to where they are.

The forums and other online resources, most specifically the MP profession forum (thanks a ton to everyone there!) gave me the information I needed to get through that point - they told me how to develop my toon, where to go, what equipment to look for, where to find it and how to get the money to buy it, where important guides where, basically how to play the the game.

As others in this thread have said, AO's player base is mostly established players and is eroding with time. If more new players aren't brought on board, it will inevitably fail. I don't think that getting new players is necessarily a lost cost however.

Here are some ideas to help new players stick:

On noob island, have prominently located NPCs from each profession that can give new players information they need on how to play their character. For instance, for a new MP:

-There is a third pet line (Mezz Pets), but the nanos are not sold in shops, so you will have to find them as mission rewards.

-Creation weapons exist, are not sold in stores, and will need to be found as mission rewards.

-1hb, 2hb, bow and pistol are weapon choices that make sense. The rest, do not.

Each should also give basic information any new player would need, regardless of profession. For instance:

-Implants exist. They are installed using surgery clinics, found in most stores. They can be bought pre-made, tailored for your chosen profession, or crafted from a basic implant using clusters bought from the tradeskill department of general stores. This process requires nano-programming skill, or the assistance of a tradeskiller. Equipping implants requires treatment skill and a high enough lvl of the correct ability. They don't suffer from OE.

-Missions exist. You can re-roll missions as many times as you want in order to get the mission reward you are looking for.

-Whompas and the Grid exist. Basic directions on how to use each (and what they physically look like - I spent 45 minutes trying to find the whompa, and thought that the OA whompa was some sort of waste disposal facility - it's labled "Wailing Wastes" on the side visible coming from the west entrance, which a new player would naturally go through).

-The subway exists.

-The Shadowlands exist - if I hadn't seeen that SL was one of the expansions I'd bought, I'd have had no inkling it was even there.

I'm not sure how much time and frustration such an NPC would have saved me, but it's got to be a lot. Beyond that, a few other thoughts:

Direct each new player, possibly in the form of a pop up tip box upon entering the warp tower on noob island, to resources they will need to actually learn the game and play it efficiently - clicksaver (and the clicksaver guide), these forums (and the subforums for new players and the new player's profession), auno.org, player made maps and how to use them, ao-universe guides, and finally, how to get back to this tip in the future.

Once they get to the mainland, have a very easily found, safe, repeatable method of putting playtime in and getting credits out, at the rate of around 5,000-10,000 credits/hour of real time put in. The money crunch a new player faces to get the implants, nanos, medical supplies, weapons and armor they'll need to be viable is really quite daunting. I'm not sure what I've done if I hadn't read in the forums that clicksaver existed and that by using it one could obtain concrete cushions, which established players buy for 30x all the money I'd accumulated to that point. Newcomer armor is great at first, and the starter weapons aren't bad, but it's not enough. Have an NPC or tip box direct the new player towards this money making method.

AO is a great game with a lot to offer, but as presently constituted, it almost seems designed to scare a new player away as soon as they warp to the mainland. If the decline of the playerbase is to be arrested, that's got to be fixed- the graphics engine and any accompanying marketing boost will largely be wasted. On the other hand, if steps similar to the above have been taken and are in place when the new engine launches, I think it could really help add to the player base.

Just the two cents of a new player who would like to see a great game thrive long enough for me to reach TL7 .

[Redadv]

I'd agree with the a possible 'guide' included with the box of nano crystals your profession gets on the island.. this should help assist people with the first few hours/days of game play.. maybe not profession specific, but just a "welcome to rubi ka, treatment and comp lit are two of the most important skills you can have, and go to forums.anarchy-online.com new arrivals area for some tips" or something.

walking them through the first 25+ levels would be a bit of a stretch for all of AO's character classes since there is a lot of different methods to accomplish the same tasks

[Exodul]

It's actually interesting how dumbed down the gameplay is at ttl7 compared to the starter levels.At starter levels I'm talking about 1-100.
With the creds you get from noob island you can buy what.. about 50 First aid kits? And just because the newcomer armor or whatever it's called can be leveled till ql 25,doesnt mean you should still be wearing it at level 25.

