Blizzard has announced that around 1.5 million people have signed up to play World of Warcraft since the PC massively multiplayer RPG launched across the globe last month.
The full breakdown reads:
Europe:
Over 290,000 account creations and 180,000 peak concurrency in its first weekend.
Over 500,000 active subscribers, and 230,000 peak concurrency to date.
Korea:
The most successful 100-day launch of any MMORPG in Korean history since its commercial release on January 18, 2005. World of Warcraft is currently played in 75% of Korean Internet Game Rooms (IGRs), the primary venue for playing games in Korea. IGRs subscribe directly to MMORPGs and then players buy blocks of time from the IGRs for game time.
North America:
Over 200,000 subscribers and 100,000 peak concurrency achieved in the game's first 24 hours.
Current subscriber base of over 800,000 players.
Indeed, the success of WOW has taken many by surprise and does outline the simple and undeniable fact that MMO gaming is achieving mass-market status as global broadband penetration reaches a point able to sustain such a game.
The studio is currently optimising Warcraft for the Chinese market, with the game slated to launch there later this year. Blizzard claims that it received 100,000 applications from Chinese gamers within the first minutes of the beta demo being announced.
The full breakdown reads:
Europe:
Over 290,000 account creations and 180,000 peak concurrency in its first weekend.
Over 500,000 active subscribers, and 230,000 peak concurrency to date.
Korea:
The most successful 100-day launch of any MMORPG in Korean history since its commercial release on January 18, 2005. World of Warcraft is currently played in 75% of Korean Internet Game Rooms (IGRs), the primary venue for playing games in Korea. IGRs subscribe directly to MMORPGs and then players buy blocks of time from the IGRs for game time.
North America:
Over 200,000 subscribers and 100,000 peak concurrency achieved in the game's first 24 hours.
Current subscriber base of over 800,000 players.
Indeed, the success of WOW has taken many by surprise and does outline the simple and undeniable fact that MMO gaming is achieving mass-market status as global broadband penetration reaches a point able to sustain such a game.
The studio is currently optimising Warcraft for the Chinese market, with the game slated to launch there later this year. Blizzard claims that it received 100,000 applications from Chinese gamers within the first minutes of the beta demo being announced.
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Comments
acidviper 19 Mar 2005 02:14
1/2
1.5 million dumbasses.
Warzone 19 Mar 2005 22:50
2/2
Let me see. I'm Activision Value, I put $50 into a substandard racing game that's not worth the CD it's printed on, put it out, sell 1.000.000 copies in two years thanks to some good marketing, and it's a dismal failure.
But 1.5 million people on a single MMOG is an incredible success, and shows how MMOG is really the future? Get real. If that's the best the genre has done since Warbirds, MMOG is dead in the water.
But 1.5 million people on a single MMOG is an incredible success, and shows how MMOG is really the future? Get real. If that's the best the genre has done since Warbirds, MMOG is dead in the water.