Day: January 18, 2010

Hello Kitty Online: No, THIS Is How You Charity


Gustav says: I may be an undead ex-hero turned villain, but even I donate some of the money I steal to charity.

Hello Kitty Online has a proposition: How would you like to donate money to charity by playing video games, and by video games I mean Hello Kitty Online? If you answered yes, then do I have the deal for you!

In Hello Kitty Online, a special drive is going up next week in the form of a guild game, called Food for Friends 2. Players needs to go to HKO’s version of London, and speak to an NPC named Cinnamaroll, who is collecting consumable items for charity. Players have to be in a guild for this event, and the more they donate, the more points their guild generates. The points are converted to donations that will be paid for by the sponsors of the event, and the players who donate consumables will also be able to receive points for the item mall.

You can find the announcement here, and this donation drive is perfect for people who have a couple extra hours next week, but don’t necessarily have extra cash to donate. Is helping disaster relief worth playing Hello Kitty Online? Do I really have to ask that?

Hellgate London: It's Coming Back


People often ask me, Omali, why haven’t you done a “what happened” for Hellgate: London? The answer is simple: The game never died. Despite shutting down in Western areas, Hellgate London has continued to thrive in the Asian markets. Although the new publisher Hanbitsoft has given distinct interest in opening the game back up in Western markets, they have been impeded by Namco-Bandai, who still owned the rights to publish the software on this side of the hemisphere.

“We are pleased to participate in the revitalization of Hellgate through this agreement and are deeply gratified to allow HanbitSoft to take the lead on this franchise and bring this game to the people who seek it”
-Namco-Bandai

Sure it translates to “we had no plans to do anything with this franchise so we got some money off of it,” on Namco’s part, but who cares? Hellgate: London is coming back! Technically the first true resurrection in MMO history, in the same sense of having your arm reattached years after it was lopped off for financial reasons, plans are set to go in motion later this year to bring Hellgate back to the North American and European markets.

Looks like we will be seeing Hellgate: Tokyo and any other planned expansions after all. And that means, Hellgate: London? Back in the list of games you go! Hopefully Hanbitsoft will be willing to run the title somewhere other than directly into the ground (I’m looking at you, Flagship Studios)

Hellgate London: It’s Coming Back


People often ask me, Omali, why haven’t you done a “what happened” for Hellgate: London? The answer is simple: The game never died. Despite shutting down in Western areas, Hellgate London has continued to thrive in the Asian markets. Although the new publisher Hanbitsoft has given distinct interest in opening the game back up in Western markets, they have been impeded by Namco-Bandai, who still owned the rights to publish the software on this side of the hemisphere.

“We are pleased to participate in the revitalization of Hellgate through this agreement and are deeply gratified to allow HanbitSoft to take the lead on this franchise and bring this game to the people who seek it”
-Namco-Bandai

Sure it translates to “we had no plans to do anything with this franchise so we got some money off of it,” on Namco’s part, but who cares? Hellgate: London is coming back! Technically the first true resurrection in MMO history, in the same sense of having your arm reattached years after it was lopped off for financial reasons, plans are set to go in motion later this year to bring Hellgate back to the North American and European markets.

Looks like we will be seeing Hellgate: Tokyo and any other planned expansions after all. And that means, Hellgate: London? Back in the list of games you go! Hopefully Hanbitsoft will be willing to run the title somewhere other than directly into the ground (I’m looking at you, Flagship Studios)