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July 30, 2007

Support System Update, Downtime

On July 31 we will be updating our support system software throughout our products. We will not be handling support requests during this time and we will queue in-game petitions for processing after the upgrade is complete. 

Our support sites (such as help.plaync.com) will be offline as well as the Knowledge Base. Users will not be able to submit questions via the PlayNC Support Center during this downtime.

The expected downtime is around 6 hours and will start at 12:00AM, Central (6:00AM, BST). We will attempt to keep you informed if the downtime lasts substantially longer.

Posted by adunkin at 4:47 PM

July 27, 2007

NCsoft at Comic-Con

NCsoft® is at this year's Comic-Con in San Diego, and IGN has the full scoop: "If you want PC games and you're at San Diego Comic-Con, you won't find many places better equipped than NCsoft's booth." You can read all about our booth here, which includes a bunch of pictures. Come by and visit us!

Posted by adunkin at 4:13 PM

July 26, 2007

Dev Corner: People Playing Together

A Worthy and Inspiring Purpose

There is within each of us an inborn need for our lifetime pursuits to have meaning and value—to serve some greater purpose1. When that greater purpose is known to us, and even more importantly, felt by us, it provides both the driving force and the guiding star that inspires us to excellence.

Exceptional companies, like exceptional people, also benefit from having a clear and meaningful purpose2. Companies are, after all, nothing more than a group of people that have chosen to combine their efforts for a shared purpose. With some companies, the only articulated (or implied) purpose is to maximize profits. However, those companies that have withstood the test of time understand that profitability is not an end in itself, but “…is like oxygen, food, water, and blood for the body; they are not the point of life, but without them, there is no life.”3

Now, I’m not saying that profit isn’t important to us at NCsoft, because it is (I hope I still have a job after my boss reads this…). But you don’t see the words “Achieved Maximum Profit” as the epitaph carved on very many gravestones.  As one of my esteemed co-workers pointed out, “We all as people want our labor to have worth beyond the purely financial…”

So, if it isn’t profitability alone that provides meaning, inspiration, and guidance to our collective pursuits, then what other purpose do our efforts serve? What is it that we do?

Well, um, we make games for people to play together.

Massively multi-player online games (MMOs) to be specific. Definitely a fun pursuit, but where’s the sense of meaning and greater purpose in that? It’s not like we’re doctors saving lives, scientists curing diseases, ambassadors negotiating world peace, charities feeding the starving masses, or Al Gore cutting back on his electric bill. Nope, that’s not what we do.

We provide fantasy worlds where people spend their spare time, chatting away about frivolous matters with hordes of other online players, pretending to be heroes or heroines, and gawking at each other’s outlandishly costumed avatars. They march together on imaginary quests to banish make-believe creatures and collect virtual treasure.  Now, just how meaningful could this be? It’s just fun and games, right?

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Not to say that providing fun and games isn’t a meaningful purpose (and a fun way to make a living, too). However, there is a more fundamental value buried within the context of recreation and play that is driving increasing numbers of people toward online games.

Those numbers are getting huge. Comscore reports the global online gaming community to be a staggering 217 million people (one fourth of the worldwide internet population)4. What’s driving all these people to online games?

Other people are. 

This phenomenon is the result of the fundamental need all of us have to be with (or around) each other. From the moment we are born, we are driven by the need to be seen by each other, known by each other, understood by each other, validated by each other, and hopefully, accepted by each other. This fundamental need to connect with other people, referred to by psychologists as the need for “belongingness”, can be “…as compelling a need as food.”5

…there is an impressive array of evidence that humans possess …a fundamental "need to belong." This evidence suggests that the individual's need to belong to the human community is fulfilled by frequent and affectively pleasant interactions with at least a few other people…the association between human physical health and relationships with others is strong…the age-adjusted relative risk ratio between low social integration and mortality exceeds that of the highly publicized risks associated with smoking and obesity.6

Social connectedness is such a powerful factor that it is considered the number one predictor of happiness and well-being, “…All other objective predictors of happiness, including money, education, health, and place of residence, are only weakly correlated with happiness.”7

This innate craving for belongingness is the driving force behind a great deal of online activity. At the top three “most engaging” web sites ranked by Nielsen//NetRatings, they found that people were spending over half their time using IM and email in their relentless pursuit for social connectedness8.

