Analyst Downgrades Blizzard Stock in Anticipation of SWTOR Launch

Could Blizzard lose more fans as the SWTOR launch date approaches? It’s been called a WoW-killer before but one analyst believes Blizzard stock might take a hit as SWTOR launches.

Earlier this month, Activision Blizzard revealed that WOW subscriptions had fallen by 10 percent since March, dropping to 10.3 million worldwide. Now Gamespot reports that age and increased competition for the MMOG market can cause Blizzard to lose more stock.

This article explains:

In an investor note today, Lazard Capital Markets analyst Atul Bagga expressed pessimism over WOW’s ability to reverse its negative trend. In the process, Bagga downgraded Activision Blizzard’s stock from “buy” to “neutral.”

Bagga’s move was primarily motivated by a Lazard Capital Markets survey of online players, which was conducted in conjunction with Peanut Labs earlier this month and polled 381 online gamers. The study found that WOW’s age, as well as increased competition, could lead to an exodus of 900,000 to 1.6 million players following the launch of EA’s Star Wars: The Old Republic in December.

WoW’s age is one excuse being given as to why the players are becoming bored and looking for something new. Nearly everyone who was there when the game first launched has reached end-game content, max level characters and all that there is to do in the game. Many players leave because their friends have moved on to other MMORPGs.

The common factor in most places who leave the game is boredom. Some have just been playing it for way too long and they’re ready to see something new. SWTOR has that new factor to offer many gamers.

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Lisa Clark

Lisa has been an avid gamer since she was old enough to hold her first controller and a game writer for more than a decade. A child of the Nintendo generation, she believes they just don’t make games like they used to but sometimes, they make them even better! While consoles will always be her first love, Lisa spends most of her gaming time on the PC these days- on MMOs and first-person shooters in particular.