Hellgate: London

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Hellgate: London
Developer(s)Flagship Studios
Publisher(s)Namco / HanbitSoft / EA / IAH
EngineProprietary game engine
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
ReleaseUnited States October 31, 2007[1]

European Union November 2, 2007[1]
ASEAN October 31, 2007[2]
Australia November 1, 2007[2]

South Korea February 22, 2008[3]
Genre(s)Action-RPG
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

Hellgate: London is a dark fantasy-themed action role-playing game developed by Flagship Studios and released on October 31, 2007. It was developed by a team headed by former Blizzard Entertainment employees, some of whom had overseen the creation of the Diablo series. One major update, The Stonehenge Chronicles, has been released since game launch. A Collector's Edition of the game was also released, featuring additional collectibles not available to people who purchased the normal version.

Set in a post-apocalyptic London in the year 2038, Hellgate: London features both single-player and multiplayer components. This allows the player to team up with other players online to battle demons, or to fight alone in single player mode. The free online component features the originally released single-player content in cooperative play and 1v1 combat. Those who subscribed received additional features and perks, such as an increased "stash" to store items, guild formation, and access to areas and items advertised through various Teasers such as subscriber only loot items and map areas.

Plot

London has been invaded by demons. Until recently, humans had many champions holding back the invasion. Various real-world events are referenced in the background of the Hellgate story as averted crossover attempts. The Crusades were actually undertaken to fight back the minions of Hell, as was the charring of London in the Great Fire to wipe out the Plague. According to the storyline, the famous Knights Templar were the keepers of knowledge on how to battle demonic forces. Unfortunately, these heroes underwent a charring of their own at the hands of a jealous King Phillip IV, who hated the power they held in the world at large. While the Knights Templar survived as an organization, their numbers were severely diminished and were forced to remain in hiding to stay alive.

As time passed and technology progressed, the old ways began to fade from memory and the secrets of the arcane were lost. When the demons attacked again, they found their enemies unprepared. Ordinary weapons were no use against the demons, who could shrug off an RPG round. It is not exactly explained how demons, which are resistant to ordinary technological weapons, suddenly become killable in game to even to low level unenhanced weapons which presumably do not have magic. In game there is a kind of damage called "physical" and it is not explained how this is different from the damage created by normal kinetic energy weapons such as bullets. The Templars offered their special services to the military, but the leaders balked, refusing to believe in the old truths. Hellgate quickly took the victory in the battle for Earth. This implies that all the world's aremies were defeated. The Burn, a decades-long process of "hellforming", has begun.

However all is not lost, as various groups have been preparing for just such an eventuality. Freemasons built the London Underground to be demon resistant, and as such the stations now act as bases, "safe zones" for would-be defenders. These defenders are armed with a fusion of modern weaponry and arcane magic such as flamethrowers that throw Greek fire or swords covered in locusts. In the game, players are one of these defenders.

Gameplay

Hellgate: London is an action role-playing game that builds upon the core design of roguelikes by using random generation of maps, monsters, and loot to allow for replayability.[5] The game can be played in either third person perspective or first person perspective. Melee classes are set to a third-person view and cannot select first-person perspective, whereas ranged classes default to a first-person view but can switch to third-person if so desired. Precision aiming is not required to use most weapons; which track their targets, “lock-on”, or carpet an area with explosives. The game contains sniper rifles and other weapons that require accurate manual aiming, though most are exclusive to the Hunter faction. Hellgate: London can be played offline or online without a fee. Players can pay a monthly fee to gain additional content over time, including new areas, weapons which have dropped but were inaccessible, monsters, classes, quests, events, titles, game modes and other content.[6] The game consists of five acts to unify the areas a player travels through on a greater scale. All acts account for approximately 25-40 hours of single-player gameplay.

