Hellgate Guru

Hellgate: London Background

Hellgate: London is a dark fantasy themed action role-playing game developed by Flagship Studios, released on October 31, 2007. It was developed by a team headed by former Blizzard Entertainment employees, some of whom had overseen the creation of the Diablo series. In 2008 Flagship Studios filed bankruptcy and all intellectual property was seized because it was used as collateral for funding received from Comerica Bank. Subsequently, development of the game halted. Namco Bandai Games provided free ongoing US/EU server support in the fall of Flagship Studios until 31 January 2009, when the US/EU multiplayer game servers and websites were taken offline.  Since then the only option people have had is to play bingo except for in Korea where HanbitSoft has  acquired properties to the game.

Hellgate: London, R.I.P.

It feels like the end of an era, albeit one plagued by drama, disappointment and failed aspirations. History has finally closed the chapter on Hellgate: London.

It should be said that there were good times. Good times made to taste even sweeter because of all the bitterness surrounding it, not in spite of it. Lasting friendships were forged and alliances were formed. History has left its mark on us all.

In memory of the game, Ahriman of the Hellgate Guru forums penned this little write-up [link] of the game’s final moments:

Those who stayed up long enough could witness the last shut-down of HG:L. Most players had gathered in Stonehenge and on the minute of 6 am GMT, or midnight CST, did Hellgate: London prompt with an unknown network error and refused any further connection attempts.

Yes, even the webpage is gone. 

Feels like it was just launched yesterday, when I got really hyped up about the game, cannot concentrate on work and rushed to the launch site to get my CE box. Ran home and played the game for a full 4 hours.   

This game will always have a place in my heart. 

| Posted in » Community, General, Hellgate Guru

Gameplay

Set in a post-apocalyptic London in the year 2038, Hellgate: London is a fast paced action role playing 'hack and slasher'. While the game featured both singleplayer and online multiplayer support when it was released, it never included a casino. The singleplayer version features a 5 act story quest line and when completed, the player is eligible to restart the story line again in Nightmare difficulty and create new characters in Elite mode.