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New Mythos concept art shows signs of life
It's been some time since we've seen proof of the existence of Frogster and Hanbitsoft's European relaunch of Flagship's canned action-MMORPG, Mythos. Today, the new developer revealed the game does indeed have a pulse, as evidenced by a handful of recently released concept art renders.
Still clicking: Our exclusive interview with the Mythos dev team
Considering Mythos' stormy post-Flagship past and its relatively low profile over the past half year, we were pleased to see the team at Redbana unveil a website revamp last month, complete with a slew of vibrant new screenshots to tease the upcoming closed beta. The infrastructure revealed in the images suggests that the game has come a long way since we last checked in with the team; although many players might once have pigeon-holed Mythos as "just another Diablo clone," it's now maturing into a hybrid MMORPG that seems to have as much in common with Blizzard's other fantasy game as with the click-fests of yesteryear. Curious, we commandeered the team at Redbana in order to ask about the progress of the game. Meet up with us after the break as we discuss the transition to Redbana, overcoming the Diablo stigma, camera perspectives, map travel, character customization, and the likelihood that Mythos will be free-to-play. Oh, and did I mention you can play satyrs and cyclopes?!
Frogster bringing Mythos Europe back online
"The premature dropping of Mythos before its release was a real loss for the genre." That's the opinion of Frogster's Andreas Weidenhaupt regarding Mythos Europe, and that loss is about to be remedied. We do have a few preliminary -- and exciting -- details for the time being. Mythos will re-enter the European market with an open beta in Q4 of this year, and launch is planned for Q1 2011 at the latest. The game will support five languages, including English, German, and Turkish, and will follow a free-to-play business model. A basic Mythos Europe site is up now, with the promise of a "full website coming soon." Impatient for more now? Sign up for the newsletter on the site's front page, and don't forget take a look at our Mythos gallery and teaser trailer below. %Gallery-10781%
Redbana releases Mythos screens, relaunches website
Redbana has let loose a little bit of new information regarding their upcoming Mythos MMORPG. Along with revamping the game's official website, the North American publisher has released five new screenshots of the title in action. The shots show everything from the user interface, to the in-game map, to dungeon and outdoor combat. Mythos, a Diablo-esque dungeon crawler, was originally produced at Flagship Studios before being acquired by HanbitSoft, and features a classic isometric perspective along with a deep itemization system. Check out the new screens that we've collected for you in the gallery below, and don't forget to stop by the game's new website. %Gallery-10781%
Mythos reveals Pyromancer art
Redbana has released new artwork of the Pyromancer class in their upcoming Mythos MMORPG. The title, originally developed by Travis Baldree (FATE, Torchlight) at Flagship Studios but now the property of HanbitSoft, is a Diablo-style dungeon crawler, complete with isometric perspective and high levels of itemization and randomization. Redbana is the North American publisher for Mythos, and has released the Pyromancer screens as the first of what promises to be a steady stream of information that will lead up to the beta tests and full release later this year. The Pyromancer, as you might expect, relies on fiery magic to burn enemies into submission, and fans can get a leg up on checking out the sorcery and other game elements by signing up for the Mythos newsletter at the official website. %Gallery-10781%
Mythos XTR-50 speakers exude aircraft style, remain grounded by price tag
Let's get this out of the way: at 38mm (1.5 inches) thick, these Mythos XTR-50 speakers are not the "world's thinnest," no matter what manufacturer Definitive Technology might have you believe -- JVC dropped 31mm satellites onto our secret wishlists just last fall. But unless you live in Japan, the Mythos XTR-50 may be the thinnest speakers you can actually buy. Made completely from aircraft grade aluminum, the enclosure houses six domed drivers and a tweeter, themselves shaped from aluminum, and connected with copper-covered aluminum wire. Why all the aluminum, you ask? The obvious reason is that -- in moderation -- it's lighter and stronger than alternative materials, which contributes to these satellites' luscious curves, but it also means that the entire assembly acts as a giant heatsink. Logical design -- who would have believed it. Too bad the units cost $700 each, and you'll need at least two -- if not five -- to get the full effect.
Mythos releases first developer diary: Getting Started In Uld
Remember Mythos? The game has been largely under the radar, but still progressing. Since being picked up by Redbana, Mythos has seen a newly-revamped website with a lot of new information and has begun taking signups for closed beta. Even more recently, the folks at Redbana spent some time with us, discussing Mythos' development. New information continues to emerge regularly, and now we have a brand new developer diary added to the mix. Dev Diary 001, hosted at Warcry, is entitled Getting Started in Uld, and is pretty much what you'd expect: a guide to your first visit in the land of Uld. Dev Diary 001 will give you an overview of your first mission in the game as well as some tips on traveling, crafting, and personal achievements in-game. It's a great peek inside the game, and offers a feel for how the basics will work. Take a look at the diary here, and we'll keep our eyes peeled for more!
