Mythic-Entertainment posts

Back in the 1990s, the fantasy RPG Ultima 4 from developer Origin Systems was released for free from a few selected and official sources. A lot of folks believed this made the game freeware. However in fact it doesn't as the game's current owner Electronic Arts still owns the rights to the entire Ultima game franchise.

Now word comes from the fan site Ultima Aiera that EA has been sending cease and desist letters to web sites hosting the Ultima 4 download along with other sites that have hosted Flash-based remakes. Why has EA, after all this time, decided to move on these sites? Ultma Aiera speculates that it may have something to do with a secret project at EA's Mythic Entertainment developer. It bases that speculation on Twitter messages from Mythic's creative director Paul Barnett that hint that it may be Ultima related.

[Via Blue's News]

The Wing Commander series of space-based action game were some of the most popular of the 1990s (hey, it even got a crappy movie adaptation so you know it must be good). However there hasn't been a new game in the Chris Roberts-created series since 1998 (that awful 2007 arcade shooter Wing Commander Arena on Xbox Live Arcade doesn't count).

While publisher Electronic Arts doesn't seem to be interested in making new games in the franchise, the creative director at EA's BioWare Mythic is trying to get the original 1990 Wing Commander to be released for free and without DRM. Paul Barnett is using his Twitter web site to, as he states, "shame ea legal into letting me Do it". Apparently he and other team members have already gotten the game to run on the PC emulator DOSBox and will be pitching their re-release plans to BioWare co-founder Dr. Ray Muzyka later today.

[Via Blue's News]

Two years ago, developer Mythic Entertainment and publisher Electronic Arts finally launched Warhammer Online. The fantasy-themed MMO based on the Games Workshop table top war game had tons of hype before its launch but in the end the game didn't live up to its expectations in terms of subscribers.

However the game has retained a loyal following and is now celebrating its two year anniversary by offering its veteran players some new in-game items. Those items include a Celebratory Cloak (shown above), a Regenerating Firework Launcher and a WAR Double Aegis. In terms of the future of the game, a recent Producer's Letter revealed that Warhammer Online won't be going the "free-to-play" route like many other established MMOs are doing. Instead, the letter states, "What we do plan on introducing is paid services such as server transfers, character renames and other commonly found services."

The launch of Warhammer Online nearly two years ago was highly anticipated for the time. However the fantasy MMO from developer Mythic Entertainment (now called BioWare Mythic) and publisher Electronic Arts failed to meet its high expectations as subscribers left the game in droves just months after its September 2008 launch. The development team has also had to deal with a series of layoffs.

However, in a new chat at Eurogamer, BioWare Mythic general manager Eugene Evans is optimistic on the future of Warhammer Online, saying, "We're still running it. The game is profitable. We have a team that's engaged in it. We're seeing a great response from the community as they rediscover the game." While the developer will not comment on the game's current subscriber numbners, Evans did say "tens of thousands of players" each month are discovering the game since the launch of the "Endless Trial" version which allows gamers to play the game for free up to a point.

While Electronic Arts has handled publishing Warhammer Online in the US, its been a different matter in Europe as GOA has been in charge of publishing and operating the fantasy MMO from developer BioWare Mythic. This week the game is in the middler of a transition as GOA transfers control over the game in Europe directly to EA.

The Warhammer Online European web site has all the details about the transfer and what it means to the game's players on the other side of the pond. The game's servers will be hosted in Germany when they are fully back online. The game will also no longer support pre-paid cards and GOA's three or six month subscriptions in Europe will shut down. Players with such subscriptions will have their money refunded. The nice bit? European players will get two free weeks of play time online under the new EA/BioWare Mythic reign.

Developer Mythic Entertainment, the creators of the fantasy MMO Warhammer Online, are changing their name once again. When the Virginia-based company got bought by Electronic Arts several years ago it was renamed as EA Mythic. It went back to Mythic Entertainment just before the launch of Warhammer Online in 2008.

Now, in a case of "burying the lead" in the latest producer's letter on the Warhammer Online community site, it was mentioned that the developer has changed its name yet again to BioWare Mythic. The newest change is most likely due to the decision made in June 2009 to put all of EA's MMO and RPG development studios under one division to be headed up by BioWare co-founder Ray Muzyka. Mythic continues to support Warhammer Online as it launched an "endless trial" of the game as well as a Mac port in 2009.

[Via Massively]

The free-to-play multiplayer action-RPG Mytheon is getting close to its launch here in the US but soon folks across the ocean will be able to play the title as well. Today the game's publisher UTV True Games announced it has entered into an agreement with gamigo to bring Mytheon to Europe.

While there's no word yet on when the game will be launched in Europe, the new agreement will give gamigo the rights to publish and operate Mytheon in that part of the world. The game from developer Petroglyph is currently in beta testing in the US and will officially launch on July 13.

[via email press release]

The owners of the Warhammer game franchise, Games Workshop, have decided to target a site devoted to coverage of the MMO game Warhammer Online. The web site, Warhammer Alliance, is now being sued by Games Workshop for trademark violations. A copy of the lawsuit, which was actually first filed on March 29, is now posted on the Warhammer Alliance web site.

The suit alleges that the name Warhammer Alliance "literally states and implies that Defendants and their business are in an
"alliance" with Plaintiff and its products and services offered under the WARHAMMER Marks." The web site has responded to the lawsuit, saying WarhammerAlliance.com has been live since 2005 and that they put a disclaimer on the site saying it was not an official Warhammer web site at the request of Games Workshop. They even posted up interviews with Games Workshop's Licensing Manager in 2006. Now a statement from the owners of the site, Curse.com, says they were "shock and surprised" by Game Workshop's actions, saying, "We feel this is a blatant disregard of the needs of Warhammer fans, and the community we've worked hard to set up.

Playing an MMO game is a time consuming tasks for most players. They certainly shouldn't have to deal with issues about their monthly subscription bill. Yet that's what many players of Warhammer Online had to deal with this week as their bank accounts mistakenly got charged multiple times for what should have been just one monthly $14.95 fee.

Developer Mythic Entertainment, however, moved quickly to solve the situation and on Friday announced on their official web site, ". . . we have received confirmation that the charges have been reversed" (although they added that it could take up to three business days for the reversal to be reflected on player's accounts). They added, "We regret any difficulty this event may have caused you, and we remain dedicated to resolving the issue with our vendors and customers." There is still no explanation on why players were overcharged on their accounts.

Electronic Arts' fantasy MMO game Warhammer Online has perhaps not lived up to expectations since its launch in September 2008. Now the publisher and the game's developer Mythic Entertainment are giving gamers a way to access the full game by paying just the monthly fee, bypassing the game's up front price.

Simply download the 10 day free trial for the game and if you want to get the full version you can upgrade that trial version by simply paying for its monthly subscription fee. If you still buy the full game via a brick-and-mortar store or download outlet you still get 30 days of free online play.