The giant "Journey" has been old to enter the future of the hands of the unknown

Known as Shi Yuzhu "Harvest Alexander", "Fairy World" April 19 officially began the game beta. It won't be long before the questions above have an answer.

Giant Network in 2010, 2011, 2012, the corresponding total revenue figures are 1.333 billion yuan, 1.792 billion yuan and 2.152 billion yuan, the "Journey" series contributed to its three-year almost total revenue. In the outside view, "giant" = "journey".

The first on-line operation of the journey has been 7 years, the game product life cycle problem can not escape, while the number of online users, ARPU value (per user average income) has entered the bottleneck. The industry thinks it's time to add something else to the right of the equals sign.

"The Fairy World" may be just one of them.

"Journey" series Contribute "all" revenue

"Journey" The game was born 7 years ago, the original pride of the mood has been diluted, replaced by the urgent need for transformation.

"It's (The Fairy World), and I'm leaving." Shi Yuzhu in the "Fairy World" press conference said.

April 9, Giant Network released its new game "Fairy world." In the release of the scene, Shi Yuzhu revealed the impending resignation of the chief executive post news. Why at this time? Shi Yuzhu said, is in the demo of this product, just really feel can "retire at ease."

The news of "old history retirement" detonated the whole press conference, the new game "Fairy World" also became a focus center.

The giant network says the new game will be geared towards a completely different group of players from the "Journey" series. In other words, the company is trying to find new players outside the "journey".

November 2007, with "Journey" a game, giant Network landing NYSE. Three years later, giant executives were frequently asked about the revenue ratios of the "journey" game at the earnings analyst meeting, at the meeting of the Q1 in 2010, the then President, Liu Wei, responded, "more than 90%"; The next quarter Q2 meeting similar issues were proposed, the company's CFO answer is "more than 90%."

Up to this day, the Giants network mainly operates 13 games, including 10 MMORPG (large multiplayer online role-playing) games, as well as leisure MMO (large multiplayer online) games and strategy web games. According to the statement in the 2012 annual report, the "Journey" series contributed to the company's "almost total" operating income.

"Journey" was born in 2006, 1 years later, its support giant network listing.

2012 Giants network earnings showed that the first to the fourth quarter of the company's game products ARPU value (average per user income) is 228 yuan, 233 yuan, 238 yuan and 238 yuan, the fourth quarter even fell into stagnation.

"Journey" through the heyday of the decay

From a variety of data, "journey" is facing the life cycle of the test, "suck gold" ability is not as good as before.

"Journey" was born a subversion: At the end of December 2005, still inside the "journey" declared "permanent free."

At that time, "journey" was commented as a grand free online game model of the "follower." At the beginning of December 2005, Grand CEO Chen will have three games free of charge, including two "legendary" Products "blood legend" and "Legendary World". With the "Legend" to fight down the root, Shanda intends to expand in the number of users.

When the game manufacturers most of the time, as a still in the beta of the new game, "Journey" first jumped out.

Shi Yuzhu from the health care products "Cross-border" to the game industry soon, the impression of the outside world is still in the "marketing Master" stage, that "permanent free" is only a gimmick, and the possibility of its comeback expressed doubts.

In "Legends", "Journey" announced free of charge, online games vendors usually according to the game on-line time to charge players. Can be divided into points and monthly fees charged two kinds. The game also has the threshold, because "no money you don't play".

"Legend" created a new model for "prop charging mode", that is, players enter a game for free, but to play the necessary props to the shopping mall must pay to buy, which seems to reduce the threshold of the game. So a lot of players poured into the journey. April 21, 2006, the "Journey" official test, the highest day of the public test on the online number of people break 200,000.

"Journey" through the free mode, earning more money than the charge game, and led the game industry into the "profiteering era." According to the giant network listed after the first report, "Journey" of the ARPU value is 305.2 yuan, far more than Sohu and Shanda's game of the same indicator.

But the player soon discovered that the prop charging mode essentially takes the RMB as the consumption direction, all function designs revolve this goal, actually the Doorsill is higher. So the "journey" of the criticism of the voice of the game, the dominant Shi Yuzhu has also been questioned.

