Meursault wrote on Apr 29
th, 2016 at 10:00am:
I can't see how renewing a license for a game based on rules 2 versions behind would hurt Hasbro, so I doubt they pulled the plug, but your statement that moving would be costly contradicts your earlier speculation that WB gave them the space. You can't get much cheaper than free
There's still a cost involved in moving the servers... Even if they were given the hardware and datacenter space for free, there's the time spent by the on site guys getting the servers configured ( badly ) and somewhat ready for the onslaught of players, as well as the dubious cost of preparing the installs said guys rolled out on the servers. There's the connectivity cost ( adding pseudowires and stiff has a a cost ), and a few more thing...
Overall, even with Free rent and hardware the cost to move something like DDO ( based on what I know of the front end and the back end infrastructure of the game ) is more important than the cost of the 4/5 rack cabinets and the connectivity for 3 months at a datacenter.
Especially when you add the GLS server move and the Web server move to the heap.
It's also a KISS principle : you know the thing is going to be dead in 3 months, why should you bother doing something that will get you some bad image ( you know it's going to be that way since it occured for AC and LoTRO before ), and cost you more money ?
As other said : the game is based on an out of print edition... Why should Hasbro bother killing it as long as they get their share of the revenues each year.
They might consider killing it when the Dungeon and Dragon Movie comes out and if they have something else to put in it's place ( Neverwinter is NOT that something else, and would be killed at the same time ). But Hasbro is not Saul Zaentz ( aka Middle Earth Enterprise ) and they are probably not going to bother, as long as money comes in.