WarCry Network

Last updated

WarCry Network
WarCryNetwork 2007-01-27.jpg
Type of site
Gaming culture and news site
Owner Defy Media
URL http://www.warcry.com/
Commercialno
Registrationnot required
LaunchedMay 21, 1999
Current statusInactive

WarCry Network (or WarCry.com per the URL) was a web portal centered on the MMO (massively multiplayer online) genre of video games. It boasted a large community of professional web sites and databases for these games. One of the regular features at WarCry.com were exclusive interviews with game developers and game company executives.

Contents

Previously associated closely with its sister site The Escapist , WarCry was deactivated in late 2018 during the liquidation of its owner, Defy Media.

History

The company known as WarCry Corp. was started in 1997 by Alexander Macris. [1] Originally a developer and publisher of online games, in 2001 WarCry acquired the assets of Crossroads Gaming Network (also known as XRGaming) in an undisclosed private transaction. The merged company took the WarCry name, but dropped the online gaming angle to concentrate on more coverage of games, particularly massively multiplayer which had been XRGaming's stock in trade. [1] Whilst popular, XRGaming had been suffering in the midst of the dot-com bust and WarCry's funding enabled both to survive.

Themis Group

Macris and Thomas Kurz founded Themis Group in August 2001 as a consulting firm for MMOG developers. Initially, Themis and WarCry were considered separate by Macris, who had sold his stake in WarCry. [2]

On July 12, 2005, Themis launched The Escapist, a weekly online magazine with Macris taking the role of publisher. By 2007, WarCry and The Escapist began using the same web software and similar layouts throughout their parallel life cycle. During this time, the company was split into two divisions: TAP Interactive, a continuation of the consulting firm; and Themis Media, an umbrella division for the websites.

On October 6, 2008, Themis Group announced they would be consolidating TAP Interactive into Themis Media, thus putting all their efforts into WarCry and The Escapist. [3]

Acquisition and Decline

Themis Group was purchased by Alloy Digital (later Defy Media) in 2012. [4]

While The Escapist was purchased by Enthusiast Gaming in July 2018, the deal did not include WarCry. With the closure of Defy Media in November 2018, WarCry was taken offline.

Coverage

The WarCry Network specialized in covering numerous popular MMOGs. The network itself had numerous daughter sites dedicated to covering almost all aspects of the games it covers. It has specific database pages for no less than 29 different online games, including extremely popular games such as World of Warcraft, [5] Everquest 2, Lineage II, City of Heroes and even the aging Dark Age of Camelot. The WarCry network now covers games, movies, anime, comics and other parts of the entertainment industry, supplied by a network of contributors and user-submitted content. Similar to many print gaming magazines, the WarCry network conducted its own "Editor's Choice Awards" in 2006. [6]

Some of their contemporaries included TenTonHammer.com, IGN's Vault Network, Stratics and the Coldfront Gaming Network.

Impact

Many gaming news sites index and/or link to articles that were originally published on WarCry. [7] [8] [9] [10] Some of the editorials published on the network have been used as sources by other articles as well. [11] Many of their interviews with game developers have been referenced to by other online news sites. [12] [13] [14]

Some official game websites have considered the network significant enough so as to reference them on their official websites. For example, Lineage II's news site stated that WarCry had exclusive coverage of their "Lineage II Battle Tournament". [15] [16] [17] Paris-based NEVRAX, makers of the massively-multiplayer online game The Saga of Ryzom , has also mentioned the WarCry Network in an official press release, alongside notable industry news sources such as GameSpy and Computer Gaming World. [18]

In light of their 2006 Editor's Choice Awards, many game developers have also acknowledged the network on their own official websites. Cryptic Studios, makers of the massively multiplayer City of Heroes and Marvel Universe Online games referenced their Editor's Choice Award on their official news site. [19] Another major MMOG, EVE Online, acknowledged WarCry for naming their Revelations expansion, "Expansion of the Year" on their front page. [20]

Related Research Articles

A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) is a video game that combines aspects of a role-playing video game and a massively multiplayer online game.