I agree that there should be a better way for new players to gain some creds,and some knowledge of the common things like implants, directions to basic shops in order to get better nanos and a better description of the profession so the newbie can have a better chance of rising the proper nanoskills.

That being said, I honestly dont think it's ever gonna happen

[DieWith]

I all agree with this topic, in a point of view. AO scares ppl away with the way it works at the beginning.

When i started this game, weird, but i knew implants existed, since they dropped on n00b island. Know what drops there? Nadda, just those annoying few hundreds cred-worth shinies. :P
(Another story was to find out how the hell to put the implants in hehe)

But the cocnlusion i finally made is: AO needs patience, and intelligence (mainly at the very beginning) which is quite rare nowadays, so ppl just *shrug* delete AO and install WoW instead. Since thats the easily reachable easier way, so why not..

[vunts]

-The subway exists...
Direct each new player, possibly in the form of a pop up tip box upon entering the warp tower on noob island, to resources they will need to actually learn the game and play it efficiently - clicksaver (and the clicksaver guide)...

Just those two things to "argue" with.
Reason for bringing the subway point out is because once you get to the mainland, you're going to speak to the first NPC there I believe, and he/she is going to tell you about the Subway. It was definitely true on the neutral side, probably true for clan, but I don't remember how it was for omni, because the one I rolled was so long ago.

The Clicksaver , as you know, is a 3rd party program, similar to the tons of Add-ons in for example WoW. I have yet to see an MMO that would add a piece of data that they did not create into a guide in their game. Not that it would be a bad idea to ask FC to adopt the program and then advertise it as their own, but as it is atm (in other MMOs too), 3rd party applications you just need to find and read up on.

[Honorbound]

Most of the OP had been mentioned quite a few times and I do agree with most of it.

Things that would help a lot:

- Better introduction to the basics of each profession's toolset, maybe through a small low level quest chain or a special mission instance consisting of a few rooms, where in each room you get explained something about your profession by an NPC and given an opportunity to try it on a "training mob" or something.

- More "pointer" and "trainer" NPCs which would give hints and explanations about the most frequented places, static dungeons, a brief introduction to dynacamps, how to get to places like SL, the Unicorn Outpost, how the whompas / grid works, basics of implant creation and use (maybe with some hint about their twinking potential), etc.

- Ways to make more money early in the game (below L80-100 or so), where what you need is a whole lot more than what you can make, since that's the level range when you are gaining levels quite fast and thus you need to upgrade your nanos and equipment quite often.


A few notes tho:

Profession introduction shouldn't mean that you should expect to be spoonfed of everything there is to know about the given profession, including all the available nanos and nanolines, preferred weapons, armour, etc. Figuring those out for yourself is part of the char development process and the fun.

Trying to treat a multiplayer game as a single player one works only up to a certain point. In some games it may work better (in fact, there are some supposedly MMO games which are more like a "single player online game with a monthly fee", but AO is definitely not one of those), in others, not so well. In AO, it's not the primary way to play the game, you have to get used to that. There are many things where you can succeed alone, but a lot of things are easier when done in a team, and some simply require a team.

Another thing MMOs differ from single player games is that all those "TL7s wandering about" can be asked for advice on things, help with something, their extensive knowledge about the game can be used to help you through a tight spot or something.
Granted, not all of them will be happy or willing to help a "noob", but I know there are those who do. So asking in OOC doesn't hurt, but might actually help.

Clicksaver is not a must. I've never ever used it in 4+ years, and not planning to. It's a 3rd party application which I, as a matter of fact, regard as a cheating tool to make the game give you what you want instead of accepting the randomness of the mission system as it was intended to be used.

[-Barg-]

Clicksaver is not a must. I've never ever used it in 4+ years, and not planning to. It's a 3rd party application which I, as a matter of fact, regard as a cheating tool to make the game give you what you want instead of accepting the randomness of the mission system as it was intended to be used.

