Out of my friends list of 45 people, I know that’s not a lot but still, small list of friends that I have that have played this game actively since the very beginning, two of them still play the game and one of them does not even subscribe full-time. Only when there’s a major update… When I asked every single one of my friends why they no longer play anymore the same exact reason was said. “They were taking over by an investment company, and now it just seems like a silly cash grab. They keep raising the prices, keep missing the mark, don’t listen to players.” <<< One of my friends said this to me…

So let’s get the facts straight here

According to Jagex full accounts report in 2008 from the UK government website, they made $10 million in profit back in 2008. So they were not operating at a loss. Their profit for the year 2022 is up to 38 million. Jagex’s profit rose from £10 million in 2008 to £38 million in 2022, a 280% increase. From 2008’s price of $7.95 to the current price of $13.99, the RuneScape membership price has increased by approximately 76%.

So in other words, Jagex profit has risen by 280% since 2008, and They raised the subscription by over 80%. If we count the entire lifespan of RuneScape, it’s gone up by 180%. This is: corporate greed.

For reference, by the way, World of Warcraft has never once had to increase their subscription price ever. We also have bonds in our game, and RS3 is completely monetized. A monetized game and a subscription is absolutely insanity, when you add in percentage increases to the subscription price, that’s just silly

Edit: A reddit user also pointed out that you have to pay $14 a month for EVERY character, even if you’re part of the same account. WoW let’s you have 60+ characters in your subscription.

  • Buttflapper@lemmy.worldOP
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    2 months ago

    Don’t worry, there will be better times ahead friend. Maybe not for this game, but I’m sure that someone will be inspired by the joy that the game brought them and create something similar. Games like Valheim arose this way, and the original dev (Gower) is creating another game with no microtransactions in it at all. Just sucks that this has to keep happening repeatedly with every game

    • Renacles@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      I’m just glad I came back for the Elder God Wars year, that was some of the best RuneScape content we’ve ever gotten.