An Open Letter to Gaia from the zOMG Community (UPDATE)

[hibi-tea]

fire monkey95

*face palm* they dident have funding in the biggining for a MMO, so they made everything else around it ... so although a mp and ect ect wasent there immiditly it was all added while they triend to get funding for there MMO ...

Proof or everything you're saying is purely speculation.

As I just said. I've been on this site for 8 years. A very active member for 8 years straight. I didn't hear anything about this MMO until right before or right after this site became Gaiaonline, so saying that because they built the framework for the avatars around an inspiration for Ragnarok automatically means they intended to make an MMO from the get-go does not fly with me.

I know that when I heard about a possible MMO it was still up in the air because they didn't have the funding for it, but there was absolutely no talk that this was what they had planned from the go. And I can't fathom they had it planned from the go, because if they honestly wanted to make this site an MMO site they wouldn't have (and continue to) push to forums so hard. Push the items so hard. And push the games they've created prior and after zOMG so hard.

If they wanted this a purely MMO site, or for this MMO to be more than something for just the existent community and a means to bring in more members, they would have invested far more into it than they had.

[Lady Ennie]

Honestly, I have mixed feelings with the announcement.

I'm glad they're taking down zOMG, mostly because it's easier to just kill it now instead of letting it creak along and die a slow death due to bugs and negle - oh, wait, is that what they're doing? Well, s**t.

Gaia really had no business starting an MMO until they had a clear plan, multiple paths, and ways to advance besides "farming until your eyes fall out." Every other MMO has realized this - there needs to be solo content, group content, raid content. There needs to be more gratification than just seeing your orb counter go up, randomized ring drops, and the occasional ingredient for items that don't even really look that great (imo; ymmv). There needs to be more than just a daily 'oh, kill x many amount of monsters, don't worry, it ties into a plot somehow.' zOMG was clunky, repetitive, and frustrating. It needs a complete overhaul.

Unfortunately, it's not going to get it. Facebook gaming has become a priority because they can outsource work to someone else and save in-house hours and money (that they don't want to spend anyway because of the crunch). It's easier and cheaper to ride off the popularity of the social network behemoth than craft a uniquely Gaian gaming experience - you can't really fault them that, it makes perfect business sense. Except for the part where a lot of Gaians don't want to support FB, they want to support GAIA. Some Gaians can't/won't use FB for whatever reason.

Really, a lot of the reason why I'm frustrated with Gaia goes back to Alchemy and zOMG. There have been some transparent money-grab attempts and when they don't reach whatever mystical number the corporate bigwigs have in their mind, they axe everything seeing as 'extraneous.' Alchemy is probably going to go the way of zOMG and Frontier Skies - too much input for not enough output and given the axe because of boredom, frustration, and budget cuts.

[zhang he beautiful]

I wish I can tip you more.

[Phoenixious]

CleoSombra

This was beautifully worded, Kestin. Absolutely beautifully worded.

^ Thisssss.

[Dooei]

Tipped!

[Sakura Latte]

meep12345

Chibi Halo

Look, I completely DISAGREE with everything you said, because the zCommunity has been making an effort for a long time, EXCEPT management doesn't give a flyin' ******** about SF (see this thread for examples of the effort: http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/site-feedback/monetize-zomg-update-12-22-11/t.67580717/ ) cat_stare

AND... Just because the SF wasn't BiTCHIN' 24-7 about zOMG doesn't mean the zCommunity hasn't been vocal, because it has (i.e. If you used the search feature or just surfed the zOMG forum, you'd find the many, many Gaians who have actively petitioned and suggested ideas about what zOMG could do! cat_evil

Also...

1) PvP is stupid and lack of PvP is a terribly pathetic reason to justify poor decisions made by an equally pathetic management cat_mad
2) If you can't solo zOMG, you clearly have never play'd zOMG (or used Gaia before, because there are so many freekin' easy-to-read/access guides on how to do this) cat_stressed

Yeah sure, because someone who has been on this site since 2004 and (IIRC) was previously a Forum Assistant has "never used Gaia before". rolleyes

On topic: I'm quite sad to see the MMO get shafted and put in the back burner. Although I don't play it (I'd only hop onto zOMG for the dev meats), my sister did. At the same time though, I kind of knew this would happen eventually.

[KandyLime]

Captain Croissanto

Gaia HQ, this game is the only game of yours that is your game, because it's your world -- Gaia's world -- come to life for us to truly interact with and in the towns we love, with the NPCs we love, and with other Gaians as regular, ordinary Gaians. Don't turn your back on it. Don't turn your back on us.

And also, at the risk of sounding rude... Go back to being Gaia Online, please; not a ripoff of other interactive sites, and not a Facebook groupie.

This is just how I feel. sad

[sevenheroes]

3nodding heart

[Voat]

Dear Gaia, the only reason I came back to you in 2009 after leaving in 2004 was to play your zOMG MMO.

Think harder about this. Think.