Millions of people have turned to MMO games to feed their social connection needs as an alternative to brick-and-mortar “Third Places.”9  MMO environments share many of the characteristics of “Third Places,” such as: easy access with minimal entanglements, lots of conversation between “regulars”, playful mood, and feels like home away from home (where everybody knows your name). As one researcher put it, “…instead of having a few drinks, a game of darts and a lot of laughs with your friends, you battle a few monsters, explore a rich landscape and have a lot of laughs with your friends.”10 

Some claim that most MMO players prefer to play alone. But these “solo” players are actually playing “alone together.”11 They go through great effort to install, patch, and subscribe to MMO games that may suffer from network lag and server/client performance issues because they prefer to be surrounded by human beings in a virtual environment regardless of whether they chat or join groups. They feel the presence of people through world chatter and avatars running about. It’s like going to a coffee house to read a book because it feels better to have people around you.

MMO games can also promote socialization skills through designs that reward the development of “social capital”. MMO players “…need not only learn the game commands, but they must also become socialized into the game community…If you succeed, others will include you in their ‘buddy list’ to encourage further interactions. In short, these games are all about having the right social skills.”12 

As a parent, I welcome all the help I can get teaching my children to “play nice” and get along with others. Their well-being is highly dependent upon it. A 12-year study found that peer rejection was one of the major contributors to the psychopathology of young adults13.

And all this time we thought we were just making games.

While our players are busy spending their spare time, chatting, questing, gawking, and connecting with the “regulars” on their expanding friends list, they may experience an intangible sense of “belongingness” that brings them comfort in their “home away from home” (where everybody knows their name).

So we may not be doctors saving lives, scientists curing diseases, ambassadors negotiating world peace, charities feeding the starving masses, or Al Gore cutting back on his electric bill.

We make games for people to play together.

It is indeed a worthy and inspiring purpose… and just so you know, it’s a heck of a lot of fun too!

Dallas Snell, Director of Business Development

Dallas Snell joined NCsoft as Director of Business Development in April 2006. As a veteran of the gaming industry, Dallas launched his career with the development and publication of the #1 graphic adventure game, The Quest, through Penguin Software in 1983. Two years later, he joined Richard and Robert Garriott at Origin Systems. In 1986, Richard and Dallas jumped ship from Origin’s rather chilly New Hampshire offices, and founded Origin’s product development division in Austin, Texas. Shortly thereafter, Dallas became Origin’s Vice President of Product Development. During his tenure at Origin, Dallas managed, produced, or executive produced, such best-selling titles as the Ultima and Wing Commander series. After Origin’s acquisition by Electronic Arts in 1992, Dallas became Vice President & General Manager of the Origin division.  In 1996, he left the gaming business to pursue other interests. However, the lure of multiplayer online games proved more than he could resist, and Dallas rejoined Richard and Robert at NCsoft in 2006.


1 Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 57(6), 1069-1081.

2 Collins, J., & Porras J. (2002). Built to last. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

3 Collins, J., & Porras J. (2002). Built to last. New York, NY: HarperCollins, p. 55

5 Baumeister, R. F., & Twenge, J. M. (2003). The social self. In T. Millon & M. J. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of psychology: Personality and social psychology, 5, 327-352. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., p. 498

6 Berscheid, E. (2003). The human's greatest strength: Other humans. In L. G. Aspinwall & U. M. Staudinger (Eds.), A psychology of human strengths: Fundamental questions and future directions for a positive psychology, 37-47. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

7 Baumeister, R. F., & Twenge, J. M. (2003). The social self. In T. Millon & M. J. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of psychology: Personality and social psychology, 5, 327-352. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., p. 328

9 Steinkuehler, C., & Williams, D. (2006). Where everybody knows your (screen) name: Online games as "third places." Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 11(4), article 1.

