On Halloween 2007, Hellgate: London launched in the United States and, much like Tabula Rasa that launched not too far away, both were launched at the same brick wall. Publisher Namco-Bandai shut down the MMO in February 2009. Back when Hellgate: London still had interest in the West, we wondered how they could introduce expansions in the form of Hellgate: Mumbai, Hellgate: San Francisco, and my personal favorite: Hellgate: Hello Kitty Island.
Well, Hellgate: London still isn’t coming back. Although Flagship Studios pulled a Flagship Studios♦ and dissolved in August 2008, Korean company HanbitSoft has obtained the rights and currently operates Hellgate: London in Asia. Although the company would like to reintroduce the game to the Western market, they have been blocked by Namco-Bandai;
“HanbitSoft does own the intellectual property of Hellgate: London and is interested in providing the game in the US and Europe, but is unable to do so at this time because Namco Bandai has the publishing rights for those regions.”
-HanbitSoft on reopening Hellgate: London in the West
Hellgate: Tokyo hits Asian markets in 2010.
♦ “Pulling a Flagship Studios” is a term where an MMO developer offers a lifetime subscription and then shuts down the service before the lifetime subscription price is paid off. Hellgate: London offered a lifetime subscription for $150 USD, replacing a $10 monthly subscription, before suspending subscriptions and no longer billing 8 months later in July 2008. Any lifetime subscriber lost at least $70 on the price compared to subscribing monthly.
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