archlord posts

UK-based Codemasters launched the Western version of the Korean-created MMO Archlord back in 2006. Later the game turned into a free-to-play downloadable title. Today, however, Codemasters announced that it will be losing the rights to host the North American and European servers for the game after October 1. Codemasters states in a message on the game's offical web site that they could not come to a new agreement with the Korean developers of the game.

According to the site, the game will transition over to a new publisher, Webzen. However there's no word on when or even if the US and Euopean servers will come back online after Codemasters shuts down their servers. The publisher previously shut down another Korean-developed MMO, RF Online, in 2008. Codemasters still plans to launch Netdevil's space-based MMO Jumpgate Evolution although a specfic launch date was not announced.

Update: Webzen's web site says they will take over the game for the North American and European territories on October 3.

Your daily wrap-up of the hottest stories in PC gaming over the weekend.

	Freeware Friday: Battleships Forever This Friday brings us to all the way back to the very first Freeware Friday. Warning Forever, that classic I championed in the first article of this fine column, inspired a strategy game that has been nominated for an IGF award. It's also an excellent game, and will suck your life away if you give into the siren call of the custom content through manipulating the robust ship maker. I am, of course, talking about Battleships Forever by Sean "th15" Chan.
	Steam Saturday: 6/21/08 This week (and probably many other weeks to follow), Valve owns the world of PC gaming. In addition to a week filled with excellent Team Fortress 2 news and excellent gaming compilations, two new games and two excellent weekend sales have made their way to the Steam digital distribution platform. Yes, we think it's safe to classify Steam as its own platform.
	New gameplay videos coincide with Alone in the Dark release The game that reboots the Alone in the Dark franchise hit retail shelves in Europe on Friday. It will release in North America on Tuesday. The reviews are trickling in, and so far it sounds like the game is a work of flawed genius. But reviews aren't the only harbingers of the the imminent release.
	Eidos launches Tomb Raider Portal website For Lara Croft fans, there's a new home for you on the 'Net. Tomb Raider Portal is to be your destination for all TR-related news. This is especially timely considering that the latest iteration of the franchise, Tomb Raider: Underworld, will be launching in November, on nearly every significant gaming platform.
	ArchLord receives 3rd free expansion ArchLord, Codemasters' free MMORPG, still seems to be going strong. Codemasters announced today the addition of a new free expansion (much like the Issues in City of Heroes or the 2.x patches in World of Warcraft) which increases the game world significantly. The expansion, along with the extra zone content additions, will also include a rebalancing as well as many new skills and items. The expansion isn't live yet, but Ed Relf of Codemasters says that it's "coming soon". It may have been reviewed poorly, but this free MMORPG still has some life left in her!

ArchLord, Codemasters' free MMORPG, still seems to be going strong. Codemasters announced today the addition of a new free expansion (much like the Issues in City of Heroes or the 2.x patches in World of Warcraft) which increases the game world significantly. The expansion, along with the extra zone content additions, will also include a rebalancing as well as many new skills and items. The expansion isn't live yet, but Ed Relf of Codemasters says that it's "coming soon". It may have been reviewed poorly, but this free MMORPG still has some life left in her!

Codemasters Online has announced ArchLord, its subscription-free MMORPG, has reached a landmark 500,000 players.

In the game, players are challenged to raise an army to become the universe's ultimate ruler, the ArchLord. Originally a subscription based fantasy adventure, the NHN Corporation developed title switched to a free-play model in August 2007 and has seen significant growth since.

"ArchLord is a premier free-to-play MMORPG offering significantly more depth and quality than most other free-to-play games," commented Ed Relf, director of marketing for Codemasters Online. "This recent achievement solidifies our commitment to the ongoing development and success of the game."

With the announcement Codemasters Online also reaffirmed that ArchLord: Episode 3, the upcoming free content update for ArchLord, is expected to release later this year.

Download the free-to-play client for Archlord from Big Download today!

[via IGN]

UK based Codemasters has been publishing more and more MMO titles since it first started in 2006. It's had some mixed results; it was the European distributor for Turbine's two current titles Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons and Dragons Online. However two Korean imported MMO titles, Archlord and RF Online, had to switch to free-to-play models in order to survive. Codemasters will be the distributor for Netdevil's upcoming space-based MMO revamp, Jumpgate Revolution, later this fall

However, Codemasters remains committed to the MMO space. So committed, in fact, that they are considering developing even more MMO titles in-house. In a new interview at Gamesindustry.biz, Codemasters' MMO head David Solari states, "We always had a five year plan and it was always in the middle of that five year plan that we would start developing our own games. We are looking at that and we have to think very carefully about what title is right, what will work in the future." It's interesting that Codemasters seems very confident in the MMO space where other larger publishers have so far failed to make much of a run.