Motor City Online closing

They are closing MCO August 29th. Didn't they even knew it wasn't going to work? -- -- Fran�ois M�nard <ymenard> -- http://ymenard.cjb.net/ -- This announcement is brought to you by the Shimago-Dominguez Corporation - helping America into the New World...

If they would convert it to an offline game I would buy it again. They shouldn't just toss it; the track and the cars are too nice! BD On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 16:29:04 -0500, "ymenard" <[email hidden]> wrote: >They are closing MCO August 29th. Didn't they even knew it wasn't going to >work?

Unfortunately, this will probably become EA's GPL. Despite the fact that it was MCO's execution that was fatally flawed, not the concept, EA will foreswear online auto racing games from this day forward. There are no second acts in the computer games biz. (cf. "Trespasser;" i.e., its creator was allowed to head up Microsoft's games division, but they didn't trust him to do another game...so he left). "BD" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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> If they would convert it to an offline game I would buy it again. They > shouldn't just toss it; the track and the cars are too nice! > > BD > > > On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 16:29:04 -0500, "ymenard" > <[email hidden]> wrote: > > >They are closing MCO August 29th. Didn't they even knew it wasn't going

to > >work? >

On Wed, 26 Feb 2003 16:29:04 -0500, "ymenard" <[email hidden]> wrote: >They are closing MCO August 29th. Didn't they even knew it wasn't going to >work? This event is the flaw I saw - once the game isn't supported anymore, you are stuck with an useless CD-ROM. Did anyone else get an e-mail by mistake telling about a free Sims Online copy? I got one because I had had a MCO account as a beta tester - then today they sent another e-mail apologizing for the mistake as ithe offer was only for 'active accounts'. -- __________ ____---____ Marco Antonio Checa Funcke \_________D /-/---_----' Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru _H__/_/ http://machf.tripod.com '-_____|( remove the "no_me_j." and "sons.of." parts before replying

I have an un-used copy of it. I bought it when it was $40, and never installed it after hearing how bad it was. They giving refunds to software buyers? LOL! Larry "ymenard" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:via7a.5990$[email hidden]... > They are closing MCO August 29th. Didn't they even knew it wasn't goingto

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> work? > > > > > > > > > > -- > -- Fran�ois M�nard <ymenard> > -- http://ymenard.cjb.net/ > -- This announcement is brought to you by the Shimago-Dominguez > Corporation - helping America into the New World... > >

On Fri, 28 Feb 2003 15:06:58 GMT, "Larry" <[email hidden]> wrote:

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>I have an un-used copy of it. I bought it when it was $40, and never >installed it after hearing how bad it was. > >They giving refunds to software buyers? > >LOL! >

They're giving you a free copy of The Sims Online if you had a MCO active account... -- __________ ____---____ Marco Antonio Checa Funcke \_________D /-/---_----' Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru _H__/_/ http://machf.tripod.com '-_____|( remove the "no_me_j." and "sons.of." parts before replying

Hmmmn. The Sims Online isn't doing all that much better than Motor City Online, by all accounts. "machf" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

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> On Fri, 28 Feb 2003 15:06:58 GMT, "Larry" <[email hidden]> wrote: > > >I have an un-used copy of it. I bought it when it was $40, and never > >installed it after hearing how bad it was. > > > >They giving refunds to software buyers? > > > >LOL! > > > They're giving you a free copy of The Sims Online if you had a MCO > active account... > > -- > __________ ____---____ Marco Antonio Checa Funcke > \_________D /-/---_----' Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru > _H__/_/ http://machf.tripod.com > '-_____|( > > remove the "no_me_j." and "sons.of." parts before replying

On Fri, 28 Feb 2003 21:31:21 GMT, "Steve Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote: >Hmmmn. The Sims Online isn't doing all that much better than Motor City >Online, by all accounts. >Is it an online-only game too? If so, then they didn't learn anything from the experience... -- __________ ____---____ Marco Antonio Checa Funcke \_________D /-/---_----' Santiago de Surco, Lima, Peru _H__/_/ http://machf.tripod.com '-_____|( remove the "no_me_j." and "sons.of." parts before replying

machf <[email hidden]> wrote:

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>On Fri, 28 Feb 2003 21:31:21 GMT, "Steve Smith" <[email hidden]> >wrote: > >>Hmmmn. The Sims Online isn't doing all that much better than Motor City >>Online, by all accounts. >> >Is it an online-only game too? If so, then they didn't learn anything >from the experience...

The reason MCO is going offline is because it quickly become lopsided with expert racers dominating the game and newcomers not being able to get established. I can't think of too many people that want to may a monthly fee to get their ass kicked everytime they log on. EA should have definitely setup some tier structure that ranked the players and controlled the balance of gameplay.

"Angry Gamer" <[email hidden]> wrote ... > EA should have definitely setup some tier structure that ranked the players and > controlled the balance of gameplay. You're absolutely right, IMO. A levelled structure would have given people incentive to try and make into the upper 'hot shoe' ranks, plus it would keep said hot shoes out of the noob races. Four other problems that I think contributed to MCO's demise: 1) A large group of people did not seem all that interested in racing but rather wanted to build cool virtual cars and show them off. To satisfy that group, there needed to be some sort of virtual car show/cruise night kinda thing. The hub view feature was a start but didn't go nearly far enough. Tied into that, there should have been more variation in car appearance, e.g. you should have been able to paint it *any* base color, add stripes or flames as an overlay, raise/lower suspension, etc. 2) The heavy emphasis on creating a working economic model through the car & part auctions lead to a game where most people chased dollars, not other racers. Sure, you need money sinks in an online game, but it's a *game*. If I want to deal with money problems, I'll stick to real life. <grin> 3) Excessive warping in races. The game could indicate you were ahead for all of a five-lap race (and you adjust your driving accordingly) only to find out when you crossed the finish line that you actually were passed (invisibly) back on lap one... that's frustrating. The game<-->server communication was set up to minimize cheating by hacking the game, but had the side effect of making the racing unsatisfying. 4) Lack of marketing to target audience. It appeared in the gaming magazines, but no ads in any of the car mags or cable TV shows, no promotion at car shows, etc. Interesting concept, flawed execution. ...Klinn