Chronicles of Spellborn delayed
But US release looking more likely.
Not much more than a month after it was scheduled for a spring 2008 release, Dutch fantasy MMO Chronicles of Spellborn has been delayed to the autumn.
This is due to a "revision to the server infrastructure", according to the press release; while the gameplay and graphics are of sufficient quality, but developer Spellborn needs to revamp its netcode to ensure the "flow and performance" of the game meet expectations. It's a lag monster, then.
Autumn 2008 puts Spellborn up against some big names in fantasy massively multiplayer gaming: notably the also-delayed Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, and Mines of Moria, the first Lord of the Rings Online expansion. NCsoft's Aion: Tower of Eternity, and the second World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of Lich King, are also likely to hit before Christmas. Then there's a salvo of sci fi in the form of Stargate Worlds and Jumpgate: Evolution.
The fourth quarter is, in short, an MMO bloodbath, and Spellborn will do well to get noticed. There is a silver lining to the delay, however. Its European publisher, Frogster, is close to signing a deal with a "renonwned MMOG publisher" to bring the game to the US. Since this publisher will require a six-month lead time, it raises the possibility of a "co-ordinated worldwide release".