Actually its a tool that automates a series of actions for you. It helps identify the mission you want to take. It is not cheating unless you consider you should only get the first mission you roll, if that was the case however there would be a restriction on re-rolling. You could actually do what clicksaver does manually except it will take a bit more time.


I like the ideas from the OP. More help at lower levels, better monetary rewards for repeatable missions that would help new people equip themselves. New players often want to lurk in the backgrounds until they know what is going on and how things are done. Many people dont want to post on OOC as many get ridiculed and people answer back in terms that are alien to them. Links to forums would be a good start. This will help people access a wealth of information.

[erozc]

Overall, I think your suggestions are wonderful. I can't help myself nitpicking though.

-1hb, 2hb, bow and pistol are weapon choices that make sense. The rest, do not.

-The subway exists.

On the first point: Weapons may or may not make sense in AO... And a lot of it is up to you. Speaking here as someone who used a shotgun on a froob adventurer, since the game manual said shotguns "have the ability to hit several opponents at once". Of course, it was all bogus. It's amazing how badly the guides of skills and other things reflect in game reality. A good hint, though, is to look at the skills that are green(er).

I can really recall there being some sort of announcement of the Condemned Subway at level up time... And at least there are some quest NPCs that help new players. The subway can be found by helping the one dude get his Vagabond cloak from the subs - this awards you a lock pick too. A bio-commutor is questable too and is a great bonus. There is some sort of progression of quests from Tirbo Ratcatcher and the Tir quests (Genghis Pan and Nodda Gregg) but it is easy to miss the NPCs altogether. It also is easy to miss the next NPC you may talk to.

I am all for easing the pain of new players. Besides, there are quite a few lowbie quests. They just should be pointed out in some manner... And some primers in what are implants, and the other things pointed out would be amazing.

Edit: There is a newbie guide text file that comes with AO as of now. However, there is the game manual too. It is linked on the AO web site. Take a look at it, it is interesting and addresses many of your griefs. It includes implant primer, profession information, even starter quests, subway, things like that. Maybe it should be included in AO download.

http://www.anarchy-online.com/anarch.../gameguide.pdf

Mind you it still contains a bit of misleading information (one of adventurer core skills is Matter Creation??).

[Tryqz]

I do agree that this could definitely help.

I'd suggest a couple more NPCs at the starting areas on the mainland offering a few more quests like the basic newbie quest chain most of us are familiar with, but which teach concepts of a few other aspects of the game like tradeskilling, implants, etc.

Also - a subway revamp may be a good idea to go with this - just a couple of new quests like that Shadowlands Nasc. ones added the other year which help introduce the game.


And yes, some profession-based ones may be a very good idea. Fixers have the FGrid questline for example, drop something similar in for other profs, as a goal, and a sidequest tying in to our profession. All of these ideas can help make the prospect less daunting to new players.

[matakishi]

When I first exited the backyards I emerged from a highrise looking out on to the Omni Ent sewers, a message appeared telling me to find the subway, consequently I spent the next week(s) stumbling around the sewers getting precisely nowhere

Things are better now I think...

How about commandeering some of the billboards that show adverts to show actual RK 'news' for lowbies/new players. Such things as a report that all is not well in the subway with a map of how to reach it, a mention that Omni tek (clans, neuts, whatever) needs people for missions and dierctions on where a mission terminal is, what it looks like, how to use it. A map to the shops, 'you are here' etc. This is a graphical game after all and a picture is worth 1000 words. Info on whompahs (witha map?) and the grid.

Loads of stuff could be presented this way and I think it would add to the feeling of being in real cities.

Just an idea.

[Sama]

While I dont think that its possible to implement all of the suggestions in the post, I pretty much felt the same way Justin did when i first rolled a toon in AO almost 4 yrs ago. The only difference is that I rolled an MA, then deleted him before getting off Noob island cause I didnt like the character model lol, the rerolled and quit at lvl 20 after getting off the island and getting frustrated with the subway and general feeling of being lost. I could not kill the mid boss nor survive much after him. No imps, no idea of what weapons to use, yeah with an ma. So i quit(this toon is still on my account i log on to it from time to time just for laughs).

