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13 CommentsA tale of two cities: How the City of Heroes community is creating a successor
By Megan Farokhmanesh on May 02, 2013 05.02.13
City of Heroes ended not with a bang or even a whimper, but with a server disconnect. Before the world went dark on Paragon Studios and NCsoft's superhero-themed massively multiplayer online game in 2012, players crowded online for one last run. They retreaded familiar ground and visited with old friends. Some gathered for an in-game vigil of sorts, while others continued as though nothing was happening at all. One by one, City of Heroes' servers blinked out of existence. Each end was met with the same message: you have been disconnected from the server. But though City of Heroes died that day, the game's legacy lived on. From its death sprang Missing Worlds Media, Inc. — a community-based, volunteer-driven studio with a clear goal. A plan, in the words of Missing Worlds, to start...
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1 CommentJohn Needham appointed studio head of Fable developer Lionhead
By Dave Tach on Apr 23, 2013 04.23.13
John Needham, former CEO of Cryptic Studios and Gazillion Entertainment, has been appointed studio head of Fable developer Lionhead Studios, according to a recent posting on the developer's website. As CEO, Needham oversaw development studios that have created games like City of Heroes and Star Trek Online (Cryptic) and Marvel Heroes (Gazillion). Lionhead's post touts his experience with massively multiplayer online role-playing games, free-to-play titles as well as PC and mobile games. "This is a historic time in our industry and I'm excited, and honored, to be joining Lionhead and Microsoft Studios," Needham said. "Our vision is focused on building innovative gaming services and AAA experiences at Lionhead, and the rest of Microsoft Studios, which take advantage of Microsoft's...
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1 CommentCity of Heroes developers fought to the end to save MMO
By Emily Gera on Apr 12, 2013 04.12.13
City of Heroes developer Paragon Studios fought until the bitter end to save the MMO from shutting down last year, including attempting to buy the title from publisher NCsoft, former lead designer Matt Miller told Gamasutra. The studio initially attempted to broker a deal to find a new publisher for the MMO; however, while the developer was in talks with a potential buyer, nothing came of it. A group of 20 Paragon staff then began talks regarding buying out the game directly from NCsoft to keep it from closing. In addition, Paragon was interested in acquiring two other unnamed NCsoft-owned projects. Unfortunately, NCsoft sent word the game would shut at the end of 2012. To thank players for their time, Miller hoped to give players a final mission that had them fighting off an alien...
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2 CommentsCity of Heroes publisher NCsoft dashes hopes of saving game or developer
By Samit Sarkar on Oct 03, 2012 10.03.12
City of Heroes won't be getting a last-minute reprieve from being shut down, according to publisher NCsoft, who says it "exhausted all options" but wasn't able to save the game or its developer, Paragon Studios. In an open letter posted yesterday, NCsoft acknowledged the "overwhelmingly constructive and positive messages" it and Paragon have received from fans, including emails, packages, and an online petition with over 20,000 signatures. The publisher said that choosing to close Paragon and shut down the game "has not been an easy decision." NCsoft explained that it explored selling the studio as well as the rights to the City of Heroes intellectual property, but "in the end, efforts to do so were not successful." The company concluded by noting that Paragon will be holding in-game s...
'City of Heroes' issuing refunds starting next week for players with outstanding balances
By Alexa Ray Corriea on Sep 19, 2012 09.19.12
Super hero-packed massively multiplayer online game City of Heroes will begun issuing automatic refunds to its paid subscribers and players with other outstanding account balances beginning next Wednesday, September 26th, developer Paragon Studios announced today. Customers with recurring subscriptions as of September 1st or who purchased Paragon Points (the MMO's in-game currency) after August 24th will receive full refunds through the original method of payment. Paragon encourages members who have been using prepaid Game Time Cards, a system that allows players to add time to their game on an as-needed basis, to contact customer support and initiate a wire transfer. Players can expect refunds to hit their accounts within two weeks of approval. Additionally, players with VIP status...
‘City of Heroes’ players buy farewell dinner for developers
By Megan Farokhmanesh on Sep 16, 2012 09.16.12
In light of Paragon Studios closing its doors, effectively putting an end to the massively multiplayer online game City of Heroes, fans raised money to buy the team dinner. In just three hours, the community pooled together $1,000. User and fundraising organizer TonyV had heard of a restaurant the team frequented and rallied the community into donating. "We want to express our gratitude for building the world in which our imaginations have lived," TonyV wrote in the fundraising forum post. "They've provided an unprecedented level of support and interactivity over the years. They've talked to use, listened to our feedback, even socialized with us, all while providing a game that has an incredible level of innovation and fun." According to Massively, fans are also working on in-game...
'City of Heroes' developer shuts down, game prepares for end times
By Brian Crecente on Aug 31, 2012 08.31.12
The world's first super hero massively multiplayer online game just found its kryptonite. City of Heroes is shutting down and effective immediately Paragon Studios has closed its doors. "In a realignment of company focus and publishing support, NCsoft has made the decision to close Paragon Studios," Andy Belford, community manager at Paragon Studios, wrote on the site's official website. "Effective immediately, all development on City of Heroes will cease and we will begin preparations to sunset the world's first, and best, Super Hero MMORPG before the end of the year. As part of this, all recurring subscription billing and Paragon Market purchasing will be discontinued effective immediately. We will have more information regarding a detailed timeline for the cessation of services and...
Cryptic Studios warns of database hacking
By Tracey Lien on Apr 25, 2012 04.25.12
The studio behind Star Trek Online, City of Heroes and Champions Online has sent out a notice to customers after discovering a breach of its security from 2010. In a statement released earlier today, Cryptic Studios said that an unauthorized access occurred in December 2010, and this evidence has only come to light due to increased security analysis. The studio says that the intruder gained access to user account names, handles, and encrypted passwords. "Even though the passwords were encrypted, it is apparent that the intruder has been able to crack some portion of the passwords in this database," Cryptic Studios said in its statement. "All accounts that we believe were present in the database have had the passwords reset, and customers registered to these accounts have been notified...
