True Fantasy Live Online

What it was: Back in 2002, Microsoft teamed up with JRPG developer Level-5 to bring an MMO to the original Xbox. Hot off the heels of the release of PS2 classics Dark Cloud 1 and 2, Level-5's game was set in a fantasy universe with a heavy emphasis on character customization. Players would be able to join up in groups or explore on their own, slaying monsters and collecting items.

Above: Just chilling in a local tavern looking-for-group 

What happened: Despite the fact that Level 5 had a fully playable version of the game ready, the project was canceled in 2004. It seems as though there were several technical hurdles that stopped the game from being released, including Microsoft's insistence on including voice chat. Though development has stopped, Level-5 president Akihiro Hino has said that he still hopes that TFLO will see the light of day eventually.

Above: A cel-ective look at True Fantasy Live Online’s combat 

Mythos

What it was: While Flagship's San Francisco studio was busy with the ill-fated Hellgate: London, the company's Seattle arm was hard at work on Mythos. Though the game was originally created as a way to test the online portions of Hellgate, it turned out so well that plans were laid out for a full commercial release. Basically, Mythos was a spiritual successor to the Diablo series, but with a high fantasy setting and massively multiplayer twist.

What happened: Although Mythos was shaping up to be a great title - and even had a closed beta in 2007 - the catastrophic failure of Hellgate forced Flagship to close its doors for good. A good portion of Flagship Seattle went on to form Runic Games. However, the rights to Mythos still belong to Korean publisher, HanbitSoft, which may or may not choose to continue development on the game.

Fallout Online

What it was: An MMO set in the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout. It was revealed that Interplay was planning to start developing the game in 2007, provided it could scrounge up the funding. That year Bethesda - the developer behind Fallout 3 - purchased the IP from Interplay. The deal was that Interplay could move forward with a Fallout MMO as a licensee of the IP, provided that they raise at least $30 million to fund development of the title and enter full-scale production within 24 months.

Above: An MMO set in the Fallout universe would have been a great follow up to Bethesda's Fallout 3

What happened: By now, the deadline has passed. And in Interplay’s most recent annual performance report, it was revealed that Bethesda plans to terminate the agreement, which would have allowed Interplay to make a Fallout MMO. Why? Because Bethesda claims that Interplay did not secure the $30 million in funds or enter full-scale development in time per their prior agreement.

That doesn’t mean we’ll never see an MMO set in the Fallout universe. But if we do, chances are high that it won’t be from Interplay.

June 25, 2009

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