Ed Fries
"Some games are diminishing WoW Cataclysm Classic 's (WOW) position, with Warhammer Online and Age of Conan being the two major ones--but it's due to their expansion than any decrease on the part of WOW," said Screen Digest senior analyst Piers Harding-Rolls, speaking to the BBC. "WOW's percentage of market shares was 60% in 2007 and the number was 58 percent in 2008 but when it comes to revenues, it grew year-on-year."

The study states that there are more than 220 games that fall under the MMOG category, however Screen Digest says that many are only available for South East Asia. Harding-Rolls further stated that the ongoing release of new MMOGs and the different payment methods and titles that are based on demographics, have helped to ward off the current economic downturn.

"If you take the case of RuneScape the game is a game aimed to a young player," said Harding-Rolls. "You can play the game without cost, or pay a premium to get an improved service with no advertising. It's a good method to create a subscriber base instead of the traditional ways that require publicity, hype, and an experience that must be perfect from the beginning."

Screen Digest's research also revealed the 10 most popular games with subscriptions in terms of cost. According to the firm's research, the rankings do not show the entire user base and certain games, like Mythic Ttainment's Warhammer Online, were released way too late to have an impact on the accounts. Screen Digest's Top 10 revenue-generating games are listed below.

10 Most popular Subscription Games in terms of spending 1.) WoW Cataclysm Classic ) Club Penguin 3) RuneScape 4) Eve Online 5) WoW Cataclysm Classic) The Lord of the Rings Online 7) Dofus 8) Age of Conan 9) City of Heroes 10) EverQuest II

US PC Charts Mar. 1--7 Empire earnings WoW Cataclysm Classic on the retail

Its NPD Group's daily US PC retail sales charts generally do not change from one reporting cycle to the following one and as Blizzard Entertainment's WoW Cataclysm Classic franchise jockeys for position against the EA Sims catalog. This was not the case during the week between March 1 and 7 however, when the debut of two games and a revived hugely multiplayer game along with a resilient strategy game changed the NPD's normal chart.

Sega as well as Creative Assembly's Empire: WoW Cataclysm Classic had a dazzling debut since the standard edition topped NPD's charts while the collector's edition slipped into the seventh spot. It could be due to the launch of two new classes playable, Mythic tainment's Warhammer Online rose from obscurity to rank third, a spot close to Blizzard's yearly top-of-the-line WoW Cataclysm Classic: Wrath of the Lich King.