Chronicles of Spellborn Release Dates
Now you avid readers of the site might remember that way back in February Tiny Dancer posted a video for the European developed MMO, The Chronicles of Spellborn. Truth is that I've actually been following the development of this game for nearly two years now, and am quite anxious to see what the final product of the game is like. I'm here to admit that the game actually fell off my radar for a while, partially due to Warhammer Online and the World of Warcraft Expansion that were released in the past months; however, it appears that Spellborn itself is due to launch at the end of this month (the 27th of Nov.) in many parts of Europe. It's currently coming out of closed beta and entering an open beta there too. The more exciting news for me and my English speaking allies is that the U.K. and North American publisher, Acclaim, has announced that they will be starting closed beta for their regions on the European launch date, and that the game will be released in January of 2009.
The game itself, when launched in any territory, is trying out a new "Freemium" pricing structure. The game client along with two of the starting zones of the game will be free to anyone who wants to play the game; however, once you progress 90% of the way through Fame level 7, all progression for your character will stop. You'll still be able to play the game and kill stuff, but you won't gain any experience or bonuses for your character. At that point you will also be directed to sign up to the $15 (subject to change) monthly subscription fee to keep playing. Seems like a fresh take on how to allow people easy access to the game and get hooked on the game before you ask for any money.
As someone who has been watching this game from the shadows for a few years, I can readily tell you that as far as gameplay, Spellborn seems to trying to do things differently than some of the bigger players out there, and I love it. It also seems to have an obsession with the number three. It focuses on three main archetypes (fighter, thief, and caster) each of which is broken into three sub-archetypes. There are three main stats that your characters deal with, three main types of damage and three corresponding resistances to help lessen your weakness to those types of damages. There are many more intricacies to the game that I don't want to dive into here, but rest assured I'll post a more comprehensive guide to the game closer to its European release date. As for right now, hit the jump to see the full press release on Acclaims release of the game.
Los Angeles, CA (November 18, 2008) - Acclaim Games officially updates the release schedule for The Chronicles of Spellborn MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game). With additional testing and ongoing game improvements, Acclaim's release schedule has been updated with Closed Beta testing to begin on November 27 and a new release date scheduled for January 2009. Acclaim's licensed territories for Spellborn will include North America, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South America.When the European countries go live on November 27, Acclaim will simultaneously start Close Beta testing in its territories and then go live in January 2009. Both launches will have the exact same product versions featuring identical Freemium models but with a different release date to accommodate additional testing for a smooth official release. Extensive testing of the game will ensure players receive the highest quality gaming experience at launch.
With players around the world eagerly anticipating the launch of Spellborn, the game has undergone some key upgrades to allow more players to participate and enjoy the various features of the online game. In all regions, Spellborn will be a "Freemium" game, with a Free to Play zone and a required premium subscription service in order to access the full game past the Free to Play zone.
The Spellborn game client will be completely free to download and install, and will feature the special Free to Play zone with no time restrictions (only level limit). Key features of this Free to Play zone include the following:
• Free players are limited to the starting zones Hawksmouth and Aldenvault.
• A gameplay limit occurs at Fame level 7, when free players have progressed approximately 90% towards Fame level 8.
• Upon reaching this limit, all character progression is blocked and the player will receive a pop-up informing them of this block and what is obtainable beyond this with a premium subscription.
The following elements will be explicitly blocked:
• Players will be unable to gain Fame in any way or form, frozen at a fixed amount.
• The player will be able to accept quests, but not able to complete any objectives/quests.
• Able to kill mobs, but the player will receive no kill credit. This means, no fame reward, no pep reward and no item reward.
• Unable to travel beyond the zones Hakwsmouth and Aldenvault.
Players who want the full game experience and wish to go past the zone restrictions must purchase a premium subscription option priced at $15 per month to open all game content. This Freemium model will allow many more players to experience the gameplay before choosing the premium subscription to access the full array of game features and content.
Initial feedback from the MMORPG player community has been excellent, and the development team is taking this feedback to make various improvements to the game.
PixelPoet
Posted to Video Games on 20 November 2008
· Comments (1)
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Freemium sounds like a gold farmers dream come true. If not for grinding then at the very least for spamming.