"Dark Age Of Camelot's" Realm vs. Realm Clustering Patch A Huge Success
More Than 1,500 Players Participate in Single Realm vs. Realm Battle in the Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game
FAIRFAX, VA, February 9, 2005 - Mythic Entertainment®, developer and publisher of the massively-multiplayer online role-playing game "Dark Age of Camelot®," today announced that the game's Realm vs. Realm (RvR) clustering patch resulted in one of the largest battles ever seen in an MMORPG. Last night, players participated in a massive RvR combat session where more than 1,500 characters simultaneously fought one another on a single battlefield. RvR is Mythic's unique implementation of Player vs. Player (PvP) combat, and this unprecedented RvR session was made possible through the new server clustering technology, which was launched on several "Dark Age of Camelot" servers on February 8.
In "Dark Age of Camelot®," players choose to create characters from one of three different Realms - Albion, Hibernia, and Midgard - based on the myths and legends of Arthurian England, Celtic Ireland, and Viking Scandinavia, respectively. Other characters in a player's Realm are their allies and cannot be attacked, but players in enemy Realms can - and are - attacked on sight. This "Realm vs. Realm" combat takes place in a special region on each server called the Frontier, which is populated by Keeps that Realms may siege and control. The more Keeps a Realm owns, the more territory they control. Constant ongoing battles between the Realms take place within the Frontier as players battle to wrest control of Keeps away from their enemies while attempting to defend their own Keeps.
"The challenge and scale of RvR battles have always been a key element of 'Dark Age of Camelot's' success," said Matt Firor, Executive Producer at Mythic Entertainment. "By implementing clustered servers, a first in any MMORPG, we've guaranteed that players on all of our servers - not just the high-population servers - have the same exhilarating RvR experience."
Server clustering was designed by Mythic Entertainment® to facilitate stronger RvR on lower-population servers. It allows players from different "Dark Age of Camelot®" servers to participate in Realm vs. Realm combat together. Previously, only players on the same servers could fight one another in RvR. Funneling the population of four server's of players into one clustered Frontier zone led to one of the largest - if not the largest - battles ever held in an MMORPG. Groups of hundreds of players roamed the Frontier, laying siege to Keeps and challenging huge armies of enemy players.
"Clustering these servers was so successful that we are launching another server cluster today," added Firor. "Players of the game now have more friends to group with, as well as more enemies to fight, in RvR. It's much easier to find keep sieges to participate in, territory to defend, and in general have even more fun time in our Frontiers than ever before."
About "Dark Age of Camelot®"
"Dark Age of Camelot®" is a next generation massively-multiplayer online role-playing game ("MMORPG"), and features state-of-the-art 3D graphics with multiple class and race combinations, a robust trade skill system, and the most comprehensive player Guild system in any MMORPG. The world of "Dark Age of Camelot®" features three Realms at war - Midgard, Hibernia and Albion. Based on the mythologies of Viking-era Scandinavia, ancient Ireland, and Arthurian Britain, respectively, the once-peaceful Realms began to battle after the death of King Arthur. Players quest, fight monsters, form guilds and eventually gain enough power to defend their Realm from enemies.
Since its release, "Dark Age of Camelot®" has received critical acclaim, including Online Game of the Year by Computer Games Magazine and Computer Gaming World, and PC Game of the Year by USA Today and MSNBC. With an industry-leading customer support program, "Dark Age of Camelot®" continues to grow and expand worldwide and has proven to be an enduring success. "Dark Age of Camelot®" is played by more than 250,000 subscribers in almost every country in the world, and will soon be available in seven languages. The game was released in Japan in January 2005 and in March will become the first international MMORPG available in Spanish.
For more information about "Dark Age of Camelot®", visit www.darkageofcamelot.com.
About Mythic Entertainment®
Mythic Entertainment is one of the most successful developers and publishers of massively multiplayer online role-playing games in the world. Credited with 15 online games, including the award winning "Dark Age of Camelot®," Mythic's success is based in proprietary technology, superior game design and exemplary customer service delivered by a talented staff of more than 150 people.
In March 2003, TA Associates completed a $32 million investment in Mythic®, the largest ever granted to any independent game developer. Mythic has been recognized for their business achievements by the Inc. 500, Deloitte Fast 500, and as a 2004 finalist in the Dell Small Business Awards. In addition to "Dark Age of Camelot®" expansions, Mythic is currently developing "ImperatorTM," a next-generation Sci-fi MMORPG, scheduled for release in winter of 2005. More information about Mythic Entertainment is available at www.mythicentertainment.com .
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