Hellgate: London to Close Forever in Europe and U.S.

A recent letter via a HanbitSoft PR representative from the Hellgate: London project manager raised hopes for fans on European and North American servers. According to the letter on HanbitSoft’s Game Espresso blog, Hanbit claims its U.S. division is working diligently on an update that will surpass The Abyss Chronicles that released in Asia. The game should be available on the Hellgate: London website. The letter also teases good news for fans coming soon.

Unfortunately, Namco Bandai community manager Diane Migliaccio has added some clarification to the letter, confirming that the update will not make it to these territories. Namco has exclusive rights to Hellgate: London in Europe, North America, and Japan, and it’s choosing to permanently discontinue the game and deny Hanbit the opportunity to service those territories. Migliaccio’s FAQ on the Hellgate: London forums gives this official explanation:

"Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of clarity we can offer here except to say that the extremely unfortunate closure of Flagship Studios put obligations, responsibilities, authority, and rights in a bit of a mess. We wish there were some hope to offer here, but, after careful consultation with all the relevant parties, we feel that this is the only path left."

The news is unwelcome to those who are still enjoying Hellgate, and the offered explanation is weak to say the least. Those players that paid for lifetime subscriptions and will not be getting a refund have the most right to be disgruntled. This is definitely an example of why lifetime subscriptions aren’t always the best choice unless you’re willing to take the loss if the game fails. At this point there isn’t much to be done about it unless players are willing to petition Namco Bandai for a different outcome.