game or social network?

[Kurrent]

I brought this point up a few months ago, and I think it deserves even more consideration with the pitches being made to Disney, Google and others.  Maybe we shouldn't necessarily be marketing CoX as a game with a strong community, but instead marketing it as a unique social network which happens to be playable as a game.

Having avatar-based social networks isn't new; Second Life has been doing it for years, as have IMVU and various other platforms.  CoX could be pitched as a direct competitor to them, citing its ability to communicate across characters using globals, its internal email system, and its visually appealing and interactive nature.  Customization options in CoX are as good as almost anything except Second Life (due to its large user-created content), and that was with nearly ten-year-old code.  People can already join for free, a requirement for an social network.  We don't need specific minigames like Farmville, because we already have a macrogame encompassing the entire social network.  Advertising can and has been done before in-game, and reactivating it would allow even more profitability for a prospective buyer.  Even disabling the option to opt out of the ads wouldn't be that horrible, as they really weren't as intrusive as pop-ups, animated frames or other forms of advertising we deal with today. 

Anyone doubting the viability of CoX as a social network just needs to ask a player.  Honestly, while I miss being able to do things with my characters, what I miss more than anything else are my friends, who have since scattered to various other games.  More than the game aspect, I miss being able to stay in real-time contact with them, able to carry on a conversation despite us all being in different states or countries and having crazy schedules.  I miss doing things with them, and that's why I think we need to be emphasizing the social network aspect of CoX when we pitch it to potential buyers.  Yes, CoX remained profitable to the very end, but it could have been much more profitable than NCSoft allowed it to be.  Recognizing both its entertainment and its networking potential would allow us to present a much more flexible and economy-resistant product to potential buyers.

Jo

[Victoria Victrix]

To short form this: done that.  This is deeply part of our pitch package.  Thanks!

[Floride]

CoX was no game.
CoX was a social networking site, with a game attached.

A myriad of ways to organize and communicate with one another: supergroup, coalition, team, league and help chat, broadcast to local chats, private messages (online and offline), public channels, private channels, in-game emails, inviting, moderating, server and global friending and ignoring, MotD's - and the abilty to create customized chat windows sealed up the glorious package.
It's Facebook's wet dream to offer this many social avenues, and what's the best game Facebook has attached? Farmville?

The "game" aspect simply drew a particular type of personality to the network - ones who wanted to look like flamboyant rockstars and enjoyed ultra-complex customizations of their Avatars' looks and powers.

Cryptic seems to understand one basic principle - Videogames do not require logins. Websites do.
Websites provide the ability to communicate with others. When people communicate, they congregate. "Support people's ability to congregate while they communicate" and you've just defined a social networking site.
Provide a superb platform for this, and the game becomes the shiny, flashy conversation piece that draws the cool people in.

Skyrim is a fun game. Why make it an MMO? Because people get bored with videogames, but never get bored of congregating with friends.
Ahem... IMO