10 Ducheneaut, N. and Moore, R.J. (2005). More than just “XP”': Learning social skills in massively multiplayer online games. Interactive Technology and Smart Education, 2(2), 89-100. p. 96

11 Ducheneaut, N., Yee, N., Nickell, E., Moore, R. (2006). Building an MMO with Mass Appeal: A Look at Gameplay in World of Warcraft. Games and Culture, 1, 281-317.

12 Ducheneaut, N. and Moore, R.J. (2005). More than just “XP”': Learning social skills in massively multiplayer online games. Interactive Technology and Smart Education, 2(2), 89-100. p. 91

13 Frankel, F., & Myatt, R. (2003). Children's friendship training. New York, NY: Brunner-Routledge, p. 3

 

Posted by adunkin at 12:11 PM

Richard Garriott Receives Award at Develop

Richard Garriott has received the Industry Legend award on Wednesday, July 25 at the Develop Industry Excellence Awards. Congratulations Richard!

Posted by adunkin at 9:16 AM

July 25, 2007

Richard Garriott Keynotes the Develop Conference

NCsoft® Executive Producer and Creative Director Richard Garriott today provided the opening keynote address at the Develop Conference and Expo taking place in Brighton, UK. Garriott discussed the challenges within the MMO genre and detailed how his Destination Games development team is creating ways to answer those challenges in the soon-to-be-released Tabula Rasa™. Read more details of Garriott's talk here.

Posted by adunkin at 1:13 PM

July 24, 2007

NCsoft's New City of Heroes Expansion, Issue 10: ‘Invasion’, Unites Heroes, Villains Against Alien Attack

AUSTIN, Texas, July 25, 2007 — NCsoft® and Cryptic Studios™ have released the newest expansion to City of Heroes®, Issue 10: “Invasion” where City of Heroes and City of Villains® players join forces to thwart an attack by the evil Rikti™ aliens bent on the destruction of the Earth. The expansion, free to current subscribers, includes a major redesign of the Rikti Crash Site zone as well as a Rikti co-op task force where heroes and villains team up to defeat the toughest alien bosses.

The kick off invasion featured in Issue 10 continues the City of Heroes tradition of global events, and in this case the Rikti attack in constant waves through most of the games’ zones and threaten both Paragon City™ and the Rogue Isles™.

“The Rikti maintain a very powerful position in the lore of City of Heroes and the Rikti invasion event we had during the beta stage of the game is still talked about by veteran players,” said Matt Miller, Cryptic Studio’s lead designer for City of Heroes and City of Villains. “We felt the time was right and it fit into the narrative of the game to unleash another invasion -- with a vengeance -- and transform the Rikti Crash site into the heart of the new alien incursion.”

The Rikti Crash Site zone has been renamed the Rikti War Zone and is the epicenter of the Rikti’s assault on Earth. The Rikti War Zone, designed for player levels 35 to 50, allows both hero and villain players to work together on missions. Centered around the crashed Rikti mother ship, the Rikti have a variety of new powerful weapons including Rikti Pylons and UXBs or “unexploded bombs.” The Rikti Pylons are heavily armed defensive points surrounding the crashed mother ship which need to be defeated in order to gain access to the ship.

Issue 10, however, provides players with powerful new tools used to combat the Rikti. The Vanguard base established in the Rikti War Zone includes a special Vanguard Workbench that allows players to create special costume pieces as well as Vanguard Support Machines, or “heavies”, that serve as deadly pets in altercations with the Rikti.

“This expansion unleashes total war where aliens and earthlings get great new weapons to bludgeon each other with. We think this will be great fun,” Miller said. “The fact that both heroes and villains need to join together to defeat a common enemy is a comic book convention that helps to add greater depth and excitement to City of Heroes and City of Villains.”

The Rikti co-op task force, set for player levels 45 to 50, can be obtained from the leader of the Vanguard in the Rikti War Zone and delivers high-level adventures for teams composed of both heroes and villains.

To join the battle against evil aliens, players can purchase the City of Heroes “Good Versus Evil Edition” game pack at retailers across North America, which includes complete City of Heroes and City of Villains games, as well as a set of exclusive bonus items. Customers receive the first month of play free and both games can be played for the single monthly subscription price of $14.99.

