Barnett bets on 1m WAR subs in a year
Says it's Vegas to WOW's Blackpool.
Paul Barnett, creative director on Warhammer Online, has been doing some fighting talk. In an interview published today, he told Eurogamer he's personally betting that the game will claim a million subscribers in its first year - and eventually hit the three million mark.
Barnett was also happy to lay in to rival World of Warcraft, calling it "Blackpool" to WAR's "Vegas".
"We're having a staff pool," Barnett said when asked how many subscribers he'd consider a success for the game. "I put down my bet: a million within the year, and then three million."
Barnett was keen to point out this isn't an official projection. "That's just me, personally. That's not Mythic or EA," he said. He noted that, if successful, he could stand to win as much as USD 27 from the pool.
Asked how he'd persuade a dedicated WOW fan to try his game instead, Barnett got in character to deliver the ultimate backhanded compliment to Blizzard's game.
"I really like Blackpool, it's marvellous. Got a tower, you know. They sell fish and chips and it's got a golden mile, a whole mile of things to do," he began.
"But you know what, I went on holiday to Blackpool 17 years in a row. Sometimes you just want to go to Vegas."
For more on Warhammer Online - including how Barnett feels about European publisher GOA, and what you can expect from early updates to the game (some of those cut classes, apparently) - check out the full interview.