Massively's interview with Mythos: gearing up for launch
Today marks another milestone for the almost-forgotten Mythos MMO. As we mentioned a few months ago, the Diablo-esque game has been resurrected and we can now report that it has been picked up by Redbana US. New closed beta registration was started in August and we're well on our way to actually getting this game launched. With this new information, we assembled some questions (thanks to former Managing Editor, Michael Zenke for most of these questions) for the Mythos team on this special occasion. So the milestone at this stage of the game's life is a newly-revamped website, just released and announced today. Check it out for a teaser video, lore entries, their brand new forums and much more!
The Digital Continuum: Torchlight my fire
For the past week I've been delving deep into the dungeons of Runic Games' Torchlight and found the experience to be nothing short of joyous. Granted, like many other people I also wish some kind of co-op shipped with the game (even over LAN) but thankfully the developer's next project will be an MMO built upon the foundation laid down by last week's release. My joy for this game most definitely bleeds into its MMO incarnation, which has led to far too much thinking on additions I'd like to see made. So this week, I'm going to get them all off my chest in the hopes that I'll stop obsessing over them. Of course, there's never a guarantee with these things.
An insight into the art of Torchlight
While many eyes are glued to the revitalization of the Mythos IP, many other eyes are looking in the direction of Runic Games's Torchlight. For those not in the know, Torchlight is being made by the original Mythos team -- the ones who were on staff at the time of Flagship Studios's untimely closing -- while Mythos is now in the hands of HanbitSoft, the publisher who had a massive stake in Flagship.While Torchlight won't be ready for the MMO scene anytime soon, the developers are still coming up with the single-player game that will be the base component for the MMO edition. With that in mind, we'd thought you'd like to check out this Gamasutra article that focuses on the art style and history of Torchlight and how exactly Mythos has impacted that style. It's a great read (although it's a little long at six pages of narrative) and a must see for all fans of the upcoming action RPG.
PAX 2009: Hands-on with Torchlight
We never thought a completely new game would rise from the ashes of Mythos in just over a year, but that's exactly what Torchlight represents. We played through Torchlight for half an hour at the show, and it's a delightful action RPG that looks like a cartoon version of Diablo ... which doesn't mean it's for toddlers. There's still killing of the smashing, bashing and magical varieties throughout this thing, you know!%Gallery-72098%
Mythos teaser and closed beta registration page emerges
Things are stirring behind the scenes in the world of Mythos, the little MMO that could. A newly launched site offers a very small teaser, but also, a closed beta registration form which is of far more interest. While Mythos was much-loved in its previous form, we don't doubt the followers of the Diablo-esque dungeon-crawler are keen to see if the magic is still there in HanbitSoft's re-envisioning.If you're not up on the history of this title, now (at its new beginning) seems a good time for us to sum things up. It started out as a way for Flagship Studios to test their networking technology for the then-upcoming Hellgate: London, but soon grew into a popular game in its own right through a widespread closed beta test. It was all set to transition from experiment to fully-fledged title and move into open beta when the well-documented trouble at Flagship derailed the whole thing. However, Flagship's Korean publisher HanbitSoft acquired the game's license and decided to make use of it. They reassured eager fans only a few months ago that Mythos would be re-born better than ever. Only time will tell if that's true, but with this new closed beta registration, it shouldn't be too long before a select group finds out for themselves. In the meantime, all of the old Mythos devs will be working away on Torchlight at Runic Games. Torchlight undoubtedly stands to be significant competition for Mythos in the future, but it won't be ready (in its MMO form at least) any time soon.
E3 2009: A complete roundup of Massively's coverage
Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009 proved to be a significant event for the gaming industry once again, with a fair amount of news and announcements related to MMOs. Massively was there on the ground for E3 this year and we've been putting up breaking announcements, interviews, and hands-on previews throughout. Given how much info came out of E3 on Massively, here's a roundup of our coverage, day-by-day. Be sure to check out the rest after the jump as there's plenty more content, plus you'll find E3 galleries for these games as you click through. To cap it all off, we've also put together an E3 2009 wrapup video for you at the end of this post. Read on to see where the MMO industry is headed in the next year and beyond! Day One Star Wars: The Old Republic world's first fully-voiced MMO Final Fantasy XIV announced Jumpgate Evolution releases E3 trailer EA to publish All Points Bulletin in 2010 PlayStation Home hits 6.5 million accounts Trion World Network unveils Heroes of Telara Massively's day 1 video from the E3 floor
E3 2009: Torchlight will morph from single player game to MMO
Coming from the desginers who made Diablo, Mythos, Mythos II and Fate, we're expecting quite a lot from their new title, Torchlight. This classic Diablo style 2D hack-and-slasher can in every way be considered the spiritual successor to Mythos, and in some ways even more closer to the original Diablo. For instance, Torchlight is a town with another world underneath it -- that and it's going to be a single player RPG before it goes MMO. But rest assured, it will go MMO in a year to a year and a half.First, we'll discuss features that will exist at singleplayer launch later this year, then we'll cover the new elements planned when the game expands into a massively multiplayer game. Check it all out after the jump along with gameplay footage, complete with Felicia Day of The Guild trying her hand at a beta version of the Action RPG.%Gallery-65189%
HanbitSoft: Mythos has a pulse
It appears the sordid history of Mythos has been sorted out, with HanbitSoft ready to move forward with the project. The Korean developer tells Eurogamer that the company is doing its "best to make the game globally popular."Mythos designer "Alboos" has posted in his/her/its first update that the game is being "reconstructed" to be suitable as an online game, incorporating many popular aspects from games like Diablo. But, isn't that what Diablo III is for?