[meep12345meep12345]

Sakura Parfait

meep12345

Chibi Halo

Look, I completely DISAGREE with everything you said, because the zCommunity has been making an effort for a long time, EXCEPT management doesn't give a flyin' ******** about SF (see this thread for examples of the effort: http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/site-feedback/monetize-zomg-update-12-22-11/t.67580717/ ) cat_stare

AND... Just because the SF wasn't BiTCHIN' 24-7 about zOMG doesn't mean the zCommunity hasn't been vocal, because it has (i.e. If you used the search feature or just surfed the zOMG forum, you'd find the many, many Gaians who have actively petitioned and suggested ideas about what zOMG could do! cat_evil

Also...

1) PvP is stupid and lack of PvP is a terribly pathetic reason to justify poor decisions made by an equally pathetic management cat_mad
2) If you can't solo zOMG, you clearly have never play'd zOMG (or used Gaia before, because there are so many freekin' easy-to-read/access guides on how to do this) cat_stressed

Yeah sure, because someone who has been on this site since 2004 and (IIRC) was previously a Forum Assistant has "never used Gaia before". rolleyes

On topic: I'm quite sad to see the MMO get shafted and put in the back burner. Although I don't play it (I'd only hop onto zOMG for the dev meats), my sister did. At the same time though, I kind of knew this would happen eventually.

Hey, as far as I'm concerned... If the shoe fits, so be it cat_razz
(aka if you act like you've never used Gaia before, you're going to be treated as if you never used Gaia before) cat_rolleyes

[rgjh8754]

Please, don't quote the opening post.

[Catalyste]

*disconnects zOMG's lifesupport*

Give it a prayer and let it rest in peace.


Everytime zOMG gets a message that people are being pulled, the zOMG fanclub comes around saying that they've been giving their undying support and money towards it. They fuel their posts with anecdotes of how much they love it, how much it means to them, and how much they believe Gaia staff are scamming them because they reached fundraising goals.

Well if it hasn't occurred to you guys now, zOMG's been hanging on a thread for years. And for years you guys have been told that it's in danger of being shelved. And everytime you guys come out pleading for it to be saved.

Well it's time to hang that up.

You guys have to realize that zOMG is basically dead weight. No amount of pleading with the staff if going to save it because you guys can't and don't rally enough outside support. zOMG doesn't and can't support itself. Throughout these years it's been mishandled and Gaia has been working ways with you and themselves to see if there's anything to salvage, if possible. Unfortunately zOMG has more content and server space than the revenue it manages to pull in from time to time.

Nothing you do will be able to save it. So just brace yourself for the day it's officially gone.

[Rya Dracosin]

Catalyste

*disconnects zOMG's lifesupport*

Give it a prayer and let it rest in peace.


Everytime zOMG gets a message that people are being pulled, the zOMG fanclub comes around saying that they've been giving their undying support and money towards it. They fuel their posts with anecdotes of how much they love it, how much it means to them, and how much they believe Gaia staff are scamming them because they reached fundraising goals.

Well if it hasn't occurred to you guys now, zOMG's been hanging on a thread for years. And for years you guys have been told that it's in danger of being shelved. And everytime you guys come out pleading for it to be saved.

Well it's time to hang that up.

You guys have to realize that zOMG is basically dead weight. No amount of pleading with the staff if going to save it because you guys can't and don't rally enough outside support. zOMG doesn't and can't support itself. Throughout these years it's been mishandled and Gaia has been working ways with you and themselves to see if there's anything to salvage, if possible. Unfortunately zOMG has more content and server space than the revenue it manages to pull in from time to time.

Nothing you do will be able to save it. So just brace yourself for the day it's officially gone.

@what I bolded:
The users should not have to be responsible for finding more players. That's Gaia's responsibility. The money they raised should have HELPED to advertise it elsewhere. I'm sure you wouldn't ask customers of a store to go and get more people to shop at a store if it was in danger of being shut down. You, as a store owner/operator, would make the effort to get the word out there, IF you cared enough. You'd dig into your own pockets to make some advertisements. Gaia didn't put enough advertisement out there for this game. All the other MMOs i've seen have TONS of advertising. Good and bad MMOs. This one? There was some at the beginning...but where'd it go? Advertising can't just stop once people start using it. Imagine if PepsiCo, or Coca-Cola Co. stopped advertising after people started drinking their product. Would they be around to this day? No, they heavily advertise.

Moga is advertised EVERYWHERE. That is why it recieves so many players (that and it's a facebook whore game (meaning people whore out friend spaces and whore out invites to play the game)). Yet gaia, and even some users, expect other users to advertise?

I hate to say this, but i'm dissappointed. Not in just you Catalyste, but in user base who thinks that the users didn't try hard enough.

@what I underlined:
Gaia has been trying with the users. But if they knew that those users couldn't be enough, then why the hell didn't they try advertising more? Off site advertising. Plenty of it. I see Moga ads everywhere (when i'm on my phone). There's TONS of moga this and moga that. But where's zomg? once in a while? And just to the users here?

They should have done a minigame that related to zomg as a facebook game, With a link to the actual zomg game.

I'm ashamed at Gaia, for only pretending to care. For giving possible staff members and users false hope that zomg would remain as a functioning feature that at least got patches here and there.

I still play zomg. I can stand 10 minutes of zomg over 10 minutes of booty grab. I don't even play the other games anymore, because I don't get enough gold from them for the time and effort i put in. At least with zomg, i can choose about how much gold i get, roughly, by choosing proper difficulty, and choosing to crew or not to crew.