At the same time, the business data related to "journey" also showed varying degrees of attenuation. In the third quarter of 2007, the "Journey" on average online number of people, the highest and the number of online declines 6.6% and 17.2% respectively, by the third quarter of 2008, the giant network eventually handed over a bad earnings, the quarter net profit fell 53.8%.

"Green Journey" has not become a new growth point

Because the "green journey" positioning for the low paid player group, it does not give the giant's performance to add much brighter.

Shi Yuzhu soon said accept "journey" too "burning money" accusation and make amends, not only in attitude, also put into action. In the second half of 2009, "Journey" canceled the "Open treasure box" such as the charging function.

In the same year October, the more inclined to the non-paying players "green journey" launched. The game is known as the first "do not sell materials, do not sell equipment, do not sell treasure box, drop items can not be bound to trade" and other initiatives, so that interests as far as possible not to the RMB players. 5 months after the test, "green journey" the highest number of online people close to 400,000.

However, in the two consecutive quarter (2009 Q4 and 2010 Q1) after the game was launched, the company's net profit fell 31.86% and 20.1% respectively.

Industry believes that the "green journey" is more like the old "journey" of the "emergency remedy version", is not a new growth point of giants.

Until September 16, 2011, the new flagship game "Journey 2" official test, giant network of the glorious era to come again.

In the "Journey 2" research and development period, the spread of Shi Yuzhu and the game's producer Guixe "Angry fall iphone 4" jokes. "Journey 2" has been the Shi Yuzhu "big Apprentice" Guixe fencing, later Shi Yuzhu joined in, Shi Yuzhu found the game design elements and its own led the old "journey" difference larger, think too risky. The two sides had a quarrel in the office.

It turns out that "Journey 2" has assumed the mission of a giant transformation. 2012 The first quarter of the company's net profit of nearly 300 million yuan, an increase of 11.5%. As the "Journey 2" adopted a new pay model, players in the game to upgrade the cost of pulling ARPU value chain, both rise.

"Through the Journey 2" Shi Yuzhu himself in the understanding of the change should be more profound. "Senior player, network game portal 17173 Editor-in-Chief Shintifi said," Guixe's "Journey 2" peak when the breakthrough 541,000 online mark, today is still stable in two hundred thousand or three hundred thousand, to some extent, has surpassed the old history of the leading "journey." He believes that perhaps since then Shi Yuzhu has been determined to retreat from the whole body, the game to the young people's determination.

The prospect of a new game is unknown

"Fairy World" in the "Gemini" Project and "Journey 2" and ranked the same height, but it is not clear whether the expected.

Although the name is still with "journey" two Words, "Journey 2" has been trying to shake off Shi Yuzhu and the old "Journey" shadow.

Shintifi feeling, Guixe through "Journey 2" brought out their own style. "Journey 2" and "Journey" is actually playing a very different two games, the name is also used ' journey ' may be more for the needs of the marketing level. ”

"Journey 2" in the second quarter of last year the highest and the number of online users exceeded 500,000, the number has remained at around 400,000, the growth of active user size into a bottleneck. Analysys International analyst Shi Yong analysis that the "Journey 2" of the number of players have reached a certain level, the main strategy is to enhance the ARPU value of individual users.

"The Journey Series game has been online for 7 years, will face the product life cycle, in the future how to continue to explore the revenue potential of this brand, or find the bar game, is the giant needs to solve the problem." "Shi Yong said.

Since the "Journey 2" officially launched before the giant network in this matter.

June 2012, Shi Yuzhu announced the "Gemini" plan, will be the development of the game "Fairy World" and "Journey 2" and ranked the same height. It is reported that the "fairy World" rate team is following the Shi Yuzhu two times the veteran messages, Ding is also the giant start Game "journey" early core founder of one of the industry nickname "Knife."

"The Fairy World: I am not a journey!" 9-word full-page advertisement appeared on the paper medium. April 19, the game open beta, is not yet online.

