Atlus assumes control of Shin Megami Tensei MMO in North America

The onlive division of game publisher Atlus has assumed full control of the Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine MMORPG, with all operation and management of the game's North American servers due to be shifted over in April. Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine is an online multiplayer game set in the world of popular Japanese RPG franchise Shin Megami Tensei. It was originally released in 2007 for PC, and while Atlus operates the Japanese servers, California-based Aeria Games currently handles the NA servers. However, from next month Atlus will control servers for the game worldwide. The company noted that all characters and player data will be carried over automatically, although there will be a short period of downtime while this occurs. The company called the move a "homecoming" for the game, noting that the Shin Megami Tensei brand is "synonymous" with Atlus. Tsuyoshi Onozuka, director of online games at Atlus Online, noted, "We're taking every care to ensure that apart from a very short period of maintenance downtime, that every aspect of existing players' accounts is preserved."