News coming out of the sci-fi MMO RF Online has mostly been a trickle of headlines – the last report involved Korean developer CCR announcing its intent to chase the blockchain dragon with a separate server – but by and large the game appeared to simply be moving along, including here in the west. That ended earlier this week, however, as publisher RedFox Games announced in January that the game would go dark.
It appears that contract issues between RedFox and CCR are responsible for the sunset: The announcement notes that Netmarble bought out CCR in 2020, while the publishing contract between RedFox and CCR happened before the merger, and all of RedFox’s contacts were with CCR and not Netmarble. “We are not privy to the decision making of any other parties involved and do not have any inside knowledge regarding the status of any other RF Online services,” the post claims.
The announcement then goes on to note how RedFox tried to test additional methods to keep the game alive over the following two years, including a rollback to a previous version or the creation of a classic server. Ultimately, though, the devs were unable to transfer servers or existing player data.
“Our staff is saddened by this news, since the RF community is one that we have grown to appreciate, despite the difficulties we have faced,” the post closes. “We understand that this news is disappointing to many of you, and we ask that everyone refrain from speculating or vilifying any parties involved.”
Incidentally, the fortunes of the Korean version of RFO don’t appear to be much sunnier, as recent update posts run through Google Translate suggest the title is in maintenance mode. Our condolences to the fans of this game and the western devs who appeared to try to bail out a sinking ship.
