Who would have thought I would be following up on a Blizzard story and a Red 5 story at the same time? The9 is a spurned lover. After losing the rights to World of Warcraft Asia-Edition earlier this year to NetEase (granted, who promptly got the game banned just as quickly) and taking a massive loss in revenue, assuming that the company was in some financial difficulty would not be too illogical. Of course, you would be wrong. Not only does The9 have some moolah saved up, likely from the time World of Warcraft was feeding them seven or eight million players in the Asian region, they have enough to financially back two companies: Fire Rain and Red 5.
“Wait a minute, Omali,” you say. “I know that name, Red 5!” I would certainly hope so, I mentioned them just about a week ago. Red 5 has been in the news several times, not only because their MMOFPS is so tightly under wraps that the company actually suffocated (and will likely cancel) it, but because of the substantial number of employees who have been laid off over the past few years. A company of over one hundred has been reduced to approximately 35, and according to my last report, is currently focusing on an MMO for the Chinese Market.
Red 5 has been to death’s door and back, but will it be enough to sustain the company to completion of its Chinese MMO, let alone to spark a re-interest in that MMOFPS they were working on so many ages ago?
More on Red 5 Studios, and the obligatory Star Wars references, as it appears.
MMO Fallout 