I got board a couple yrs later and rerolled on the other server, but thought that my character was deleted as the default server got changed. That toon made it further in life, but in general was pretty gimp as i still didnt fully understand implants and nano programs. Eventually a good friend was interested in playing with me so i rolled an enfo. Long story short I eventually found an org, online resources, learned to click save, rerolled the MA yet again to ungimp him, subscribed to sl at first, and now am a full subscriber. My enfo is 191, needs work and has been shelved to work on my ma, who is 205 and his way to 220.

The biggest issue for me though is that most people arent as stubborn/persistent as me and would have never come back. I am constantly advertising AO through word of mouth to my gamer friends, but the few that try it dont last as they dont like the graphics, and unless im there to walk them through most things they get frustrated and leave. And it is not as though they are moronic non gamers. The all have played games for years, many of them playing other MMOs. Personally im very happy that FC is fixing the graphics of AO, but they also need to fix the tutorial process. The restoration of noob island is a big step in the right direction, but much more needs to be done. Not necessarily complex things, just things to smooth the transition for new players so not only the stubborn survive...

edit, here is a thought, why not introduce a prof specific quest chain that would allow players to earn a set of ql10/ql20 implants for there prof, perhaps a couple of nanos that are a dif line then you get in the box at noob isle, and maybe even another upgrade to the noob isle weaps, hud items etc. The quest line could come from npc's at the gates of the cities and involve the subway, using whompas, and other basic elements of the game that need to be learned once you are on the mainland.

[Mekh]

...snip...
The biggest issue for unless im there to walk them through most things they get frustrated and leave. And it is not as though they are moronic non gamers. The all have played games for years, many of them playing other MMOs. Personally im very happy that FC is fixing the graphics of AO, but they also need to fix the tutorial process. The restoration of noob island is a big step in the right direction, but much more needs to be done. Not necessarily complex things, just things to smooth the transition for new players so not only the stubborn survive...

edit, here is a thought, why not introduce a prof specific quest chain that would allow players to earn a set of ql10/ql20 implants for there prof, perhaps a couple of nanos that are a dif line then you get in the box at noob isle, and maybe even another upgrade to the noob isle weaps, hud items etc. The quest line could come from npc's at the gates of the cities and involve the subway, using whompas, and other basic elements of the game that need to be learned once you are on the mainland.

This...

Pretty graphics are a nice appetizer for people that just log in, but won't keep anyone around for long...
FC need to implement some tutorial quest or whatever, that enables people to learn in a practical and easy to grasp/digest way what AO have to offer in terms of character customization and vast amounts of content.

[ArienSky]

JustinSane4, good post, you have a lot of valid points.
Look forward to your comming levels, then you will notice that implants only comes premade up to QL 100 and that nano shops only sell up to QL 115ish, and health kits stop at QL 125
then you have to mission for nanoes and assemble implants yourself
I like how AO evolves and gives you new challenges, these being some of them.
But I agree that it would be nice if the low QL mez pets would be shop buyalbe too, so new MPs know they exist.

I'd agree with the a possible 'guide' included with the box of nano crystals your profession gets on the island.. this should help assist people with the first few hours/days of game play.. maybe not profession specific, but just a "welcome to rubi ka, treatment and comp lit are two of the most important skills you can have" or something.

I have always liked the ingame bookshops, that there actually are books ingame to read, sadly they are all(?) from AO launch, and no further was added.
It creates a believable world that you can walk around with books that help you, I would really like a library/book shop with historical information.
It does not have to be guides and quests, having optional books to read is a great idea.
The startup guidebook that comes with the nanoes could give directions to a new shop; the book shop, that would look a bit like the SL IPS, a new room, not just the well-hidden book shops in the tradeskill departments..
More books in teh tradeskill bookshops would be a start though.

How about commandeering some of the billboards that show adverts to show actual RK 'news' for lowbies/new players. Such things as a report that all is not well in the subway with a map of how to reach it, a mention that Omni tek (clans, neuts, whatever) needs people for missions and dierctions on where a mission terminal is, what it looks like, how to use it. A map to the shops, 'you are here' etc. This is a graphical game after all and a picture is worth 1000 words. Info on whompahs (witha map?) and the grid.

