Posts Tagged ‘#savecoh’

#SaveCOH Campaign Applauds New NCsoft Subsidiary

31 December 2012 | 4 Comments » | iTZKooPA

Last week, NCsoft completed its sale of NC Interactive Inc., the wholly-owned subsidiary in charge of the South Korean firm’s western operation. Announced alongside the sale was the intention to immediately fund a new operation to take over the former company’s responsibility, simply moving the requirements from Austin, TX to new digs somewhere closer to the company’s development teams on the west coast.

The #SaveCOH campaign has spoken up about the transaction. Unexpectedly, the collection of disgruntled, yet hopeful, gamers have cheered the move. The reasoning is that NCsoft still hasn’t definitively buried City of Heroes, citing NCsoft spokesman Kim Yo-han stating “nothing had been decided on selling the game or other action afterwards.” The group hopes the new company has CoH in mind and will shop around the property.

Mercedes Lackey, the NY Times best-selling author and spokesperson for #SaveCOH, stated
“In light of NCSoft’s recent statements, we hope this move by NCsoft might represent an
opening to find our award-winning, innovative and unique game, a new home.”

I’m not as optimistic.

Full press release from #SaveCOH after the cut. Continue Reading

NCSoft Seattle Undergoing ‘Realignment’, CoH Closure ‘Unethical’

5 December 2012 | No Comments » | iTZKooPA

How’s that headline for you?

We’ve a double-dip of NCSoft related news for you this morning, coming from NCSoft itself and relentless continuation of the #SaveCoH campaign. We’ll start off with the official, because it makes the other news have more of an impact. NCSoft has clarified earlier reports on the status of its Seattle based offices. Originally reported as a closing, NCSoft Public Relations Director Lincoln Davis clarified the rumor to PC Gamer as a “realignment.”

“NCsoft is realigning internal publishing resources to better suit the needs of our game development studios,” Davis told PC Gamer. “As a result of the realignment, several employees and contract positions were affected. This was a very tough decision to make and wish the best for all NCsoft employees in their next ventures.”

NCsoft Seattle, more appropriately NCSoft West, is the Western publishing arm for the South Korean company, working closely with the teams of Guilds Wars 2, WildStar, Lineage and Aion.

The Korea Times brings more bad press for NCSoft, picking up on the #SaveCoH campaign. In a new article, noted fantasy author Mercedes Lackey called the recent closure of CoH ‘unethical’ citing the termination of jobs supporting a profitable revenue stream as the core reason. In addition to such a quotable line, the article provides a nice recap of City of Heroes, the campaign to save it and the march to the MMORPG being unplugged.

When Rejected the #SaveCOH Campaign Looks for Another

28 November 2012 | 8 Comments » | iTZKooPA

The #SaveCOH campaign has received much press, and not just from the likes of Lore Hound and other gaming blogs. The effort to save the superhero MMORPG City of Heroes from closure has attracted mainstream media, best selling authors and thousands of followers. Yet, NCSoft has stonewalled all positive momentum, going so far as to ignore requests for information. Resolve unshaken, the group has turned its sights towards finding a new suitor, Disney.

The group continues to make a strong case for continuing the MMORPG and why it’d be a good fit in Disney Interactive’s stable of titles.

Best selling author Mercedes Lackey, who helped to draft the pitch to Disney, stated “We believe that Disney and City of Heroes are a perfect match; Disney now owns Marvel and two impending Marvel MMOs which are slated to be mirror opposites of the cooperative, community gameplay fostered by City of Heroes.

“In addition, Disney has the reach to effortlessly give City of Heroes the exposure it never had under NCSoft’s regime of benign neglect–and City of Heroes will provide Disney with some extremely unique cross-marketing opportunities.  Disney has always understood and fostered community and loyalty–something NCSoft never did.”

Many will point out that there are two Marvel universe MMOGs in development, the already-launched and kid friendly Marvel Super Hero Squad Online and the upcoming Diablo-style title Marvel Heroes. City of Heroes, while ironically sued by Marvel in the past, would fit the core MMORPG bill. (Editor) Let’s not forget about the Asia-only Marvel MOBA.

City of Heroes is scheduled to go offline this Friday, November 30 at 11:59 PM PST. There’s little chance of stopping that now, but an 11th hour effort may be able to resurrect the game at a later date.

In one of our lengthiest posts ever, the full press release is presented after the cut. Continue Reading

#SaveCOH Campaign Continues, Responds to NCSoft’s Claims

9 October 2012 | 4 Comments » | iTZKooPA

The player-run campaign to save the soon-to-be-closed superhero MMORPG City of Heroes continues despite recent comments from NCSoft. Last week, the publisher and IP holder responded to the growing campaign’s requests by denying them. The lack of transparency has left a sour taste in many player’s mouths, strengthening the campaign despite the seemingly overwhelming odds.

To respond to the blockade, the campaign is continuing to hold vigils, even joining the charity Game-a-thon to support the Children’s Miracle Network, as is LoreHound. The latest Open Letter to NCSoft is reproduced in its entirety below the cut.

Personally, I think it’s time for the #SaveCOH campaign to begin targeting the larger shareholders to get them on board for requests for information. After all, who can pressure a company more than a large contingent of stockholders? Here’s NCSoft’s page on the KRX (Korean Exchange).

Without being given a stay of execution, NCSoft will be closing City of Heroes on November 30, 2012. Continue Reading