More than one subscription isn't just expensive, it's necessary.

More than one subscription isn't just expensive, it's necessary.
There are features that you'll find in every single MMORPG - chat functions, inventories, usable items each more shiny than the last, quests, factions, stats, group activities, etc. etc.

Oh yeah and they're online, and you can speak to other people online. That's pretty important too.

But these features don't make an MMORPG fun or exiting (although I always find chatting to strangers fun - this might be why my childhood was so eventful), they simply make a game an MMORPG.
Just as an FPS requires some sort of projectile weapon, an RTS requires some sort of squad you move at command, and a sports simulation requires a complete lack of imagination.

So when faced with such a growing smörgåsbord out there, with the same base ingredients, we have to dig deeper: read the labels over again, remember what the doctor said our dietary limits were, what causes a terrible rash, what makes us drool at the mouth, and most importantly what our budget is.

It might just be opinion to say World Of Warcraft may have slowed the innovation of the MMO genre; creating a winning a formula that anyone and everyone could try and milk for some easy bucks. But it's pretty clear in my mind they reinvented the wheel and no-one seemed to give a shit about coming up with the jet engine any more, "the path of least resistance is currently plated in gold" the publishers have decreed. But as World Of Warcraft slowly grinds to a halt, which it most certainty is according to figures from G4tv.com's MMO Report, creativity will soon be necessary for profit. In the meantime I've been playing alternatives to my five-year post in Azeroth.

"I want fully controllable character customization and regular content updates" City Of Heroes/Villains £8.99 a month.

"...but I also want an innovative crafting system and unbeatable community atmosphere" Lord of the Rings Online £8.99 a month.

"...and a virtual economy I can really influence, with unprecedented player vs. player combat and my own SPACESHIP!" EVE Online £12.99 a month.

For a monthly total of £30.97.

...Not taking into account I had to throw down a base cost of £20 on average per game.

... We soon begin to see there isn't a game out there that will cater to all of a core MMO-player's needs. And as a result it becomes necessary to spend more and more to get an immersive fix. What one game lacks another excels in, and vice versa. Bioware could be the answer to my prayers - a company that cares, enjoyable gameplay, constant updates, AND a space ship? This might just be what the genre needs. I'm sick of spending half my pitiful student loan on subscription fees.

Scurvy isn't attractive, nor is it healthy. But hey I'm staying inside anyway, right?