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Warhammer Online offline 'til '08

Via newsletter, Mythic announces that EA's fantasy MMORPG has been delayed until next year.

Back when George W. Bush was just a presidential candidate, Climax and Microsoft announced a massively multiplayer role-playing game based on the Warhammer tabletop game. When Bush was up for reelection, the project was briefly canceled, with Climax then developing the game solo for a few months before independent developer Mythic picked up the license in 2005.

Mythic didn't stay independent for long. Last June, after watching rival Vivendi Games bathe itself in World of Warcraft revenue for nearly two years, Electronic Arts decided it wanted its own piece of the MMORPG pie. It bought Virginia-based Mythic, now known as EA Mythic, and began ramping up development of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning for a late-2007 ship.

Now, though, Warhammer Online has been delayed yet again. In a newsletter sent out this week, EA Mythic general manager Mark Jacobs revealed that the game now won't be released until just months before Bush's successor is elected.

"We have made the decision to move our ship date for the US and Europe to the first quarter of 2008," said Jacobs. (The Asian release date remains TBD.) "Since our acquisition by EA, we have been afforded many wonderful development opportunities and we plan to take full advantage of everything that is available. This includes taking several additional months to make the best MMORPG possible."

86 Comments

  • markdzebissov

    Posted Aug 10, 2007 7:27 pm PT

    If LOTRO was based on Peter Jackson's films and published by EA, who holds the rights to make games based on them, then I am sure it would put WOW on its knees.

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  • Ironmike1981

    Posted May 28, 2007 12:50 pm PT

    I want this game.......I dont care when or how I get it.

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  • kyletm2003

    Posted May 21, 2007 10:38 pm PT

    As Soon as warhammer is released im jumping off of the WoW bandwagon and picking up my big rusty SLab of metal (Kustom Choppa) and giving the first Dwarf i see a nice case tetnis.... and maybe rip his limbs off for kicks. Iz Wot Da Orkz Duz fo Fun.... WWWWAAAAGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

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  • timetheos

    Posted May 17, 2007 5:08 pm PT

    Thank the Flying Spaghetti Monster! EA has fixed its evil ways of releasing games to early.

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  • ewopb

    Posted May 13, 2007 6:18 pm PT

    well i'd rather see this kind of game done to it's fullest. i've been waitinf for a warhammer MMORPG for almost 10 years (since i started playing Warhammer) so waiting another couple months aint gonna bloody well kill me.
    in the end it is about quality control and for mythic to come out and say as such, shows alot of honesty with their product and dedication to a "true" representation of the warhammer world.
    think thats something blizzard failed to do with WoW.

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  • PyscoJuggalo

    Posted May 8, 2007 6:34 pm PT

    Ain't every PC game button mashing? For that matter, ain't every game button mashing?

    Seriously: Some MMORPGs are some of the most complex games on the market really, so saying they are "all about button mashing" is a little misleading.

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  • Faephoenix_Eyes

    Posted May 5, 2007 5:19 am PT

    If you hate MMORPG GunGriffin, then dont play them. And dont say you dont play em and go on talking how stupid they are if you havnt played em. If your saying youve played some MMORPG games then why didnt you stop playin the first one and played more? And if youve only played one game and hated it there's no point in expressing your hate. EVERYONE knows RPG games online are suppose to be button mashing and questing and all that crap, your just saying something pathetic.

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  • JLCrogue

    Posted May 1, 2007 11:47 am PT

    They better out-do WoW if they're going to be delaying it this much...

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  • metalisticpain

    Posted May 1, 2007 2:52 am PT

    I hope they continue to delay it until they release something of such a high standard that it lives up to a lot of the expectations running around. (Not all cause thats impossible )

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  • GunGriffin

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 8:02 pm PT

    If you have seen the South Park WoW episode you know this will be more of the same. More button smashing macro cheating crap like every other online RPG.

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  • haesuse

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 7:13 pm PT

    well considering what was up on the official site i saw this coming. however while i do agree chances are that WoW will crush it, and all the other competition in years to come. however there is still a little chance that will some actualy smart delays this may come out to be at least a decent competitor to WoW.
    also we need a good PvP based MMO. WoW has utterly destroyed all the joy in good ol' fashion ganking with their PvP system.

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  • Xeuton_Mojukai

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 1:46 pm PT

    Personally, I'm hoping EA will stick with their more successful strategies (both in terms of financial and critical success). Those strategies include buying out a small-but-able developer with a hot title on their hands, handing them the equivalent of a blank check, and leaving them to their work until the game is in need of hype. It's why Burnout, C&C3, and a few of their other, most recent releases have been such successes, both on and offline.

    Forget the track record, the time since their last trial run is an eternity for the MMO industry, and they've been quite successful in other genres. There's very little reason to doubt the proper handling of this franchise. These aren't just businessmen in charge of EA. They're gamers and stockholders. They know quality is where they get their paychecks, and from there, greed only will lead them to mutual benefit if they're wise.

