Codemasters Re-Enters MMO Business With RF Online

UK-headquartered publisher and developer Codemasters has announced the acquisition of the publishing rights for MMORPG Rising Force Online in North America and Europe. The Korean game, developed by CCR and originally released in 2004, features a 3D fantasy/steampunk environment for players to explore, and three available character races. This license-based acquisition comes after last year's cancellation of Codemasters' internally developed MMORPG project, Dragon Empires. At the time, Codemasters stated that the cancellation would not affect the company's plans to move into the MMORPG market, and the Rising Force Online move appears to bear that statement out. The project will be one of the first efforts released in the West via Codemasters' newly established online division, with more MMO announcements possibly to come. Rising Force Online, which is one of the most popular MMO titles currently in release in South Korea, as well as one of the most technologically advanced, has also found a publisher in Japan, as Sega announced in June that it planned to release the game in that territory. The game is undergoing beta test in Japan prior to a planned fall 2005 debut. However, Codemasters, which recently announced significant new funding to help the company expand, hasn't yet revealed a planned Beta or launch date for the Western incarnation of RF Online.