For more information about City of Heroes Issue 10 go to www.cityofheroes.com.  

About NCsoft                     

NCsoft North America is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NCsoft, with its own development and publishing offices in Texas and California, also works with other NCsoft subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. The company has successfully launched multiple online titles and continues to support its franchises that include Lineage®/Lineage II, City of Heroes/City of Villains, and Guild Wars®/Guild Wars Factions™/Guild Wars Nightfall™ and Dungeon Runners™.. More information about NCsoft can be found at http://www.plaync.com/.

About Cryptic Studios
Cryptic Studios™, Inc., located in Los Gatos, California, was established in July of 2000 and is an independent developer of massively multiplayer online games for the PC and next generation consoles. Its first game, City of Heroes, launched in April 2004. The game takes place in a virtual world where thousands of people play simultaneously, take on the role of super-powered heroes, fight villains and help create a dynamic story in a visually-stunning, 3-D graphical world.

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NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, PlayNC, Lineage, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions, Guild Wars Nightfall and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes, City of Villains, Paragon City, Rogue Isles, Rikti and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc.  All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. 

Posted by PR at 5:10 PM

July 20, 2007

Guild Wars: Eye of the North Trailer Released

Six years ago, Ascalon burned. Now, a new battle is set to begin, and players can get their first look at the malevolent force ready to erupt from the Depths of Tyria in the official trailer for Guild Wars: Eye of the North™, available for download at www.guildwars.com. More information about the Prelease Bonus Pack is now available here.

Posted by adunkin at 10:37 AM

PC Gaming Magazines Love Dungeon Runners

That's right, the PC gaming magazines Games for Windows (8/10) and PC Gamer (89%) both loved Dungeon Runners! You can grab these new issues right now at the newsstands (the August and September 2007 issues respectively).

Posted by adunkin at 10:11 AM

July 17, 2007

Guild Wars: Eye of the North Prerelease Bonus Pack to Hit Shelves July 20

Bellevue, WA., July 17, 2007—NCsoft® and ArenaNet® announced today that the prerelease bonus pack for Guild Wars: Eye of the North™ is set to arrive on retailers' shelves on July 20 and will include a host of compelling features, including exclusive in-game items and access to the Guild Wars: Eye of the North Sneak Peek Weekend set for later this summer.

Guild Wars: Eye of the North is the first ever expansion to the subscription-free Guild Wars franchise of fantasy online roleplaying games, and will be released to the public on August 31, 2007. This expansion will provide new content accessible to players who have any of the previously released Guild Wars campaigns (Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions™, or Guild Wars Nightfall™).

Players who pre-order Guild Wars: Eye of the North will gain access to the Sneak Peek Weekend, August 24–26, 2007, where they will be able to log into the game for a first look at Eye of the North. Players will be able to explore the Far Shiverpeaks region of the world, home of the barbaric Norn. Everything players obtain during the Sneak Peek Weekend, including items, XP, Heroes, and loot, will be permanent and available when the expansion goes live. 

The Guild Wars: Eye of the North prerelease bonus pack also comes with exclusive weapons, including the Glacial Blade, the Hourglass Staff, and the Darksteel Longbow. These new weapons are based on the designs entered in the Guild Wars Design-a-Weapon Contest held earlier this year. In addition, the prerelease bonus pack includes a Guild Wars Trilogy Trial DVD that provides access to all three of the Guild Wars campaigns for a special trial promotion lasting 10 hours or 14 days, whichever comes first.  

“We believe this feature-packed prerelease delivers real value to our players,” said Mike O’Brien, co-founder of ArenaNet. “From past experience, we expect the Sneak Peek Weekend alone to be hugely popular, and players won't want to miss this chance to get a leg-up before the game goes live.” 

For more information on the Guild Wars franchise, visit the Guild Wars website at http://www.guildwars.com. The award-winning Guild Wars series of games can be purchased from retailers or downloaded from the PlayNC store at https://secure.plaync.com/cgi-bin/Store.pl. 