    ~ Guardian

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  • zebnolsen

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 12:37 pm PT

    Could have seen this coming a mile away, just take a look at their website to see how much work they have left.

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  • Crush_Project

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 12:26 pm PT

    oh and WOW sucks. Its so plain vanilla it hurts. Plus thier entire pvp/class system is terrible/broken beyond repair. This is hopefully the game that cracks the bloated blizzard crown, and gets bliz back to making games its good at (aka rts's)

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  • Crush_Project

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 12:26 pm PT

    oh and WOW sucks. Its so plain vanilla it hurts. Plus thier entire pvp/class system is terrible/broken beyond repair. This is hopefully the game that cracks the bloated blizzard crown, and gets bliz back to making games its good at (aka rts's)

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  • langfora

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 12:03 pm PT

    what the hell does owning an EA game have to do with anything? My thing is EA has a bad track record o ruining promising online games it's great that it will have a ton of features and gorgeous graphics but will it play well? will it be to tedious to do game tasks/quests? WoW has got the formula down to a science I hope Mythic is taking notes

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  • panthro

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 10:42 am PT

    It's no secret that WoW is the current king of mmorpgs. To steal the throne, developers and publishers will have to pull out all their resources, all their money, all their talent, and all the time it takes to make a game capable of taking that number one spot...or simply to compete. In my opinion, Warhammer Online is the last viable contender to the throne (LOTRO got pretty close, but I don't think it will de-throne WoW). This game looks awesome! You go Mythic! Take as long as you need to create your masterpiece...I'll be first in line whenever it's released be it 08, 09, whenever. I'd rather the release be pushed out than have a buggy, half-baked game served to me (Vanguard?).

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  • BigDaveyDogz

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 8:50 am PT

    people who bash EA don't know what they are talking about...I'm in no way a "EA fanboy" but I would bet any amount of money you own and enjoy at least 1 EA game.

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  • bureksasutlijom

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 8:44 am PT

    Wow,who would guess it....

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  • Cythwydd

    Posted Apr 30, 2007 5:51 am PT

    EA tends to not have a good name when it comes to MMOs. Sure, they let Lord British (Richard Garriott) have free reign with the original Ultima Online, but once they got their hands on it, it's been bland and vanilla ever since. And they killed the UXO, Ultima Online 2 projects. If they can keep their greedy businessmen's grubby paws out of Mythic's way and let them do what they want to, Warhammer Online has the potential to be a great MMORPG. However, given EA's track record, I'm not going to hold my breath.

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  • langfora

    Posted Apr 29, 2007 3:53 pm PT

    lets be honest they are not going to end "WoW's Reign of Terror"

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  • phalluman

    Posted Apr 29, 2007 3:31 pm PT

    a longer delay just means a better end product. you've lived your whole lives without this game. i'm sure you can make it another few months.
    snuggles.

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  • couchcommando

    Posted Apr 29, 2007 9:41 am PT

    i dont know why yall are hating so much on ea. i understand y yall hate becuase of the football thing but it is not like ea is buying out all the mmo's. all they did was buy a small company and i bet the company is really greatful because now they are able to put more money into developing the game. and you know what i hope the game does really good. it is not like im going to stop playing wow but it would be nice to play something different. just like some people would like to play a football game that was not just developed by ea , i too want to try something different and who knows it might inspire blizzard in a good way to try something different. you need competition out there in this industry. that is one great way to really up your game is to do better than your competition. besides i dont think it was mentioned anywhere but some people dont know that the warhammer franchise has been around for a long time since the 70s or 80s i really dont remember exactly when. i think that is where warcraft and starcraft got their inspiration from. warcraft is a lot like warhammer and starcraft is a lot like warhammer 40k. for those haters who are quick to diss warhammer franchise you should check it out and see the great similarities. i hope warhammer does great because i am gamer who plays a variety of games....not a person who all he plays is just wow.

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  • inquisiter

    Posted Apr 29, 2007 8:09 am PT

    rainmanstile tolkien was writing lord of the rings universe before 1937 and in the 60's it was used as a bible by hippies so yeh.... but still booo EA i do wish theyd get their money grabbin mits off of potentialy good games

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  • enoslives7

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 8:17 pm PT

    EA is a bunch of greedy idiots. They are trying to monopolize pro sports, and their crappy MMORPG will get crushed by Warcraft.

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  • Argonaut125

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 8:14 pm PT

    Sigh. First Mass Effect now this, guess I won't be needing that $100 I just saved up

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  • rainmanstile

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 8:07 pm PT

    i played 40 k for awhile. if i ever step into this crap this would be the game i would do it for. you want innovation? you are talking about the guys who invented the majority of what you know about elves dwarfs and orcs. tolkien be damned these guys wrote it all up in like the 70's and 80's when no one knew who the hell that was. imagine if george lucas tried to make a video game version of star wars, same playing feild. maybe speilberg would be a better anaolgie.

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  • matte989

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 5:34 pm PT

    Good for them. I'm glad they are taking some extra time. Shipping an MMO before the holidays is not ideal for the average employee. Just like Blizzard didn't screw over their development team by shipping BC at the Holidays. Great for moral.