Loads of stuff could be presented this way and I think it would add to the feeling of being in real cities.

Another great idea, I know that the signs already detect what country you are from, so that I do not see as many ads as the americans..
If it already has coding to change on the individual user, it should be relatively easy to have them change based on user level. Could be an incentive to pay? Have help on the billboards. without payment only 1/4.. 1/6? of the billboards would be help.

The idear works nicely with the Subway ads already there for helpbot, nanonanny and GSP.

yes, AO HAS adverticing for 3rd party programs; Doove, Nanonanny and Helpbot
We need a sign for clicksaver and the new 3rd party maps.

Kind Regards
Ariensky

PS. WTB "post of the month" competition, where FunCom chooses a post in suggestions and 18.0 (patch version) and makes it sticky for a month.
To encourage well put and thought through posts.
The price could be Staff of the Champion, just edit the text to:
"A staff which is only awarded to those who have proven that they are among the finest posters on Rubi-Ka."
(then I can only hope I will get one for one of my posts, it would be a great thing to have in your hand)

[gergiskoo]

Bump for pretty much everything in this thread.

[Obtena]

While anything to help new people is good, I'm afraid that WE, the paying player base won't allow it to happen. Why you ask? Cause it requires so much work, that it would have to be a, expensive paid booster to implement (Expensive because none of us would buy it, we already know how to level to 50 in a day). So who's going to test and use this new helpful patch? Oh yes and BTW, we would also complain that FC is not focused on us the paying customer because they aren't making content for us.

No, so the solution is the following. We as players, interested in the survival of the game, have to help new people as much as they need to get over that initial overwhelming phase of the game so that by the time they get to TOTW, they have some money, know what 'ninja' means and they can solo most of TOTW with exception to the bosses.

It's easy to point the finger to FC but I started playing this game when it was even MORE confusing ... and i'm still here. So is it really that hard to play? I suspect that people are just jaded because the way WOW dumbs down MMO's makes the majority of gamers seem like morons. I perfer the difficulty of the start. It weeds out the people that have interest but really, they don't. It weeds out the people that want 220 with full gear in 3 months. It weeds out the people that choke on their own drool when they breathe.

[Yesiamstoned]

Much of what you seek is already there.

Don't limit yourself by knowing exactly how to play the game.

Don't level to 200+ in 2 weeks on your first toon, you miss alot that way.

Selling grid armour disks to the vendor is a bad idea.


Been here since 2001 and still havin fun!

[-Barg-]

Oh yes and BTW, we would also complain that FC is not focused on us the paying customer because they aren't making content for us.

Obtena, FC is a business, if it sees it can have more subscriptions because of better initial content it will do it without advertising it as a booster. It is a clear cut business decision if it wants to spend some of its money on this. A booster is targeted at us, the people already in. There is no law that says: "Thou must work on booster for paying customers and not assign any resources to other content without current players knowing". If they don't have the time / money to do it or figure its not worth it in the long term for them then it will not get done.

The issue I see when rolling a new alt compared to years ago is there are so many OST teams, kite team , outside healing teams, people that one hit the mobs. The opportunity to actually work for a kill in a team has gone down. The so called vets get stroppy if someone makes a mistake and kick them from team, they ridicule the armor , equip etc... It seems the aim of the game is to get to 220 asap. For me it was to explore when i first started and there were so many doing that, now its about leveling the quickest way with the least effort and buy creds when you need new stuff.

[Obtena]

^^ Yes I know and the second that FC commits to something as big as the OP suggested for new players, it's saying that the game is in trouble because the playerbase that is paying for the game can't sustain it. No company would set out to bring 'new player easiness' into a game where you are a new player once and while you are a new player, only for a short time compared to the rest of the game. The return on investment, is poor. The return on invest just isn't there. While getting new people to play, pay and stay is a nice idea, the scope of the expansion needed for this idea is big and the content shortlived. People don't play AO because it's easy at the low levels. Once they get past that honeymoon period, they will see the game for what it really is. That is when they decide to drop it. If they can't get past level 50 in the games current state, they really don't have the mettle to get TL7 now do they?