A massively multiplayer online game is an online game with large numbers of players, often hundreds or thousands, on the same server. MMOs usually feature a huge, persistent open world, although there are games that differ. These games can be found for most network-capable platforms, including the personal computer, video game console, or smartphones and other mobile devices.

<i>Furcadia</i>

Furcadia is a free-to-play MMOSG/MMORPG or graphical MUD, set in a fantasy world inhabited by magical creatures. The game is based on user-created content with emphasis on world building tools, exploring, socializing, and free-form roleplaying. Furcadia hosts a large volunteer program called the Beekin Helpers, allowing players to help with community moderation, welcoming new players, handling in-game technical support, running in game events, creating art for the game itself, accessing and updating the game's website, and bug hunting. Furcadia holds the Guinness World Records title for the longest continuously running social MMORPG and in addition to being one of the first games to heavily encourage modding and let users build virtual worlds for themselves, it was also one of the first freemium online games. In 2008, Furcadia was reported as having over 60,000 players.

<i>Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning</i>

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on Games Workshop's Warhammer Fantasy setting, developed by Mythic Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts in 2008. The game revolved around the continual worldwide conflict that the Warhammer Fantasy setting is known for, and the game is geared toward ongoing, constant war laced with dark humour. Age of Reckoning ended up selling over a million copies and peaking at 800,000 subscribers, but dropped to 300,000 subscribers several months later. The game received generally positive reviews from critics but shut down in 2013. Since at least 2014, an active private server called Return of Reckoning has been run by fans, and it remains active as of July 2021.

Scott Jennings, also known as Lum the Mad, is an American commentator on MMORPG games. He is best known for creating a website, The Rantings of Lum The Mad, a pioneer blog, which existed from 1998 to 2001, when Jennings was hired by MMO developer Mythic Entertainment, where he remained until 2006.

GameSpy Defunct video game company

GameSpy was an American provider of online multiplayer and matchmaking middleware for video games founded in 1996 by Mark Surfas. After the release of a multiplayer server browser for the game, QSpy, Surfas licensed the software under the GameSpy brand to other video game publishers through a newly established company, GameSpy Industries, which also incorporated his Planet Network of video game news and information websites, and GameSpy.com.

Warcry, War cry, WarCry or War Cry may refer to:

Perpetual Entertainment, founded in March 2002, was an American developer, publisher and operator of networked multiplayer games and MMORPGs. Their headquarters was located in San Francisco, California, United States. From October 2007 to February 2008 the company was known as P2 Entertainment. The company was best known for its development of two MMOs: Star Trek Online and Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising.

<i>The Escapist</i> (magazine) American video game magazine

The Escapist is an American video game website and online magazine. First published as a weekly online magazine by Themis Media on July 12, 2005, The Escapist eventually pivoted to a traditional web journalism format and became well known for a roster of popular video series.

Mod DB

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Bruce Woodcock (computer games analyst)

Bruce Sterling Woodcock is an American computer and video games industry analyst, best known for his work on subscription tracking of massively multiplayer online games via his website MMOGCHART.COM.

Multiverse Network Limited. was an Asian startup company creating a network and platform for Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) and 3D virtual worlds. Multiverse's stated aim was to lower the barrier of entry for development teams by providing a low-cost software platform for online game and virtual world development.

The history of massively multiplayer online games spans over thirty years and hundreds of massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) titles. The origin and influence on MMO games stems from MUDs, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) and earlier social games.

Gamezebo is a website that focuses on editorial coverage of the mobile gaming industry, offering interviews, reviews, previews, strategy guides, and news. It had been centered on casual games, but after a redesign in 2014, the site changed direction to primarily highlight mobile games.