    I think MMO's are different in that the holiday will not make or break the product unlike some single player games. If it's a great MMO people will subscribe.

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  • Cemibok

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 4:50 pm PT

    At least the longer they take the less bugs they should have in their game and the more we can expect from it.

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  • beckoflight

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 3:30 pm PT

    I dont find Warhammer fantasy intersting like 40k just don't care about the game & EA can kiss my ........ !!! I only hope for Warhammer 40k MMO to be maked properly & more faster !

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  • GaussGoat

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 2:19 pm PT

    Anyone who thinks that MMO's "can't be improved upon" is a fool. Games are constantly evolving, and current MMO's haven't even begun to scratch the surface of what is possible with this incredibly powerful genre. Warhammer will be Epic; guaranteed.

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  • DevilsOverlord

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 12:33 pm PT

    While I'm a little disappointed that it is being delayed, I know that the game will be worth waiting for.

    Though I do have some things to tell you, I feel sorry for you children who think WoW is fantastic, Warhammer has been around 20 years and pretty much dominates anything that attempts to copy it.

    Warcraft and I'm paraphrasing the Blizzard developers here, was inspired completely by Warhammer and yet fails to be anywhere near as good as it, Warcraft as an RTS was good. As an MMO though, is pretty poor, oh and if you think WoW in terms of game mechanics is original you are severely ignorant, I point you to Lineage 1, Everquest and UO.

    Warhammer Online will be better, because it's being made by a team that is more experienced with MMO's (Mythic Entertainment) who know what WAR fans want in a game like this.

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  • Lord_Foortwenti

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 11:23 am PT

    All you dopes saying this is going to be a WoW clone, or that MMOs can't be improved upon.......that's just plain ignorant.

    Warhammer is nothing like WoW, except maybe for a similar art direction. But in terms of gameplay WAR is focused much more on innovative PvP w/ some PvE to add flavor.

    DAoC was/is a great game and Mythic is taking their experience from it and learning from their mistakes and applying it all to the development of WAR. This game WILL be better than WoW. That dosen't necessarily mean that it will dethrone or "beat" WoW b/c WoW and Blizz have a truly massive fanboi following. But I am willing to wager that WAR will definitely be the better game.

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  • snakota

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 10:18 am PT

    nothing will compete WOW for a
    couple of years and you know why for the same reason windowz rulez
    ENJOYABLE SIMPLICITY

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  • Basez2

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 9:20 am PT

    "Best MMORPG Possible"

    ..

    1. There are enough MMORPG Games out already.

    2. The best of them cant possibly be improved on.

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  • xatman911

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 8:40 am PT

    Havent we got enough MMORPG's already?

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  • AceCometh

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 7:24 am PT

    As much as I want to see this game, I bet EA makes it suck like all their other games these days.

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  • dennis8

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 6:50 am PT

    oh well, the delay better be worth the wait........

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  • spchernandez

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 4:56 am PT

    *cries* *rips heart out* *feeds it to his old griffon*

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  • ele975

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 3:34 am PT

    Yup, i got the newsletter as well, but mine said they were going to redo the dwarf and the greenskins. But i have read some stuff wrong before! But anyways, if i did read it correctly. Taking your time on something is ALWAYS the best step, the longer time they spend on it: the better it will get!

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  • Lonewolftom87

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 1:53 am PT

    Damn, I was so looking forward to playing this, this year. Ah well good things come to those who wait...

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  • Chainblast

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 1:36 am PT

    Meh. I used to play the table top game and would love to get back into the universe but I feel this game will either be sub-par to WoW or a clone. That's not to say that WoW is perfect because it isn't, it's just the better of the bunch overall, IMO. So if I felt like playing WoW I'd play WoW.

    Age of Conan is the only interesting MMO on the horizon.

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  • GrimGravy

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 1:26 am PT

    i think this game is gonna be pretty sweet

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  • The_One_White

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 1:23 am PT

    *crys* well....Lotro and AoC will have to last me

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  • MooseBoys

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 12:42 am PT

    Sounds like the only calendar Tor Thorsen has access to is one of those "Backwards Bush" ones.

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  • PyscoJuggalo

    Posted Apr 28, 2007 12:18 am PT

    Umm the writer made a mistake, EA already has a MMORPG called Ultima Online, AKA UO. One of the oldest MMORPGs out there and heralded as a cornerstone of modern MMORPGs.

    "Electronic Arts decided it wanted its own piece of the MMORPG pie"

    It already has a piece of the MMORPG pie and failed because it alienated its playerbase.

    And what is with this presidential crap and making this delay seem like a big deal? MMORPGs release dates and video game release dates are delayed constantly and MMORPG development has very little to do with the election cycle.

    The story is this simple and should have been written in this format: EA has postponed the release of WAR. EA's press release says x about the delay. You crazy Warhammer lovers are gonna have to wait until 2008.

    No need to try to make the story more than it is...

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