Giant Online Revenue Falls, Still Rockin' the Chinese Market [Only In China]

Despite declining stock value, Giant Interactive -- the company behind the intriguing MMO Zhengtu Online, which is a mix of MMO, gambling, real money transactions, and gold farming -- is still tearing up the Chinese market. Steve of PlayNoEvil has some interesting analysis up of some recent numbers, which have indicated the the average revenue per player has dropped to around $41 USD (RMB 282). Giant is moving to encourage 'steadier' playing, instead of simply buying up cash shop items like there's no tomorrow, so the drop was expected. Still, the money being made is pretty impressive for a domestic game (drop and all):

Net revenue was RMB265.20 million or US$39.06 million, a decrease of 34.6% from RMB405.25 million a year ago, mainly on lower online game net revenue, which was adversely impacted by adjustments made to the monetization features within ZT Online. Analysts expected revenues of $63.41 million for the quarter.

Gross profit declined 40.9% year-over-year to RMB212.5 million or US$31.3 million, and gross profit margin fell to 80.1% from 88.8% in the third quarter 2007.

Active paying accounts for online games declined 31.6% to 937 thousand, and average revenue per user dropped 4.4% to RMB282.1. Meanwhile, average concurrent users for online games rose 9% from last year to 543 thousand.

Wowee. The interesting thing here is in many Chinese articles I've read, players have cited 'cost' as a reason they are moving from WoW; clearly, some players are not spending less on domestic games. Even considering the drops in revenue and other indicators, sounds like Giant is steaming along -- perhaps their unholy mix of 'illicit' MMO features being sanctioned really is just the ticket.

Giant Interactive Q3 profit falls; issues Q4 revenue forecast [RTTNews via PlayNoEvil]

http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/kotaku/full/~3/ZHUlLtzEQv4/giant-online-revenue-falls-still-rockin-the-chinese-market

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LotRO Enters The Mines Of Moria [Lord Of The Rings Online]

