Why do game servers shut down?

[the-pi-guy]

1.) What is the $60 subscription paying for?

2.) Why isn't there a cloud infrastructure so that there aren't any game dedicated servers?

[kitler53]

well first off,.. i agree.

[kitler53]

but seriously, i do think there is some none-zero effort required outside of actual hardware.   when the game's community is so dead they don't want to afford to pay that salary then the game's online dies.   in theory no one cares because the game is dead already.

it's part of why i do not care for pvp.   i don't like that the game's value to me is dependent on other people playing the game.    i much prefer co-op where at least in theory i can always find someone to play online with because we are friends outside the game and made plans to play.  

but back to your point,.. what does the $60 for online gameplay really go?   ...doesn't seem like it actually goes to online gameplay which is mostly something the individual pub/dev is responsible for.  feels like a rip off.


i predict xbox/playstation will drop that one of these days.   online games are moving more and more towards f2p which doesn't actually have the paywall requirement anyways.   i'd be a payed subscriber just for game library, cloud saves, and discounts.  i easily save $45 dollars a year just in discounts.   there are probably a few other easy to implement benefits MSony can think up to make the sub worth it even without the online gaming requirement.   release day pre-loading.  cloud access to digital library.  share play.  party chat.  

[Legend]

Maybe this can be the new thing people demand, like crossplay from last gen.

I think it's irresponsible to develop regular online games without long term legacy plans. If no one is playing, then the server hosting can be incredibly cheap. Especially so if the game is now a decade old and server hardware has improved.

1.) What is the $60 subscription paying for?

2.) Why isn't there a cloud infrastructure so that there aren't any game dedicated servers?

PS+ pays for certain basic features but that's it.