I fully get the seasonal peaks and valleys but I was holding out hope for a less steady drop. When I came back almost two years ago the numbers weren’t much higher but were holding at 120 in the MA. It would seem this years decline has started. I’m still going to play of course but probably not as much.
Like many I have been putting in about 3-4 hours a night every night for a while now. Might be time to take some of that time for other pursuits.
I wonder if we hit the cliff already and next years winter bump only gets us to 100 a night if we are lucky. I wonder what the magic number is for subs that would be cause to shut it off for good.
I wonder…
For you personally, I'd think the only question is, are you having fun? If you are having fun at 40 players, then you are having fun at 40 players. A lot of that is a function of map and gameplay design.
People laugh at an IL2 or DCS server with 80 players, but the server is optimized for that number to keep it fun. Size and scaling, 2 sides vs 3.
A 64 player Battlefield 4 server is a rocking mad house of activity and action.
The question of player count is more toward what can keep the company viable and produce enough revenue to fund development and maintain a team. The hardware is already a sunk cost. The fixed costs of electricity and bandwidth are probably not that big. The completely shut it off number is probably pretty small.
Scenarios are probably effected. A 20 player Battle of Britain Scenario is probably a challenge to create a compelling experience.
If you as a player are having $15 of fun at 40 players in the Melee, then let the good times roll.