About ArenaNet
ArenaNet, located in Bellevue, Washington, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NCsoft Corporation. ArenaNet has built a state-of-the-art interactive game network and develops premier multiplayer online games for dedicated game players. ArenaNet's titles, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions™, and Guild Wars Nightfall™ are global online roleplaying games that allow gamers to play with anyone, anytime, and anywhere in the world. More information about ArenaNet can be found at www.arena.net. 

About NCsoft Corporation
NCsoft North America is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NCsoft, with its own development and publishing offices in Texas and California, also works with other NCsoft subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. The company has successfully launched multiple online titles in the last three years and continues to support its franchises, which include Lineage®/Lineage II, City of Heroes®/City of Villains®, Guild Wars/Guild Wars Factions™/Guild Wars Nightfall™, Auto Assault® and Dungeon Runners™. More information about NCsoft can be found at www.plaync.com. 

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NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, PlayNC, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions, Guild Wars Nightfall, Prophecies, Factions, Nightfall, Guild Wars: Eye of the North, Eye of the North, ArenaNet and Lineage and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes, City of Villains, and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Posted by PR at 11:38 AM

Lineage's "Sprummer" Event in Full Swing

The Lineage® "Sprummer" Event, called "The Secret Islands", is now in full swing. Two new islands have been discovered, the first with clues on how to get to the second, seemingly chock full of incredibly tough creatures and powerful rewards. You can get all the details here; the event ends Wednesday, July 25.

Posted by adunkin at 11:18 AM

July 13, 2007

Dungeon Runners Account Creation Process Simplified

We've recently made the process of getting a new Dungeon Runners™ account much easier. Existing PlayNC account holders can simply enter in the name of the account they want to create, and brand new players can get going after entering their info on one easy page. Visit the Dungeon Runners Game Account Creation Quickstart page today!

Posted by adunkin at 2:54 PM

July 11, 2007

NCsoft Signs Exclusive Game Development Deal with Sony

World’s leading publisher of online computer games to create products for PlayStation® platforms

Santa Monica, Calif., July 11, 2007 — NCsoft® Corporation (KSE:036570.KS), the world’s leading developer and publisher of online games today announced an exclusive game development deal with Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) that provides for NCsoft to create several online games for SCEI’s PlayStation® platforms, including PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable), accessible through PLAYSTATION®Network. The announcement was made today at the E3 Media and Business Summit taking place in Santa Monica, California.

Although company officials did not divulge any details regarding the names or types of games in development, NCsoft officials did say the games would be created from both existing intellectual properties (IP) owned by NCsoft, as well as new IP.

“This is a great step forward for online gaming,” said Geoff Heath, CEO of NCsoft Europe. “We are delighted to be working with Sony Computer Entertainment. PS3, with its advanced Cell Broadband Engine™ and standard hard disc drive on every unit, has already demonstrated it is a truly versatile online platform that gives NCsoft the potential to create massively multiplayer environments. Together with the Internet-enabled PSP, we're confident that SCEI and NCsoft can develop unique and compelling online experiences that will be found on no other platform.”

NCsoft is known for its highly successful online game products such as the Guild Wars® and City of Heroes® brands and its flagship product Lineage®, which has a customer reach of more than 70 million worldwide.

“NCsoft has established itself as one of the preeminent developers in the online space,” said Riley Russell, vice president of third party and developer support, Sony Computer Entertainment America. “Their track record of creating successful online games is exactly what we are looking for as we grow the PLAYSTATION Network, delivering new, rich experiences on both PS3 and PSP. SCEI’s hardware leadership matched with NCsoft’s extensive online experience are the hallmarks of what is sure to be a fruitful relationship for both companies, ultimately benefiting our core audience -- the gamer.”


About NCsoft Corporation
Headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, NCsoft Corporation is the world’s leading developer and publisher of online games. Founded in 1997, NCsoft is home to Lineage, the world's most successful online role playing game and also to Lineage II, City of Heroes and City of Villains®, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions™, Guild Wars Nightfall™ and Auto Assault®. In coming months, NCsoft is poised to launch other massively multiplayer titles including Tabula Rasa™ and Aion™ in addition to various casual games via its game portal, PlayNC. NCsoft has offices in North America, the United Kingdom, Japan, Taiwan, China and Thailand. In fiscal year 2006, NCsoft posted revenues of KRW 338.7 billion. For more information about NCsoft visit http://www.PlayNC.com.