<i>Kingdom Under Fire II</i>

Kingdom Under Fire II is a video game set in a high fantasy setting developed by Blueside which merges real-time strategy (RTS), role-playing game (RPG) and massively multiplayer online game (MMO) genres. The game has a single-player and an online multiplayer mode. The game follows on chronologically from Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom, and is the first RTS game set in the Kingdom Under Fire universe to be released since the 2005 Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes.

<i>Darkfall</i>

Darkfall was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Aventurine SA that combined real-time action and strategy in a fantasy setting. The game featured unrestricted PvP, full looting, a large, dynamic game world, and a player-skill dependent combat system free of the class and level systems that typify most MMORPGs. Darkfall had a 3D world environment and contained mild violence. The official Darkfall servers were closed on 15 November 2012.

<i>Happy Farm</i>

Happy Farm was a social network game and massively multiplayer online game based on farm management simulation. It was played predominantly by users in Mainland China and Taiwan, and was the most popular MMOG in terms of players. At the height of its popularity, there were 23 million daily active users, logging on to the game at least every 24 hours.

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References

  1. 1 2 Haley, Colin C. (March 9, 2005). "WarCry Makes Buy". boston.internet.com. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Welcome to the Warcry News Network: All wit, all the time". January 17, 2002. Archived from the original on January 17, 2002. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
  3. ↑ Arendt, Susan (October 6, 2008). "Themis Group Turns Full Attention to Escapist, WarCry". escapistmagazine.com. Retrieved March 3, 2010.
  4. ↑ Williams, Mike (November 16, 2012). "The Escapist acquired by Alloy Digital". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  5. ↑ "WarCry Network Announces New World of Warcraft Database" (Press release). gi: gamesindustry.biz. August 3, 2005. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  6. ↑ WarCry.com editors (2006). "2006 WarCry Editor's Choice Awards". WarCry Network. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  7. ↑ "Top Stories & Latest Headlines: WarCry". All Game News. Retrieved January 26, 2006.
  8. ↑ "NWN2 Warcry Toolset Preview". Neverwinter Nights 2 Vault: Articles: Previews. IGN.com. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  9. ↑ Walker, Trey (March 7, 2001). "ViOS and WarCry announce 3D Internet project". GameSpot. CNET Networks Inc. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  10. ↑ "WarCry Network Adds Industry Veteran to Head Sales". GameZone News. GameZone: Your PC and Video Game Connection. July 13, 2005. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  11. ↑ Oliva, Erwin Lemuel. "Online game publishers clamp down on real-money trading". Hackenslash. Retrieved January 26, 2006.
  12. ↑ "Dungeons & Dragons Online: Warcry Dev Chat". Dungeons & Dragons Vault. IGN.com. July 12, 2005. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  13. ↑ "Ultima Online: WarCry Q & A with Aaron Cohen". Ten Ton Hammer. January 25, 2007. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  14. ↑ Goforth, Robert "Xaphod" (November 23, 2006). "Intro to PotBS on WarCry Network". Coldfront: Pirates of the Burning Sea. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  15. ↑ "Tournament Finals on WarCry". Latest News. Lineage II: The Chaotic Chronicles Official News Site. May 2, 2006. p. 4. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  16. ↑ "Coverage on WarCry Continues". Latest News. Lineage II: The Chaotic Chronicles Official News Site. April 27, 2006. p. 4. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  17. ↑ "Tournament Coverage on WarCry". Latest News. Lineage II: The Chaotic Chronicles Official News Site. April 17, 2006. p. 4. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  18. ↑ "Nevrax Announces the Addition of Industry Veteran to Production Team" (Press release). PhilGaming.Community. May 13, 2005. Archived from the original on March 24, 2006. Retrieved January 26, 2007.
  19. ↑ "Cryptic Studios Wins WarCry Editor's Choice Award". News. Cryptic Studios. January 11, 2007. Archived from the original on February 24, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
  20. ↑ "Revelations "Expansion of the Year" at WarCry". EVE Online News. CCP. January 12, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
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