Age of Conan subs estimated below 100,000

Strong initial sales haven't translated into paying players.

GamesIndustry.biz reports that Funcom has reported a fourth quarter operating loss of USD 23.3 million, due to the poor performance of MMO Age of Conan.

Estimates by DnB NOR Markets peg the current subscriber number of the MMO at under 100,000, a far cry from the touted 700,000 registered players last summer. Earlier this year Funcom announced the merger of many of its Age of Conan servers, creating a more populated experience for players.

Speaking to VideoGamer.com last month AoC product manager, Erling Ellingsen, claimed that the game is "definitely going to exist" and "as long as enough people are playing we're going to keep it running".