BuzzerBeater Forums

Basically, a company wants to earn money and when it takes over something that already exists, it sees a monetization potential that it wants to tap into.

The question now is how far the company will go to achieve this.

You can promise all sorts of things now to keep people engaged, and still just do it differently later to make more money. If they see an opportunity to generate 100k+ users here and make more money than with the remaining 15k hardcore users, then there is a certain probability that this path will be followed, with all the consequences. The bigger the company, the higher the probability of this path.

There is, of course, another path: Preserving the charm and soul of the game, growing and modernizing at a leisurely pace, and still making a profit. Of course, there is nothing wrong with making a profit per se, we are (thank God) not in socialism here and BB is not open source (even open source, i.e. a community project, would not manage without funding). The question is simply how hard monetization will be pushed.

For my part, I'll wait and see. If certain things become apparent here, e.g. massive schedule speeding up (significantly shortened seasons, multiple training sessions a week), microtransactions, some infantile stuff for young target groups…, then BB would no longer be for me and I would be out, one hobby less. The new owner can promise a lot now ("no pay to win", "community involvement"), time will tell what will come of it.

(Around here since 2009, long time supporter, even donated)

Discord is more functional than the forums currently and easier to have actual conversations and get quick responses. That discord is also brand new which is likely why BB-Marco was on there. He has since responded to questions in here too.

Respectfully, feedback from the new owners/developers needs to be posted on ALL channels including the forums here. Otherwise it looks like they have something to hide.

Right now we've seen exactly one post from BB-Marco here on the forums. I'm guessing he has been quite a bit more active on Discord. That's not an acceptable ratio of communication between Discord and the forums.

Further, pessimism is certainly warranted when there is a history of games like this being radically changed to "modernize" them. Until the new owners prove otherwise current managers have a duty to be vocal and hold their feet to the proverbial fire.

Last edited by lvess at 6/19/2024 5:07:44 PM

I have played since season 3 and, like many, have mixed feelings.

More often than not, when a company buys an existing product, especially in the realm we are in, monetization is their number one goal. In BB this could mean that Supporter gets more expensive, which i would even be ok up until a certain point, but it could also mean that people could get benefit by paying more real life money, i.e. better Coaches ect. These things happened before and to a degree, it will be reasonableto think that this is the case here too. I know Marco said it wont happen like that, but we will see what future brings

The visuals of this game are what i like most. Its not this usual colorful and graphic heavy site. It gives you a feeling of nostalgia, but im not at all against

However, a certain visual upgrade certainly is appreciated.

I am more than willing to let these guys suprise me as i, and im not alone im sure, have been losing interest, though the last seasons got me back in because i love developing Nationals in lower leagues, send them off and rebuild again.

Only time will tell.

Just wanted to wholeheartedly congratulate BB-Marco on the new purchase and I hope it will be a win/win outcome for all involved. Truly an exciting time as the game enters a new and promising chapter!

I'd also love to thank the previous owners for their efforts and dedication to keep this game running, which has become a big part of my life due to it's slow, long-term nature and excitement it brings.

I truly wish the new ownership all the very best and hope that the game remains unique for the reasons we all love it. It is slower-paced, which creates an aspect of realism that no other game brings, and a sole reason why many of us stick around. I also hope it never turns to pay-to-win, however some additional Supporter incentives could be a way to go (e.g. more customisation options for the club, match viewer, etc.).

I got my friend onto this game too, and he also loves it because he gets to look forward to games, watch them live and feel like it evolves in real-time, over the course of days and months. It's not a game you play a few times and forget. The fact this is not a short-term game, or a set-and-forget scenario, makes the core player base of this game so rusted on!

From my humble marketing experience POV, I think with some promotional activity on the socials, and a good facelift, this game can take off to new levels. Also integrating advertising into the actual match viewer (both, on desktop and mobile) with ads before, quarter time, half-time and full-time could be another source of revenue, without impeding the user experience.

Also a series of video tutorials explaining the basics of the game could be VERY benefitical to help new players understand it and, ultimately stick around for the long-run. That's just my 5 cents.

I think we are all a little bit anxious in the sense that BB is so unique from other games, that it is almost our getaway from the 'regular' games and we are scared to see that change. Nothing is quite like it. However I have every confidence that the game will continue to grow under the new ownership and become bigger than ever before.

This is a game with so much potential, which can reach the heights that the Football Manager franchise achieved.

With that said, thanks again for reading this and I wish you the very best of luck, and once again congratulate you on becoming the new owner and adopting all of us as a rusted-on player base to build upon! I hope this will be a great investment for you


Last edited by Boggie at 6/19/2024 11:29:57 PM

Long time player here I'm not exactly sure how long but probably at 10 years ish. Best of luck to me owners and team!

I hope it doesn't change to pay to win format.

I hope some of the changes can be more ways for teams to make money. There is not an organization in the world that would open their arena to public and let them watch a free sporting event scrimmage or not. Maybe more control of stuff like merchandise sales and clearer benefits from infrastructure upgrades would be nice instead of it sounding theoretical like you may or may not get something.

To those anxious about UI/UX changes, they don't necessarily mean more colorfol or flashy interfaces with screaming images. What I expect and deem necessary is that the interface and flow through the site/app becomes more intuitive and users (especially new ones) can quickly find the information they need to play the game in the place where they need it (not after some search on the forums or having to wait for an answer to their question. I'm glad a new user took the time to share this view here.

Also, if the new owners do want to completely change the game with pay-to-win and a whole different pace/dynamic, why would they spend a lot of money buying this game and modernizing it instead of just building a new app from scratch? They have nothing to gain form changing this game's core and alienating the userbase, that would be throwing away what they just bought. Have a little faith