# # #


Visit Sony PlayStation on the Web at http://www.us.playstation.com

“PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION”, “PSP,” and “PS one” are registered trademarks and “PS3” and “Cell Broadband Engine” are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, PlayNC, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions, Guild Wars Nightfall, Prophecies, Factions, Nightfall, ArenaNet, Lineage, Auto Assault and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes, City of Villains and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Posted by PR at 9:41 AM

July 3, 2007

NCsoft’s E3 Lineup Features Market’s Most Anticipated Online Games

Tabula Rasa, Aion, Dungeon Runners and Guild Wars expansion top NCsoft’s array of triple-A titles featuring a variety of business models


AUSTIN, Texas, July 3, 2007— NCsoft® today revealed its line up for the E3 Media & Business Summit July 11-13 in Santa Monica where the company will provide a preview of several of the most anticipated online games coming out in 2007 and 2008, including Richard Garriott’s Tabula Rasa™, Aion™, Guild Wars: Eye of the North™ and Dungeon Runners™.

NCsoft North America CEO Robert Garriott said, “NCsoft strives to deliver the highest quality online entertainment possible, and these products represent the next generation of online games. This E3 meeting will provide a window for the public to see the breadth of the variety of game genres and business models NCsoft provides, as well as show off how advanced and exciting our products are.”

NCsoft products to be featured at E3 are:

RICHARD GARRIOTT’S TABULA RASA
Tabula Rasa has been in closed beta testing since May and is set for launch this fall. Tabula Rasa is poised to evolve the massively multiplayer online genre with a host of fresh features such as a character cloning system, dynamic battlefields with contested control points, deep storylines with ethical parables and fully integrated voice chat. Tabula Rasa also offers players an original alien language named Logos that unlocks special powers, and fast paced combat that combines real time action with role-playing game style character development. These kinds of features are the types of touches that players have come to expect over the years from a Richard Garriott game.

AION
From NCsoft’s Seoul studios, Aion, is one of the most visually stunning MMOGs in development. Cutting-edge graphics redefine players’ expectations of online role-playing and reveal a true fantasy world where divine beings wage a war that will determine the future of the world. This highly anticipated title is set for release in 2008.

GUILD WARS: EYE OF THE NORTH
Guild Wars: Eye of the North is the first true expansion to the Guild Wars® franchise, one of the most popular online role-playing game franchises on the market today. Guild Wars: Eye of the North delves into the dungeons and caverns of the lands of Tyria that players first explored in the original Guild Wars game. Guild Wars: Eye of the North continues Guild Wars’ no subscription fee model and will provide new content accessible to players who own both the expansion and any one of the three previously released Guild Wars campaigns. Guild Wars: Eye of the North is set for release on August 31 at an anticipated price of $39.99.

DUNGEON RUNNERS
Dungeon Runners is a free to download and play online multiplayer role playing game set in a sword-and-shield world where players get piles of loot and treasure by defeating hordes of evil monsters enemies. It’s a different game model that fits right in to NCsoft’s diversified online game lineup. Dungeon Runners has recently opened up play to the general public and will have large chunks of new content implemented through the summer.

NCsoft’s E3 headquarters will be at the Sheraton Delfina Hotel in Santa Monica. In addition, Richard Garriott’s Tabula Rasa will be on display at the E3 exhibit hall located inside Barker Hanger at the Santa Monica airport. For more information about NCsoft and its products, go to www.plaync.com.

About NCsoft Corporation
NCsoft North America is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NCsoft, with its own development and publishing offices in Texas and California, also works with other NCsoft subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. The company has successfully launched multiple online titles in the last three years and continues to support its franchises, which include Lineage®/Lineage II, City of Heroes®/City of Villains®, Guild Wars/Guild Wars Factions™/Guild Wars Nightfall™, Auto Assault® and Dungeon Runners™. More information about NCsoft can be found at www.plaync.com.