The game world of Hellgate: London is a set of demon-infested dungeons and city streets, featuring safe zones such as disused Underground stations. The safe zones scattered across the world act as havens, where players can purchase and upgrade items at NPC merchants, interact with other players in the game world, and commence or complete quests. The journey between zones is randomly generated, levels are fully 3D, rendered with the game's own proprietary graphics engine. Included in these environments are randomly generated enemies, bosses and items. The game features historical London areas and buildings, St. Paul's Cathedral was featured in an early concept art drawing. Another building that has been brought up in an interview is the Clock Tower which houses Big Ben.[citation needed]

Multiplayer

Hellgate: London was designed to be primarily focused on solo and cooperative PvE combat, but players can duel and there is a free-for-all PvP Mode for subscribers. Dueling can only take place outside of Underground hubs. Players can also choose to enter into PvP mode, which means they can be attacked and harmed outside of Underground hubs by anyone else that has chosen to enter PvP mode. That is, those in PvP mode, must always be ready for PvP. This is a way to have wide-ranging free-for-alls, or create a “friendly-fire” way of playing the game.[7] In multiplayer mode, players can meet and organize for team play and quests in safe zones - the old Underground stations, protected by the Freemasons' wards. The world will not be split in "shards" or servers, but rather play like a massively multiplayer online game with heavy instancing, such as Guild Wars. Every character is capable of soloing the entire game. Grouping with other players is optional, though grouping will bring benefits in terms of experience gain and items. As the number of players within an instance increase, the difficulty of the instance increases. The game does not feature LAN support.[8]

Servers and regional support

Ping0 manages the American (US) and European (EU) regional servers for Hellgate: London while IAHgames manages the Southeast Asia (SEA) regional server along with the game support and user forums for SEA region players.

Weapons

The weapons base their power on character stats more than a player's aiming skills, being more of an RPG than an FPS in this regard. For example, a player can place points in an Accuracy statistic that determines the precision of the rounds they fire.

There are five types of damage. When a target takes damage, there is a chance that it will suffer a special effect (or "debuff") based on the type of damage taken. The table below summarizes these types and effects:

Type Debuff Description
Physical Stun Prevents enemies from moving, attacking or using skills for the duration of the effect.
Fire Ignite Target takes damage equal to 5% of their maximum life every second for the duration.
Spectral Phase Phased targets deal 50% less damage and take 50% more damage.
Toxic Poison Poisoned targets take damage over time and cannot be healed until the poison wears off.
Electrical Shock Shocked targets cannot use skills for the duration of the debuff

Multiple forms of damage can be combined through mods onto a single weapon, which makes fulfillment of the minigame much more lenient and enjoyable.

Each weapon has a Strength value for the special effect of each type of damage it does (e.g. Ignite Strength for Fire weapons), comparing to the corresponding Defense stat of the target (e.g. Ignite Defense) in order to calculate the chance that a target will suffer the corresponding debuff. Items, mods, skills, buffs and equipment enhancements can alter Strength and Defense stats.

All weapons deliver their damage in one of three different modes:

  • Direct - only the enemy under the crosshairs will receive the damage
  • Splash - The damage effect will cause damage in an area centered on the target or location the player is aiming at.
  • Field - An area of terrain is targeted to inflict damage on enemies who enter it.

There are a number of other effects, which can cause projectiles to bounce, spawn novas of splash damage, and spawn more projectiles, which may or may not ricochet around the environment or pass through multiple enemies. These are typically the result of passive skills or special abilities of enhanced, rare and legendary weapons. They are not usually under the direct control of the player, instead relying on a random percentage chance for the effect to occur.

Items

Hellgate: London uses a heavily randomized item system of at least a hundred base weapon types and many armor types, with a pool of random special properties and bonuses (magical affixes) applied to them to achieve re-playability and promote item collection.

Furthermore, unwanted weapons and armor can be freely disassembled to save space in one's inventory, often yielding standard or rare crafting materials. These components can be exchanged for special crafted weapons at an NPC vendor, or used to upgrade existing weapons or armor at the Nanoforge device in most safe zones. Additionally, random special properties can be added to weapons or armor at a similar device. Blueprints are available by which one can craft one's own armor, weapons and mods, given the raw materials.

Lastly, elite subscriber-only items are dropped for all players, however they are only usable by subscribed players. This is part of a widely criticized in game advertising system for the subscription service.