We're assured that Mythos is coming back
Mythos seems to hold a cult fan status among those who were lucky enough to play the game before last year's Flagship kerfuffle unceremoniously halted the games' production -- and with good reason. The game was a lot of fun, as all those cult fans know. Which is why we're torn about this news.It appears as though Hanbitsoft -- the Korean developer who picked up the rights to Mythos last year -- has come out and said they fully intend to bring the game back into the world. They've also said they realize the game is basically inspired fully by Diablo, and plan to, "-put in more content for more exciting multiplayer." That's great and all, but we worry that the beta that we played last year and this retooled Korean flavored version aren't going to elicit the same kind of excitement.This is also compounded by the fact that, well, the original Mythos team has already formed Runic Games and will be presenting their spiritual successor to Mythos, entitled Torchlight, at E3 in just about a month. Now, while Torchlight is only a single player RPG for the time being, Runic has clearly stated their plans to build it into an MMO down the road. So for now, with one game the closer, we'll just decide to be excited for E3 come early June.
Runic Games interview digs deeper into the Torchlight MMO
Earlier last month we learned a bit more regarding a resurrection of the Mythos team in a new project entitled Torchlight. Apparently, this game will begin life as a single-player game, then eventually branch out into an MMO. Although not much is known about this MMO and how much Mythos influence it will hold, a recent interview at Gamasutra sheds a bit more light on what we can expect from Runic Games.The Torchlight MMO is said to be modeled after a Diablo-style game mechanic. With the 22-person Runic Games team being comprised of mostly Diablo and Mythos vets, the familiarity will certainly be there. "Obviously it's the same style, but again, they're working on an established IP that has its own look, and its own story and its own tone, and they're not doing, as far as I know, a traditional MMO," says co-creator Max Schaefer. "[It's] more in the BattleNet style that Diablo II was in."
Ex-Mythos devs discuss upcoming MMO project at Runic Games
A few of us on the Massively staff were gutted when Mythos became a casualty of the Flagship Studios closure. We later learned that some of the former Mythos devs had formed a new studio called Runic Games; just the other day we picked up on a partnership between Runic Games and Perfect World to release a new title called Torchlight. Aside from this, we'd heard precious little about what's in the works at Runic Games, but an interview we've come across sheds some more light on what the former Mythos devs have been up to. Travis Baldree from Runic Games discusses how they're building Torchlight as an MMO, although its first incarnation will be a single player title, one that actively supports modders. The interview also discusses the story and art of Torchlight, as well as its music, programming, and the toolsets which will be made available to players. In fact, Runic Games' Greg Brown says, "Hopefully, nearly everything I've been working on will be usable by players who want to modify the game." If you were interested by what you saw of Mythos and want to know what those devs have in store for gamers with Torchlight, you'll want to give the interview a read at the Runic Insider site.
Runic Games partners with MMO portal Perfect World for their upcoming game
Perfect World Entertainment, the MMO portal of the self-titled Perfect World International and Ether Saga Online, has announced a partnership between themselves and the phoenix game studio Runic Games for the publishing rights of the upcoming MMO, Torchlight.This is a large step forward for Runic Games, the previous Mythos game team of the now defunct Flagship Studios. Their agreement with Perfect World is for global publishing rights, meaning Torchlight could be seeing an international release.Little is currently known about Torchlight, other than the game will be focusing on a single city and centered around the acquisition of a magical ore that imbues equipment with power, but also has a downside to it as well. The game has a bit of a cartoony, playful character to it, as seen in some early concept art shown on the main Runic Games website.
HanbitSoft plans Hellgate: London relaunch and new expansion
The Hellgate: London IP saga continues. While we had some dire news that the servers will go dark at the end of January, we also know that development for the title is still being done in Redbana's California office... just not for which region. The latest word we've received on this seems to indicate the continuity of Hellgate: London, but to date this is only confirmed for service in Asia -- so we cannot (yet) offer a definitive, "Yes, HG:L will continue for North America and EU." That being said, Gamasutra has picked up on company blog posts by HanbitSoft's Global PR Manager, Janelle. One is a definitive announcement that HanbitSoft owns both the Hellgate: London and Mythos IP, while the other is more telling. Janelle republished an email sent from Hellgate: London's Product Manager about the future of the title.The message in its entirety, as shown on the Game Espresso site for HanbitSoft, is reprinted below the cut.
