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Free to play MMO Cronous to launch in India
Lizard Interactive, the makers of free-to-play MMOs Cronous and Sho Online, has made an agreement with Servex of India to bring Cronous over to the Indian MMO audience.The Indian MMO scene is very much like the Asian MMO scene, where internet and gaming cafes dominate the market while at-home users only make up a small percent. To combat this, Lizard and Servex have also teamed up with Sify and Zapak -- two of the largest internet cafe chains in India. These chains will be offering special promotions and incentives for players who choose Cronous, as well as simply promoting the game in their stores.The Indian MMO scene is one of the best marketing choices right now, as the market is uncrowded and quickly gathering steam. This move is very similar to Rappelz's choice to move into the Middle Eastern market, choosing to take the costs of localization in order to tap an untapped player base.Cronous will be launching their Indian website later this month, with game service targeted for the same timeframe as well.
News from the Wider MMO World: August 12, 2008
The MMO genre is more than World of Warcraft, Age of Conan, and Warhammer Online. Here's what's going on in the rest of the world.Trickster Online celebrates the Olympics with new themed itemsEven MMOs get into the spirit of real world competition, and Trickster Online has some themed items for your enjoyment. These masks, hats, and capes will have a particular country's flag on them; collect all five of each and receive a special item of each type. Check them out before the Olympics ends!Outspark Games offer Olympic-style competition within their titlesFrom now until August 24th, San Francisco MMO publisher Outspark will be hosting the Outspark Games, a series of Olympic-styled competitions within their online offerings. Titles Fiesta, Secret of the Solstice, and Project Powder will feature special events in-game. Expect medals to be granted to the top three winners, and increased experience points offered to all participants.More news after the jump!
Aeria adds Diablo-like Cronous to its library
MMO portal Aeria Games has acquired a new game called Cronous, which was originally developed by Lizard Interactive. Cronous' gameplay is similar to that of Diablo, Mythos, or Dungeon Runners. That makes it somewhat unique in Aeria's library, which is otherwise made up mostly of games of a different character such as Dream of Mirror Online and Shaiya.The game's info page lists most of the usual action-RPG features, plus "nonlinear storytelling" with regards to quests, guild castle building and management, and siege warfare. We don't fully understand the nonlinear storytelling bit, although it's included in the press release as one of the major selling points of the game. It sounds cool up front though.Sign-ups are already underway for a closed beta test, so if you want to give the game a try, that's probably your best bet.[Via Ten Ton Hammer]
Sho Online journeys west
Korean MMO developer Lizard Interactive has announced that Sho Online, a fantasy MMO loosely based on historical events in ancient China, will begin open beta testing on April 30th. The open beta will kick off with three events -- 'Quest for the Mysterious Talisman', 'Who's the best?' and 'The King of the Forum' -- which will allow testers to win unique in-game items, available only through these events. Sho Online is actively played in South Korea and Japan, following its initial release in 2006. The 7-day closed beta testing of the English client last month introduced 1000 players to siege warfare between factions of the Yin and Zhou Dynasties, as well as Sho Online's rank promotion and item enhancement systems. Byung-Wook Kim, Project Manager for Sho Online, recently spoke with IGN about what makes the game distinctive from other fantasy titles on the market.
Chinese history meets fantasy in Sho Online
Just in case you have been waiting with bated breath to play Sho Online, an MMO based on an old Chinese mix of history and fantasy, your chance is almost here -- after inviting 1000 beta testers into the game last week, they have reached their final closed beta test event, and open beta seems to be just around the corner.As you can see from the video above, it doesn't look much different from your average Korean MMO, but the Chinese lore and history might add a little bit to the mix that we haven't seen before. There's supposed to be lots of faction warfare involved as well -- the two factions are called Yin and Zhou. Plus, it'll likely be free-to-play, with microtransactions included, which means as a download-and-play distraction, it might be worth a look. Interested?