As such, the gamut for item collection and customization includes:

  • Weapon mods (ammo, batteries, and so on, which can be removed for a price and swapped)
  • Upgradeable damage or armor values at the Nanoforge (using spare parts and Nanoshards)
  • The addition of random special properties to weapons and armor (for a price - properties can be Common, Rare or Legendary)
  • Crafted weapons, armor and mods (using spare parts and blueprints or at an NPC "maker")

Items may have slots that a player can insert "mods" in to enhance their power. Mods can be technology that improves items, but also demonic artifacts and holy items, known as relics. Technology mods are more aimed at specific weaponry upgrades, while relics are more general in what bonuses they give, such as giving fire damage enhancements regardless of the wielded weapon; if the player adds a mod to their weapon, this change is shown in-game (if a scope is added, then the weapon will render with a scope.) Mods can be removed at special devices in the quest-area hubs. Example types of mods are listed below:

  • Ammo Magazines - Modify the amount, type, range, or accuracy of weapons. Magazines can be magical or technological in nature.
  • Battery Packs - Battery packs charge weapons with different types of damage, such as spectral, shock (lightning), fire, poison, or physical.
  • Fuel Tanks - Confer different damage types onto weapons.
  • Relics - Often considered holy, relics may be part of a greater item or an item previously owned by someone of great ability.
  • Rockets - Like ammo magazines rockets change the type of ammo a weapon uses while adding an explosive element, often making it more powerful.

Factions and classes

HG:L has three main archetypes, or Factions as they are referred to in game. Each Faction consist of two professions, allowing for a total of six different professions to be played. Each faction and its available professions are listed below.

Templar

The Templar faction is an underground society leftover from the original Knights Templar. They combine futuristic technology with magic and ancient artifacts to create armor and weapons for melee and short-ranged combat. Templar classes are the only classes able to wield melee weapons, shields and use self-affecting auras, but have a limited ranged weapon selection.

  • Blademaster - An offensively-focused melee class, the only profession that can dual-wield swords.
  • Guardian - A defensively-focused melee class.

Cabalist

The Cabalists are students of the dark arts and fringe science. This often leaves them standing right on the line between good and evil. These powerful arcane casters seek knowledge about the demons, as well as how to achieve mastery over them. As spell casters, they are suited for mid-range combat.

Cabalist classes use ranged weapons that have many unique effects.

  • Evoker - An Evoker's skills include an extensive array of elemental attacks and curses. Evokers can equip two focus devices at the same time if they purchase the dual wield skill.
  • Summoner - A Summoner's skills include offensive abilities and many summoning abilities. Summoners can summon a main minion that can be enhanced over time and smaller minions for specialized use. Summoners cannot equip more than one focus device.

Hunter

The Hunters are mysterious, highly-trained ex-military operatives who lay waste to their foes with advanced weapons blending arcane magics with the latest in technology. They are able to hit their targets from long distances.[9]

Hunter classes rely on high-powered rifles and cannons. Their armor relies more heavily on the regenerating shield element, rather than the damage absorbing armor element. This is suited for long range attacks but weak when overrun by many opponents.

  • Marksman - The Marksman is a ranged weapon specialist with many skills to enhance his or her weaponry. Example: Sniper locks the character in place but provides a range and damage bonus at the cost of rate of fire (in patch 1.2 the player receives a 50% movement speed reduction in sniper stance).
  • Engineer - A minion class similar to the Summoner, with expendable minions as well as combat drones that can wield weapons. Example: Assault Drone summons a hovering bot that can use weapons and torso armor, it is the "main" pet of the Engineer.

Subscription

There are two types of multiplayer accounts: free and subscription accounts. Subscribers have access to ongoing content updates. The initial content updates will include more monsters, more weapons, additional item sets and special quests for ultimate items.

The US subscription plan costs $9.95 (USD) a month and an offer to pay a one-time fee of $149.99 for a lifetime subscription was available for up to 100,000 people who pre-ordered the game and ended on January 31, 2008.[10] The UK subscription is £6.99 and EU subscription is €9.99.[11]

Additionally, subscribers have access to a Hardcore mode, special PvP arenas and a PvP ladder (once implemented), the ability to bypass server queues, a shared storage space with room for 40 items instead of 20, the ability to create guilds, the ability to achieve officer status in guilds, and 24-hour customer support.[12] Subscribers and non-subscribers will be able to interact in all ways in the game. Non-subscribers can join guilds, but not create them.[13] The level cap is set to 50 and up to 24 character slots are available for all players.[14]

As of July 2008, all subscriptions have been suspended and players may neither subscribe nor unsubscribe at this point, although they will no longer be billed. This news followed news of significant layoffs at Flagship Studios.[15]

Development history

Flagship Studios has proposed regular additions to Hellgate: London throughout the life of the game.[16]

  • Monthly Events - All Hallow's Eve in October/November and Guy Fawkes Week in November.
  • Content Patches - Released quarterly for subscribers. Content or quarterly updates contain new content such has new monsters, new items, new areas, new quests, and possibly new subscriber only features.
  • Broad Content - Broad content includes new features, rebalancing, and bug fixes. New features like auction houses and a mail system will be added to the game as soon as they are finished and will not go into the standard patch cycle. Broad content will be available to everyone.[citation needed]

Monthly events

Monthly events add several items to the game that require many different levels of involvement to obtain. Some of these events reoccur and some of them happen only once.

