Guild Wars Sales Surpass 4 Million Units

Officials from NCsoft have announced that the company's ArenaNet developed Guild Wars series of online role-playing games has sold over four million units since its debut just over two years ago. Earlier this month NCsoft announced second quarter earnings of $82.1 million, noting that the subscription-free RPG franchise ranked third overall in sales for the publisher with $8.9 million, just behind both Lineage and Lineage II. The Guild Wars series, which first launched in North America in April 2005, currently consists of the original title, as well as its two expansions, Guild Wars Factions and Guild Wars Nightfall. A third expansion, Guild Wars: Eye of the North, is scheduled to ship on August 31, while the game's official sequel is currently expected to be released sometime in 2008. "ArenaNet's fantastic work on Guild Wars has helped make NCsoft the leading online gaming publisher in the world," said Robert Garriott, CEO of NCsoft North America. "Guild Wars players continue to join in droves and stay loyal to the franchise thanks to a business model that makes for a very accessible product. We are all excited about the future of Guild Wars with the expansion ready to be released and Guild Wars 2 on the horizon."