Goodbye to Hellgate: London … MMORPG on 56K dialup! (Part 2 of a series)
WHAT HAPPENED?
Hellgate: London launched to somewhat mediocre reviews and bugs galore. The game received a Metacritic average of 71% and reader reviewers not much higher. I myself gave the Single player a 76/100; much lower for the online experience. Positive aspects of the game commented on by reviewers include its story and the overall look of the game. Criticisms were mostly aimed at the level construction – which although each time it set up, it was technically “unique”, there was a “sameness” that pervaded .. with a common complaint that the devs only used 5 or 6 level designs – over and over … endlessly … ’till hell did not freeze over.
It seemed you were always here - every single quest!
A great outdoor area .. too rare in Hg:L
This was a nice variation
Quickest way to meet the Boss - Jump!
Your typical alleyway ...
... St. Pauls your not so typical stop - The Hellgate!
A warm reception from the locals
Last stop before Stonehenge .. disappointing really
Other aspects of Hellgate: London received mixed reception. For instance, combat was described as enjoyable, with varied classes, while the loot and customization aspects were praised; while other reviewers described combat as both underdeveloped and endless, with quest repetition and locked progression choices. Similarly, the game’s technology received mixed reviews. The multiplayer component was both praised and criticized with many bugs, slowdowns and crashes detailed. I gave up on the multiplayer preferring to play through the offline SP campaign well through Level 50 – almost 3 times through the game; starting the 2nd time on “Nightmare” difficulty. One of the worst things that Flagship did, was to release a crippled and awful demo of the game that was not only late, but boring and it probably put off a lot of potential players.
During the shutdown of Flagship Studios in August, 2008, as well as the loss of their intellectual property rights a couple of months later, it was announced that Hellgate: London will be brought offline on January 31, 2009. Korean game company and Blizzard software distributor Hanbitsoft has bought the license and is servicing some Asian countries, including Japan and Korea. Hanbitsoft has got all the data from Flagship Studios and is trying to complete updates and expansions that Flagship Studios left behind. On Hellgatelondon.co.kr Hanbitsoft’s advertises so as not to lose users, but evidently the number of users is continually declining. I have found the servers are pretty empty compared to a year ago. Following the Asian website updates and their expansion pack includes new maps featuring Seoul, Korea’s and a title: The Second Invasion. We in the USA and Europe will not be able to play online after January 31st, 2008