"I have probably seen, played a bit, (The Fairy World) is a more traditional fairy model." This subject is now very popular, especially for the first time. "Shintifi said. He played every "journey" game, from the "Journey", "Journey Time Version", "The Journey of Nostalgia version", "Green Journey" to "Journey 2." The giant launched "Fairy World", he is also a preemptive demo.

"First of all, this game technology team reliable, program and code, such as the bottom of the design and ' journey ' in the same line, so that" fairy World "architecture, system stability is more secure. Secondly, the choice of fairy-type theme, according to the needs of the entire market to go. "Shintifi said. "I think there is no problem with this game (the number of online people) breaking 100,000." ”

Start other online games to catch the stick "journey" was defeated

Giant has launched the "giant", "Washi anger" and so on, but are difficult to carry the tripod "Journey" series.

In the history of the giant network, there have been several attempts to start other games to share the "journey" of the financial burden of the series. 2008, the military theme game "Giant" launched, the name is known to be high hopes of the works did not meet expectations. Again, as in the third quarter of 2012, the giant launched the international game acting from Russia "Washi wrath", but its market feedback is not satisfactory.

In the "Fairy World" open beta, the reporter repeatedly log on to the 17173.com home page found that it has always been ranked "new tour expectations" of the top 25, but did not enter the top 10. and "new tour look forward to the list", "popular Game Rankings" in front of the online games, most of the athletics category.

"It's a trend now, and it's going to be a fire for at least ten years." "Shintifi said.

Is this going to be a risk for the fairy World and the giant network?

"The online game market is subdivided into many pieces, each with its own market value." Game manufacturers are based on their good to find business value. Shintifi stressed. After the "Journey" series, it is clear that MMO (large multiplayer online) is the strength of today's giants.

Shi Yuzhu early in the social game once "see Wrong", also directly caused the giant network recently a financial results embarrassing.

On February 26 this year, the giant network released the fourth quarter of 2012, the net profit attributable to shareholders was 82.7 million yuan, a sharp contraction of 73.5% from the previous quarter.

According to earnings, the company's 2008 investment in the 51.com website has done a 240.7 million yuan to reduce the value of the preparation. This means that the Shi Yuzhu of the original investment in the 51.com 51 million dollars in 4.5 of the time shrank by nearly 80%.

2008, social networking site (SNS) is very strong, Shi Yuzhu repeatedly expressed his personal "net swims community ideal". However, with micro-bo, micro-letter in recent years to the impact of SNS, relying on SNS users viscous drive the idea of the game dashed.

Hand Tour: "2013 New strategic Focus"

Mobile Gaming as a mobile internet profit model more clear growth point, is fast growing and outbreak.

Earlier this year, the report showed that China Mobile gaming users paid 5.21 billion yuan in 2012, growth rate of 140.9%, and is expected to accelerate growth this year, while the client game year market share in the last 5 years has fallen 11.4%.

In this industry background, the giant will be the hand of the definition of "2013 new strategic focus." At the fourth quarterly earnings meeting in 2012, at that time, Liu Wei, the company's president, said, "This year (2013) focuses on the formation of research and development teams and products, will be the formation of 2-3 hand-travel research and development team, the overall size will be around 100 people", "at the same time through investment and acquisition to maximize the development of

I-free, general manager of the Chinese company, who has been the agent of "cutting ropes" (cut the Rope) to the domestic market, told the Beijing News reporter that she often got information from the circles about the company's foray into the hands, but didn't feel any pressure from the big companies until the first quarter of this year.

"Hand tour seems to enter the threshold is very low, the development of ideas but with the traditional game is very different, not simply put the end Juanping to move over the good." "she said.

Is the giant not a layout hand to swim? If you just want to live well, it's enough. Unless the giant has a higher pursuit. "Shintifi said. At least from the Shi Yuzhu choose to "leave" to judge, it is true. Shi Yuzhu said, "The internet is not Uncle Generation play", for the giant, he must go.

This time, old history hopes to bring his old "journey" back to the background, the future to the young people.