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The developers who worked on the game also had an emotional investment in it, and felt the same loss when the closure was announced, especially since they'd really done some great things with the Legions expansion just prior. There’s a really good article on The Game Archaeologist about the story of AC2 and its final days from the dev side of things by former Producer Eric Heimburg.
SO, those were sad times, and even though we’ve had time to get over that after SEVEN YEARS, I would still go back if I could. People have, during that time, worked on emulating the game, but not with complete success, and I don’t personally want to get into the weeds enough to figure that stuff out (though the fact that they were doing it is yet another indicator that this game holds a special place in peoples’ hearts). The people at Turbine who made the decision to axe Asheron’s Call 2 are long gone, but are there any remaining who still remember, or feel the level of affection for the game that I do?
Evidently, there are. And holy @#$%*… they just did the unthinkable. Asheron’s Call 2 is back.
It’s free to play, all you need is a subscription to the original Asheron’s Call. There have been some changes made, so the old installations of the game won’t work. It would be astounding if people actually HAD old installations, of course; for me that was at least two computers ago. You’ll need a fresh download, which they provide here. Also, old characters are not there. Which I think is a good thing overall. I am perfectly happy to start over and get re-acquainted with things.
Over the years, I’ve tried to get back into games I used to love. My husband and I dabbled a little in World of Warcraft, and I installed Dungeon Keeper, Caesar III, Sacrifice, and even the Sims. They were all fun for a few hours’ walks down memory lane, but then I’d move on to other things. This is different.
Thanks, Turbine. Thanks for listening, for caring, and for taking the time to do something like this when all hope was lost. I can’t wait to go back, and I hope this allows some people who never knew AC2 to discover and enjoy it.
4 comments:
btw, my old installation is still there :)
Hello Ramen!
It was good seeing a familiar soul in-game. It's been an absolute pleasure getting back into the swing of AC2 again, albeit a bink of a time sink.
Through Christmas I was working 14 hour days, and still managing to play a little AC2. Who knew?
See you in-game.
~Artifex / Robber Baron
See you in-game! :)
~Artifex/Robber Baron
Great to be back, guys! It's every bit as fun as I remember, so far. I heard a rumor that the hero system is being activated this morning! Not that such news affects me yet, my highest character so far is 17. :D
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