Codemasters Online Gaming secures EU licensing extension

Codemasters Online Gaming has announced the signing of a new, extended licensing agreement with South Korean publisher CCR that will bring acclaimed MMO title RF Online to mainland Europe.

Featuring a blend of traditional magical fantasy and science fiction, RF Online has proven exceptionally popular in the East - attracting in excess of a million players since its launch last year.

Given the lack of any dedicated promotional activity to date in the West, the consumer anticipation for the title is said to have exceeded all expectations. Codemasters Online Gaming was initially launching the title exclusively in the US, but will now work towards a simultaneous US and EU release in the first quarter of 2006.

Codemasters Online Gaming director David Solari commented: "The response we've received from the RF Online community has been amazing and it has already attracted a surprisingly large following throughout Europe. Given that, until now, the title was not promoted across mainland Europe, this indicates there is a huge market for RF Online."

"This extension to our distribution agreement ensures that the game will be a major event in the Western MMO calendar when it launches in 2006," Solari concluded.

The title marks Codemasters Online Gaming's first real foray into the MMO genre, having cancelled the publishers' own Dragon Empires MMO, which had been in development for several years. Codemasters Online Gaming will publish, operate and manage RF Online in the US, UK and Europe, and the game is set for a simultaneous Q1 release.

CCR CEO Seok-Ho Youn stated: "We have witnessed Codemasters' commitment to MMO games and we are pleased to award the license for the remaining European territories to the organisation. We are confident that Codemasters Online Gaming will be a leading MMO publisher in the West and we're looking forward to being a part of its success."