<p><img src="http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/kotaku/2008/11/lotroonlinecollectors.jpg" width="507" height="285" style="display:block;" /> Turbine proudly announces the launch of the first expansion for Lord of the Rings Online, Mines of Moria is now available across the U.S. and Europe, including my living room, where the collector's edition sits next to the coal-dusted mining hat they sent me to commemorate the auspicious occasion, which left a lovely black line across my forehead. The new expansion of course opens up the infamous Mines of Moria, and from my time in the beta for the expansion I can tell you that they've done an amazing job of realizing Tolkien's vision. Far from feeling like you are in a dungeon, the Mines truly feel like a massive, underground empire, filled with marvelous sights and a sense of scale I've rarely experienced in an MMO environment.</p> <p>Along with the new areas to explore, Mines also brings two new character classes - the shifty Warden and the versatile Rune-keeper, both of which add exciting new gameplay mechanics to the game, along with unique legendary weapons that players can customize and rename, growing in power along with their characters. LotRO has come a long way since launch, and with the release of Moria it reaches all-new heights of excellence.</p> <p><strong>THE LORD OF THE RINGS ONLINE™: MINES OF MORIA™ LAUNCHES</strong></p> <p>The First Expansion for the Award-Winning Massively Multiplayer Online Game Now Available</p> <p>WESTWOOD, MA – November 18, 2008 - Turbine, Inc. announced today that The Lord of the Rings Online™: Mines of Moria™ is now available for purchase across North America and Europe. Mines of Moria expands the award-winning online world of Middle-earth and allows players to explore the ancient underground cities of the dwarves, battle epic characters in the depths, face off with the Watcher, be a part of the fateful release of Durin's Bane and more! In addition to extending the challenge to new heights, Mines of Moria will introduce two new classes, ten additional levels, hundreds of new quests, and the highly anticipated Legendary Item system.</p> <p>"The Lord of the Rings Online (LOTRO) has established itself as one of the world's premium MMOs for successfully integrating story into a game that features innovative and entertaining advancement through an immersive and breathtaking world," said Jeffrey Steefel, Executive Producer of The Lord of the Rings Online. "Mines of Moria will raise the bar with the introduction of Legendary Items, a massive new system that will let players advance unique and powerful weapons and items that grow in might alongside their hero. These unique and powerful weapons will be by our players' sides to aid in the challenging adventures that await them as we continue to journey through Middle-earth through the next several volumes of the game in years to come."</p> <p>Some of the new features in the Mines of Moria expansion include*:</p> <p>Ø Forge Legendary Items! – The Mines of Moria introduces Turbine's revolutionary new item advancement system to LOTRO. Players can now forge unique weapons and class-related equipment and evolve them to build a legacy the likes of Bilbo's Sting and Gandalf's Glamdring™. These legendary weapons grow in power along with the player through their adventures and are customized by advancing the item's virtues, adding runic legacies and modifying its title.</p> <p>Ø Speak Friend, and Enter – Moria, called Khazad-dûm by the dwarves, was their capital and the grandest of cities. This enormous underground world in north-western Middle-earth comprises an immense network of tunnels, chambers, mines and huge halls beneath the Misty Mountains and represent one of the largest and most dangerous online underground environments ever created. Starting today players can journey through hundreds of new adventures and battle goblin hordes and the Nameless of the Deep in the ancient city underground which has served as the foundation for the modern-day dungeon-crawling adventures.</p> <p>Ø The Epic Story Continues! — The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria begins Volume II of The Lord of the Rings Online storyline. Players will experience six new books rich with new characters and content and face the fiery wrath of Durin's Bane, battle the Watcher, bring aid to the Lady Galadriel and more.</p> <p>Ø Increased Level Cap — Players can now advance their characters up to level 60, opening access to a wealth of new traits, virtues, skills and class quests. The crafting system also now offers a new Tier and gives players the ability to join crafting guilds to create even more powerful items.</p> <p>Ø Discover Two New Classes — The Rune-keeper and the Warden, the first new classes to be introduced since the launch of the game, offer players the opportunity to create all-new characters and experience LOTRO in exciting new ways.</p> <p>The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Complete Edition, which includes the original game, The Lord of the Rings Online™: Shadows of Angmar™ (Volume I), all content updates released since launch, and Mines of Moria (Volume II) is now available for purchase at major retailers across North America. The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Collector's Edition is also now available for purchase at major retailers and includes all of the content of the Complete Edition as well as certain unique digital and physical items for collectors. A third option for existing LOTRO subscribers is The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria Digital Expansion, available online at www.lotro.com. For more information on The Lord of the Rings Online: Mines of Moria, please visit www.lotro.com/moria.</p> <br style="clear: both;"/>
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Inmate Sues Warcraft For Eleventeen Zillion Gold

[reposted from Kotaku]

So by now we should all be up to speed on Johnathan Lee Riches, the South Carolina inmate who kills time by filing lawsuits against the likes of Barry Bonds, Michael Vick, and anyone else who happens to be in the news. For a time, mainstream media treated the claims seriously, but now we all have to realize he's just having fun, and showing zero respect for a judicial system that put him in the clink.

His latest salvo is novel, however, in that it's a freaking third-party motion in the courtroom pugilistics involving Blizzard and MDY Industries. Riches' motion, no doubt handwritten on notebook paper, claims World of Warcraft turned his mind "into a living video game" that forced him to live "in a virtual universe, where [I] explored the landscape committing identity theft and fighting cybermonster rival hacker gangs."

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EVE Online's Walking Expansion Adds Player-Made Shops [Expansionism]

Reposted from Kotaku

At CCP's Fanfest convention in Reykjavik, Iceland, EVE Online's company has revealed further plans for the upcoming Walking In Stations expansion, which for the first time will allow players to get off of their ships and socialize a bit. Where will they socialize? In player created bars and shops, apparently. Players will be able to purchase blueprints, install them in empty sockets in space station promenades, and customize them with different NPCs, rules, vendors, and custom dialog. Space stations will also have mini-games available to play and wager on. It's so Deep Space Nine you'll think every inanimate object is secretly Odo.

In addition to shops and bars, players will also have captain's quarters on their ships, while corporations will have meeting rooms and recruitment offices.

Hit up the link below for Eurogamer's exhaustive look at all of the new features being introduced.
EVE Online: Walking In Stations Hands On

http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/kotaku/full/~3/lsGGxGTqtnQ/eve-onlines-walking-expansion-adds-player+made-shops