  • All Hallow's Eve - Takes place on the week of Halloween. Included in All Hallow's Eve is candy with random effects, both cosmetic and beneficial, a buildable cyborg made from various parts, and a rare visage mask that gives its wearer a flaming skull for a head.
  • Guy Fawkes Week - Guy Fawkes week begins on the 5th of November. Included in Guy Fawkes Week is items with flaming abilities and new instances that have a fiery theme, collectible candy is expanded upon from All Hallow's Eve, and many new recipes are added.
  • The Bloodmoon - A rare level type rumoured to only be available during October.

No new events have been announced or planned since.

Stonehenge Chronicles patch

The Stonehenge Chronicles - Patch, scheduled for release on January 21, 2008, was postponed until January 22, 2008 due to bugs[17], and includes an additional hub (entitled Stonehenge), three open environments, multiple class and game changes/tweaks, added demons, and additional weaponry and armor.[18].

Financial assistance

On March 26, 2008, it was announced that Comerica Bank would provide game funding assistance, using Hellgate: London as collateral, for Flagship Studios so that they would not "rely upon a publisher's investment" to support ongoing development of their games. [19]

Southeast Asia Server

Players who purchased the game in Southeast Asia had problems of server crashing issues, the publishing companies involved Infocomm Asian Holdings and Hanbitsoft have given an official response to the matter, after several requests from the community to do so.[20]

Reception

Reviews
1Up.com D+[21]
Bit-tech.net 7/10[22]
EGC Games 74/100[22]
Eurogamer 7/10[23]
GameDaily 7/10[24]
GamePro 60%
GameSpot 7/10[25]
GameSpy 3/5[26]
GameTap 70%
IGN 6.8/10[27]
PC Gamer (US) 89/100
PC Gamer (UK) 73%
X-Play 2/5

The game received average reviews, with a Metacritic average of 71%, based on 39 reviews[28] and GameRankings average of 70%, based on 42 reviews.[29]

Positive aspects of the game commented on by reviewers include its story, described as "not totally original" but "still very much enjoyable"[30], and the overall look of the game.[27]

Other aspects of the game received mixed reception. For instance, combat was described as enjoyable, with varied classes[26], whilst the loot and customisation aspects were praised;[27] other reviewers described combat as both underdeveloped[27] and endless, with quest repetition and locked progession choices.[31]

Similarly, the game's technology received mixed reviews. The multiplayer component was both praised[22] and criticised,[26] with some bugs, slowdowns and crashes mentioned.[26]

Launch problems

Due to problems with the subscription service, the Halloween holiday subscription content was made available to all players, both fee-paying and free-playing.[32] In Southeast Asia, two weeks after the game was released, many players complained about a game patch, installed by Infocomm Asia Holdings(IAH), which supposedly would have deleted player's characters since game launch.[33] While the EU and US servers had received recent patches and additional content since launch, support and patching of the SEA server had been delayed. IAHGames, the distributor of Hellgate: London and the company providing the "Alliance" server for the SEA region, had promised patch 0 on launch day itself.[34] However, Patch 0 was delayed with no official date of implementation. On 14th November, a joint statement by the CEOs of IAHGames and Flagship Studios announced that the both Patch 0 and Patch 0.1 will be implemented on November 22nd and that they are considering some compensation for the early adopters.[35][33]

Other media

Comic

A comic book adaptation of Hellgate: London has also been released. Spanning a series of four issues, it is written by Ian Edginton, illustrated by Steve Pugh, and published by Dark Horse Comics. The issues are collected into a trade paperback published in June 2007 (ISBN 1-59307-681-9).[36] The collected comic was also included in the Collector's Edition of the game. The plot focuses on a Templar, Cabalist and Hunter teaming together to rescue a book they believe will give them an advantage over the demons.

