GungHo / Game Arts have unveiled their newest MMOG today, Grandia Online. Grandia Online is an MMOG based on the JRPG "Grandia" series. The game will be entering closed beta in July, and will hit full release later this summer.

The full press release is available below:

GungHo / GameArts formally announces 'Grandia Online' - the second GameArts MMO title to be built on BigWorld Technology  

Tokyo, Japan- BigWorld Pty Ltd is proud to announce the unveiling of yet another title to be built on BigWorld Technology - namely the long-awaited Grandia Online, currently in development by Tokyo-based GameArts Co., Ltd. The title will be published this summer by GungHo Online Entertainment, Inc.

Details of the game were revealed at a recent press conference held in Tokyo's Akihabara on May 20th to which the press and around sixty fans who had won a contest were invited to be among the first to play the game.

Grandia Online is the latest in a series of best selling games dating as far back as the 1997 release of the original Grandia RPG for the Sega Saturn console. The game itself is set within the world presented in the Grandia series, in the "Age of Genesis", before the original Grandia story takes place.

The Grandia Online announcement comes hot on the heels of the recent upgrades to Hokuto no Ken Online Heroes ("Fist of the North Star" Online Heroes), which was also built on BigWorld Technology by GameArts Co., Ltd.

Yoshitada Iwata, Producer at GungHo Online Entertainment, commented that "The BigWorld Technology provides a robust, cost effective way for us to bring GameArts' online visions to life. Both the technology and the support we receive from the BigWorld team are second to none, and I cannot recommend the BigWorld platform more highly to teams considering creating any kind of massively multiplayer online game."

"We are very pleased that GameArts' experience with the BigWorld Technology Suite during the development of Hokuto-no-Ken led them to acquire a subsequent license for the development of Grandia Online. We look forward to continuing to support them on this title and on future projects, and to growing BigWorld's presence in Japan more widely", said James Hursthouse, BigWorld's Director of Business Development for Japan and Korea.

Grandia Online is expected to enter open beta in July 2009, with a full commercial release in Summer 2009.

Grandia Online Website: http://www.grandiaonline.jp/

Wow, I was such a fan of the Grandia games, haha. Tho I am not sure what MMO that could make, I am still hooked to see it. ^^

Although I only played Grandia 2, I did enjoy it...now I gotta go grab the disc and read the storyline b/c god if I remember it. 

Is this really news, seeing as how it's not being released in NA and not in English..?!

nice, but they need more then just the succes and storyline of grandia I and II. Loved those rpgs btw ^^

What do you mean by that, mlauzon? There's more in the world than NA - just in case you don't know.

Originally posted by mlauzon

Is this really news, seeing as how it's not being released in NA and not in English..?!

Maybe one day you'll realise that there's actually more to the world than North America. Thankfully, most of us live in that part you'll find out about.

Well, generally, if they're not going to bother releasing it in North America they won't do so in EU or other countries. We're the big money makers after the country of origin.

Oh my god
Oh my god
Oh my god

Sorry,  this is one of those games on the list of games id like tos ee become and MMO, right beside pokemon and dragonball z.

Originally posted by Lydon

Originally posted by mlauzon

Is this really news, seeing as how it's not being released in NA and not in English..?!

Maybe one day you'll realise that there's actually more to the world than North America. Thankfully, most of us live in that part you'll find out about.

On a site made primarily for NA, with the EU as an afterthought. You're really quite funny.

This sites very own rules state a game must be available in the U.S/E.U and must be in English to be here. So why advertise a game which is neither?

And yes, there is more to the world than just North America and the U.S.

Of course, we consider them practice targets, but they are there.

Originally posted by raccoon

Well, generally, if they're not going to bother releasing it in North America they won't do so in EU or other countries. We're the big money makers after the country of origin.

Umm...actually you're quite wrong...Just look at WoW for example...the asian market accoutns for almost half of WoW's subscription. WoW's asian subscription (roughly 5-6 million) has more than any other western MMO's subscription. Just name one Western MMO game that has more than 5 million. There's none. So IMO the asian markets has the bigger money maker market.

BTW Loved Grandia 1 and 2.

Originally posted by DeserttFoxx

Oh my god
Oh my god
Oh my god

 

Sorry,  this is one of those games on the list of games id like tos ee become and MMO, right beside pokemon and dragonball z.

Heh, agree with ya foxx, I read through a bit of the japanese site (what I could understand at least, bloody kanji).

The battle system is called (and I kid you not) "Ultimate Action Battle System". What I'm afraid of is that the "creation" system for characters will be like a few other MMOs, where the character already has a defined look and class, and all you can really do is give him a "nickname". I can't read enough to really tell, but thats just a nagging feeling in the back of my head.

I'm also curious as to how they'll handle magic, as that was normally handled through the use of eggs, which leveled up independantly with you. I do like the idea of letting Eggs dictate a majority of our skills, as it means with a simple switch of an egg and a few pieces of a gear, you could switch from tank to healer, or dps to tank, and the like. So thats definitely a big plus to me.

And god... reading about this game makes me really wish I had the first... I got the second for Dreamcast... and beat em both... god... if there was one thing in both games that gave me goosebumps and made me grin, it was SDS, the grand move of all, Sky Dragon Slash!

*sigh* such pleasant memories...

Originally posted by csthao

Originally posted by raccoon

Well, generally, if they're not going to bother releasing it in North America they won't do so in EU or other countries. We're the big money makers after the country of origin.

 

Umm...actually you're quite wrong...Just look at WoW for example...the asian market accoutns for almost half of WoW's subscription. WoW's asian subscription (roughly 5-6 million) has more than any other western MMO's subscription. Just name one Western MMO game that has more than 5 million. There's none. So IMO the asian markets has the bigger money maker market.

 

BTW Loved Grandia 1 and 2.

First off, the last thing we need is another anime game.

Secondly, while wow has more asian players, the bulk of it's revenue comes from subscriptions in the NA/European market.  Asian players don't pay very much.  So your conclusion is faulty.

As  fan of Grandia I am looking forward to this but It will probably be just like other MMO's out there which may prevent me from playing it for long.

Originally posted by DeserttFoxx

Oh my god
Oh my god
Oh my god

 

Sorry,  this is one of those games on the list of games id like tos ee become and MMO, right beside pokemon and dragonball z.

DBZ mmo is already in development in Korea, and I've never heard of the 'Grandia' series, maybe I'm too young for it? :P

Originally posted by eyeswideopen

And yes, there is more to the world than just North America and the U.S.

Of course, we consider them practice targets, but they are there.

Yeah, blatant economic mismanagement must be awesome.