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NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, PlayNC, Tabula Rasa, Character Cloning System, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions, Guild Wars Nightfall, Factions, Nightfall, Guild Wars: Eye of the North, Eye of the North, ArenaNet, Auto Assault, Aion, Dungeon Runners and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes, City of Villains, and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Posted by PR at 2:21 PM

Guild Wars: Eye of the North Readies For August 31 Release

NCsoft and ArenaNet set $39.99 price for first ever expansion of Guild Wars franchise


Bellevue, WA., July 2, 2007—NCsoft® and ArenaNet® announced that Guild Wars: Eye of the North™, the first ever expansion to the subscription-free Guild Wars® franchise of fantasy online role-playing games, will be released to the public on August 31, 2007. The Guild Wars: Eye of the North expansion will be available for an expected price of $39.99 from retailers in North America and Europe, as well as through the NCsoft store at PlayNC.com and in the Guild Wars in-game store.

Guild Wars: Eye of the North will continue the no subscription fee model pioneered by ArenaNet, and will provide new content accessible to players who own both the expansion and any one of the three previously released Guild Wars campaigns (Guild Wars, Factions™, or Nightfall™).

The Guild Wars franchise has sold more than 3.5 million units since the release of the original Guild Wars campaign, in 2005, making it one of the most popular online role-playing games of all time.

The story behind Guild Wars: Eye of the North follows up on events told in the original Guild Wars campaign, and is set in previously unexplored areas of the continent of Tyria. The expansion contains a host of new features that will appeal directly to veteran Guild Wars players, including 18 large, multi-level dungeons, 150 new skills across all ten Guild Wars professions, ten new Heroes, 40 new armor sets, and more items, weapons, and titles. Additionally, through the innovative Hall of Monuments, Guild Wars: Eye of the North creates a path for players to carry the legacy of their characters into the upcoming Guild Wars 2. The Hall of Monuments will allow players to preserve their accomplishments and titles from Guild Wars, Factions, and Nightfall, which can then be claimed in Guild Wars 2.

“Guild Wars has one of the most committed and loyal player bases I’ve ever seen, and Guild Wars: Eye of the North is our way of delivering prized content to veteran players and creating a link to the future of Guild Wars,” said Jeff Strain, co-founder of ArenaNet.

For more information on the Guild Wars franchise, go to: www.guildwars.com.

The award-winning Guild Wars campaigns can be purchased from retailers or downloaded from the PlayNC store at https://secure.plaync.com/cgi-bin/Store.pl.

About ArenaNet
ArenaNet, located in Bellevue, Washington, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NCsoft Corporation. ArenaNet has built a state-of-the-art interactive game network and develops premier multiplayer online games for dedicated game players. ArenaNet's titles, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions™, and Guild Wars Nightfall™ are global online roleplaying games that allow gamers to play with anyone, anytime, and anywhere in the world. More information about ArenaNet can be found at www.arena.net.

About NCsoft Corporation
NCsoft North America is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NCsoft, with its own development and publishing offices in Texas and California, also works with other NCsoft subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. The company has successfully launched multiple online titles in the last three years and continues to support its franchises, which include Lineage®/Lineage II, City of Heroes®/City of Villains®, Guild Wars/Guild Wars Factions/Guild Wars Nightfall, Auto Assault® and Dungeon Runners™. More information about NCsoft can be found at www.plaync.com.

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NCsoft, the interlocking NC logo, PlayNC, Guild Wars, Guild Wars Factions, Guild Wars Nightfall, Prophecies, Factions, Nightfall, Guild Wars Eye of the North, Guild Wars: Eye of the North, Eye of the North, ArenaNet, Lineage, Auto Assault, Dungeon Runners and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of NCsoft Corporation. City of Heroes, City of Villains, and all associated logos and designs are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cryptic Studios, Inc. and NCsoft Corporation. Cryptic Studios is a trademark of Cryptic Studios, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Posted by PR at 2:14 PM