Novels

There is also a trilogy of novels based on Hellgate: London written by Mel Odom. The first novel, called Exodus was released on June 26 2007.[37] The second novel, called Goetia was released on February 26, 2008.[38]. The third novel, Covenant was released on August 26, 2008 [39].

Exodus is set 18 years before events of the game, Goetia takes place 14 years before the events of the game, and Covenant takes place 13 years before the events of the game. The novels primarily follow the stories of three characters and their interactions with each other, as well as their individual struggles against the demons. Each character is from a different class from the game: Simon Cross is a Templar, Warren Schimmer becomes a Cabalist, and Leah Creasey is discovered to be a Hunter. The novels also feature references to and cameos by various characters from the game such as Jessica Sumerisle, Lyra Darius, and others. [40]

References

  1. ^ a b "EA and Namco Bandai Games Announce November 2nd Release Date for Hellgate: London" (Press release). Market for Home Computing and Video Games. 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2007-10-17. {{cite press release}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ a b "South East Asia release date confirmed". 2007-08-23. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
  3. ^ "[리뷰] 헬게이트 : 런던 , 그래픽 카드 챠트 (오픈베타)" (Press release) (in Korean). Play Forum. 2008-02-21. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
  4. ^ "Hellgate London system requirements". Retrieved 2007-11-14.
  5. ^ Schiesel, Seth (2007-10-27). "A Game Seeks Success Through Random Rewards". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-11-14. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ Subscriber Chart
  7. ^ Subscribers And Patch 0 | Hellgate London
  8. ^ UPDATE: Local Area Network a No-no - Ivan-Flagship posting on HellgateGuru.
  9. ^ About | Hellgate London
  10. ^ New Payment Methods Available | Hellgate London
  11. ^ Bishop, Stuart (2007-08-27). "GC: £6.99 a month for Hellgate online". Computer and Video Games. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS | Hellgate London
  13. ^ Remo, Chris (2007-05-08). "Hellgate: London Subscription Details Released". Shacknews. Retrieved 2007-05-27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Patch 0.5 - New Update Coming
  15. ^ Sol Invictus (2008-07-15). "Flagship Studios Still in Operations". Retrieved 2008-07-17. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  16. ^ Remo, Chris (2007-10-29). "Flagship's Roper on Hellgate: London's Future". Shacknews. Retrieved 2007-10-30.
  17. ^ Stonehenge Launch Rescheduled
  18. ^ Multiplayer: The Stonehenge Chronicles
  19. ^ "Hellgate: London Gets Financial Aid". Voodoo Extreme. 2008-03-26. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  20. ^ Asian Hellgate: London servers problems
  21. ^ Chick, Tom (2007-11-14). "Hellgate: London (PC)". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2008-08-03. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  22. ^ a b c Martin, Joe (2007-11-02). "Hellgate: London". Bit-tech.net. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "bit" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  23. ^ Fahey, Rob (2007-11-02). "Hellgate: London Review". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Wong, Steven (2007-11-02). "Hellgate: London Review (PC)". GameDaily. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  25. ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (2007-11-09). "Hellgate: London for PC Review". GameSpot. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  26. ^ a b c d Rausch, Allen (2007-11-02). "Hellgate: London (PC)". GameSpy. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Cite error: The named reference "gamespy" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  27. ^ a b c d Butts, Steve (2007-11-05). "Hellgate: London Review". IGN. Retrieved 2008-01-26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ "Hellgate: London (pc: 2007): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
  29. ^ "Hellgate: London Reviews". GameRankings. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
  30. ^ "Hellgate: London Review". NZGamer.com. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
  31. ^ Lewis, Cameron (2007-05-11). "Review: Hellgate: London for PC". GamePro. Retrieved 2008-07-03.
  32. ^ Happy Halloween! | Hellgate London
  33. ^ a b Lee, Oo Gin (2007-11-15). "It's hell for gamers with Hellgate bug fix". digital.asiaone.com. Retrieved 2007-11-22.
  34. ^ Game News: Upcoming patch
  35. ^ [IAH News] Good News from our developers – No Wipe
  36. ^ "Hellgate: London TPB". Retrieved 2007-05-10.
  37. ^ Page for Hellgate: London: Exodus at the publishers website
  38. ^ Page for Hellgate: London: Goetia at the publishers website
  39. ^ Page for Hellgate: London: Covenant at the publishers website
  40. ^ Hellgate London: Exodus. , Hellgate: London: Goetia.

External links

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