If FC is a real business, they will do a cost benefit analysis on an expansion focused on new players. I can tell you a cost benefit analysis for this idea, they will lose money doing it. The revenue from new players won't even offset the cost of developing and implementing the new player content in alot of the most recent patches. I think FC has been doing the right thing for new players all along. They have slowly put in all kind of new player content. It is easier than it was when I started to be a new player. With constant improvements, they are making it better all the time.

In addition, it's easy for us to forget that FC has two MMO's. While they can add new player expansion, who's gonna know? They need to advertise. FC will not advertise actively for AO vs. AoC. That would make them look rather silly.

[Mekh]

...snip...
In addition, it's easy for us to forget that FC has two MMO's. While they can add new player expansion, who's gonna know? They need to advertise. FC will not advertise actively for AO vs. AoC. That would make them look rather silly.

I do not completely agree with this...
The two games are different enough to have two different sets of customers.

It's almost like saying Honda can't advertize for cars, because they manufacture motorcycles, while they obviously can since the two products have different customers.

AoC = WoW = Ancient times / Fairy tale / Adventure / Swords / Horses / and so on
AO = Sci-Fi / future / laser gun pew pew / space ships / Aliens...

Not 100% correct, nor 100% wrong.

While some customers may be equally interested in both types of worlds, there are some like me that don't see that AoC/WoW type of worlds as very interesting.

[Kahava]

^^ Yes I know and the second that FC commits to something as big as the OP suggested for new players, it's saying that the game is in trouble because the playerbase that is paying for the game can't sustain it.

Wrong.
No company, gaming or otherwise, can survive solely on the existing customer base, simply because the current customers die out, figuratively speaking or not.
Any serious business will require new customers on a continuous base and must consequently do what it takes to lure them into the fold - advertising, new products, product upgrades.. Even if it is a gaming company that eases the proces for new players.

That is the reason for product development even in subscription based products: to lure in new customers and convince the existing suckers to upgrade.
(And yes, I'm also one of the existing suckers.. ^^)

the scope of the expansion needed for this idea is big and the content shortlived. People don't play AO because it's easy at the low levels. Once they get past that honeymoon period, they will see the game for what it really is. That is when they decide to drop it. If they can't get past level 50 in the games current state, they really don't have the mettle to get TL7 now do they?

Uhmm.. No.
A few NPCs and some more work on the starter quests does not require a booster pack any more than the previous larger changes did.
It requires some coding, some writing and a patch, nothing more.
That is how the previous large changes came in, there is zero reason that makes this suggestion different. Previous starter quests, SL zone quests, they came in regular patches. So, for that mater, did ICC Island.
A little bit at a time, baby steps. It's also a lot more difficult (although not impossible) to completely fekk over the game that way. Although I do admit that this caveat is not so much due to the current management.

It's true, noone plays Anarchy because it is easy at low levels, but lots of people STOP playing because it is very difficult to get past the first period.
(And yes, I know: it is infinitely easier today than it was way back in '01 when I started. That's not the point here, this is about NEW PLAYERS who STOP playing because of the (vertical) learning curve in Anarchy.)
Since no revenue is a bad thing even a 3 or 6 month subscription would be a significant improvement, giving FUcom the financial reason to actually do something about holding on to those new players. Their cost/benefit analysis will show that income is better than no income.

In addition, it's easy for us to forget that FC has two MMO's. While they can add new player expansion, who's gonna know? They need to advertise. FC will not advertise actively for AO vs. AoC. That would make them look rather silly.

What?
Why would FUcom look "silly" for advertising two games that are aimed at different target audiences?
Last I checked, despite SL, Anarchy is a SciFi game and AoC is a fantasy game, two different genres, more or less two different tastes.
In fact, why would FUcom look silly for advertising any games they have? All games are in their product portfolio and need advertising to create a better ROI.
It would actually make financial sense to advertise all their games, including Anarchy.