Is this true?

[Waya]

I heard a rumor that Titan Network was interested in seeing if they could obtain a "license" from NCsoft to run their own server(s) of the content from the Beta server of CoH, purely in "maintenance mode." I've tried searching the forums, but I can't find anything about that possibility. Has anyone checked into it? Perhaps if NCsoft kept complete control over their beloved intellectual property (in case it somehow ends up making them more money), they would be willing to sell "licenses," for Titan Network (or anyone else) just to run their own servers of the game we all love...?

[corvus1970]

While I can't speak for the admins here, I don't think that's true.

[Surelle]

I heard a rumor that Titan Network was interested in seeing if they could obtain a "license" from NCsoft to run their own server(s) of the content from the Beta server of CoH, purely in "maintenance mode." I've tried searching the forums, but I can't find anything about that possibility. Has anyone checked into it? Perhaps if NCsoft kept complete control over their beloved intellectual property (in case it somehow ends up making them more money), they would be willing to sell "licenses," for Titan Network (or anyone else) just to run their own servers of the game we all love...?

That would be awesome if it was true, but nothing has been publicly stated about that here anyway.  I'd be glad to know *something* concrete was actually going on, though, especially in light of NCSoft's Korea Times comment about not knowing what will happen with the CoH IP.  It would be kind of humiliating, and I'd imagine it would be quite a joke around NCKorea's offices at our expense, if NCSoft has briefly changed their stance about wanting to sell, but no one wants to buy it!    

Supposedly all the ties have been cut for weeks now and the price of the IP plummeted into reasonable territory weeks ago now too, at least as far as Fansy (the former longtime EQ1 PvP newbie griefer) claimed, anyway, and everyone said he knew what he was talking about.

It's kind of looking like no one in the industry with the money to rez it is willing to do so these days, though.  I mean, all the negative press about the way NCSoft closed CoH alone was honestly enough to alert industry professionals far and wide that it was closing and that there was a potential business opportunity there.  Lots of MMOs have been rezzed over the years; it's not a new concept. 

And after that, getting ahold of PS heads via LinkedIn to try and get the ball rolling isn't too difficult.  And any serious inquirers would be much more interested in actual subscriber and cash shop numbers for the last couple years than in forum members, no matter how wonderful we all are, and no offense meant to any of us and all of our efforts to make noise.  ;)  But we've already alerted the world:  CoH was shut down by NCSoft and in a nasty fashion.  Everyone knows.  After coming forward and talking with PS/NC, it would mainly be a matter of the size of their company or group of investors and how they view CoH's more recent income levels versus what they'd have to pay to get CoH.

I hope I'm making sense here and that no one is offended.

[Perfidus]

There was a recent article, post-shutdown, where I think Matt Miller said he'd be in line to buy up any of the Paragon IPs day one, should NCSoft choose to offer them. He named the super secret project specifically, but I can't believe for a second he wouldn't want CoH back just as badly.

[Surelle]

There was a recent article, post-shutdown, where I think Matt Miller said he'd be in line to buy up any of the Paragon IPs day one, should NCSoft choose to offer them. He named the super secret project specifically, but I can't believe for a second he wouldn't want CoH back just as badly.

The super secret project was an online turn-based strategy game, at least according to Tim Sweeny's LinkedIn, where I think he said he was lead developer.  I heard they had a board game going, too, perhaps based on the same franchise.  It was all a bit of a surprise to me at first, but realistically, the online strategy market is absolutely barren compared to how oversaturated the MMORPG market has been for years now, so I guess it does make sense once you think about it. 

I was also a bit surprised at Matt Miller's final Goodbye Paragon City post from his website:  http://www.mmodesigner.com/?p=276#more-276

Today marks the final day that City of Heroes will grace the internet with its bandwidth. Most of the nearly 2 million people who tried City of Heroes won't even notice its passing, as they left the game long ago, or simply never got into it to the level that our die hard fans did.


Personally, I always played on Virtue so there always seemed to be people around for instant teams, day and night.  I never thought about how low our numbers really might have been.  But even so, I can't imagine him not wanting CoH back either, or even a combo of CoH and a CoH2.

[Perfidus]

He never wanted it to die, I remember reading about how sad he was that the SaveCoH movement couldn't save it before the shutdown. I assume he's mostly moving on at this point, but if we were to win and get the game back, I can't imagine that he wouldn't at least come on board as a consultant. He loves the game just like we do.