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Nexon Announces Combat Arms Open Beta
Posted by Leigh Alexander at 6:00 AM on May 24, 2008
Nexon America, publisher of MapleStory, KartRider and Mabinogi, announced it'll launch a free online FPS called Combat Arms, slated to release later this summer.
The company touted the game's "highly customisable" aspect, from the look of characters to the guns and equipment. Match wins are rewarded with in-game currency in addition to XP, both of which allow players more customisation options. Nexon also said the game weighs the community aspect heavily, with a clan focus and some social network-style features.
Though there's no specific release date confirmed, the closed beta begins May 30th, so if you're interested you can try your luck; full release follows the jump.
Nexon America Ignites Thrilling First Person Shooter, Combat Arms
Closed Beta frags away on May 30
May 23, 2008 - Los Angeles, CA - Nexon America Inc., the U.S. division of Asia's leading online game company Nexon Group, announced today the launch of Combat Arms, its free-to-play, online first person shooter. The highly-customizable game is slated for commercial release later this summer, but a select group of players will get a chance to fire away in the closed beta test starting May 30th.
Combat Arms deploys players into a dangerous war zone teeming with soldiers of fortune looking to make a mark. The online shooter will advance the FPS genre by offering a rich free-to-play experience and introducing customisation features unavailable in the current generation of online FPS games. Players have the ability to tailor their gaming experience by customising how their characters look as well as which guns and equipment to carry into battle. A large arsenal of deadly weapons can be modified with attachments such as silencers, scopes and extended magazines.
The game is beginner-friendly while providing great depth for veteran gamers. By rewarding players who win matches and make kills with in-game currency and experience points, Combat Arms extends the game beyond an individual match. Accumulating both will help soldiers rank up to unlock and acquire new weapons and equipment. Further, the game extends beyond the battlefield through an extensive set of community features with a focus on clans. Players can recruit, manage, and communicate with their clan members, all within the game. Additionally, players can maintain a persistent profile to track their experience and performance to see how they rank within the Combat Arms community.
"Competition in video games among friends is always fun, but Combat Arms takes it to another level by letting gamers frag for free," said Min Kim, vice president of marketing for Nexon America. "Combat Arms delivers all the great socialization elements found in other popular Nexon Games and presents them in one of the most popular gaming genres in North America."
Combat Arms focuses on improving accessibility and community while maintaining a high fidelity combat experience. The free-to-play offering combined with low system requirements will encourage new players enter the traditionally hardcore space.
The upcoming closed beta test will run exclusively at FilePlanet.com for one week beginning May 30th. The beta test gives players a first chance to experience the heat of battle in realistic 3-D environments. Combat Arms will offer players the opportunity to face off in multiple theatres, including a junkyard, industrial plant and weapons factory, through multiple game modes. Players will experience regular content updates, such as new weapons, gear, maps, and more free game modes.
The closed beta will last for a short time and interested players can learn more at http://combatarms.nexon.net.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
Raymondo
Posted May 27, 2008 9:38 PM
There's an awesome video of the CA beta here-
http://extrememodding.counterstrikesource.diamond-hosting.com/?p=55
StickyPurpleCat
Posted 2:21 PM 28/5/08
Stop it, Nexon.
StickyPurpleCat
EloquentZen
Posted 11:15 PM 24/5/08
I haven't played this one since it's not as popular as Sudden Attack or Special Force in Korea, but really in general, a lot of Korean Free FPS games all have this really "cheap" feeling to them. They all feel shoddy, and very "light weight", as opposed to the "heavy and realistic" feeling one gets in Counterstrike.
I really hate saying this about games developed from my own country, but seriously, I wouldn't put forth the effort to even try this game unless you seriously have never played CS before and you want to try out a washed-out, crappy free version of it. No, on second thought, you shouldn't play this game period.
*5 minutes later*
I just read a Korean blogger's review of this game, and as I suspected, it's terrible. The game doesn't even have rag-doll physics and so you end up with "floating corpses syndrome".
EloquentZen
H8ff0000
Posted 4:10 PM 24/5/08
On the site, it says Closed Beta. Through FilePlanet, of course!... well, I payed those extortionists to get into the Age of Conan beta, so I guess I'll be able to get into this too.
H8ff0000
Siegeman
Posted 9:27 AM 24/5/08
@Velops: You're definitely right, putting in your credit card info to start a WoW account is most assuredly a hassle. However, nothing comes close to the crying peon begging you to stay when you try to cancel. Truly heart-wrenching.
Didn't Nexon also make Shattered Galaxy? That was fun once I got broadband, back in the day. MMORTS with strong RPG elements. If only it made enough money for them to make a sequel...
Siegeman
D Mitsuki
Posted 7:16 AM 24/5/08
@Truvill: Go download maple story, and see the TONS of people with cash shop items, having played it, people would purchase over 90 bucks a month of cash shop money sometimes, yeah, I can see how they make money off of it.
D Mitsuki
muu
Posted 7:13 AM 24/5/08
Man, the Korean devs are popping these imitation CS's out like crazy. So what's in there for the average joe over a $10 copy of CS1.6 or CS:S? Dumbed-down mechanics so that kids can point and spray?
muu
Spamwich
Posted 6:48 AM 24/5/08
@Comatose Turtle: Yeah... "forgot" :)
Spamwich
Velops
Posted 6:45 AM 24/5/08
@Truvill: It's not really a secret. A successful game based around the free-to-play business model generates more profit than traditional subscription based games. The level of commitment can be scaled to suit the playing habits of many different players. The system requirements are purposefully kept low to maximize the amount of potential customers to support the game.
Games like WoW have a higher barrier to entry and cost a lot more to operate. Players often feel pressured to be active in order to justify the monthly subscription. It is a hassle to cancel or reactivate an account.
Velops
TurinTurambar
Posted 6:31 AM 24/5/08
@Truvill: You can't begin to imagine just how much profit they make from cashshop in Maple Story alone.
TurinTurambar
Comatose Turtle
Posted 6:19 AM 24/5/08
Is it me, or did they fail to mention in this press release how much they are going to charge in real cash money for these customization options in their free-to-play game?
Comatose Turtle
what the Ph15h?
Posted 6:16 AM 24/5/08
@TuxBobble: If you're running peer guardian it blocks the nexon site. Nvm... it times out for me too. Guess Kotaku sent a lot of traffic its way.
what the Ph15h?
what the Ph15h?
Posted 6:13 AM 24/5/08
@PhantomSpaceman67: @Lamburger Helper: Kinda does... The scope is red now.
=/ Nexon nvr sent me a beta :( Guess they hate me after I said Kartrider was full of hackers.
what the Ph15h?
TuxBobble
Posted 6:12 AM 24/5/08
Sounds interesting. But their site won't load for me. I'd love to get in on it if I can run it, though...
TuxBobble
Lamburger Helper
Posted 6:09 AM 24/5/08
Looks like counterstrike...
Lamburger Helper
Truvill
Posted 6:09 AM 24/5/08
To this day I still wonder how Nexon makes any money doing these.
Truvill
NeoStarr
Posted 6:06 AM 24/5/08
It's too rare to see a free FPS that looks pretty solid. This one appears a bit behind the times graphically, but for the most part freeware FPS's tend to look like they're at least 15 years old. Hopefully there will be more information on this project?
NeoStarr
PhantomSpaceman67
Posted 6:04 AM 24/5/08
Wait, really?
I played the beta some time ago, I think it was called Counter-Strike.
ZING.
PhantomSpaceman67
zdogg
Posted 2:49 PM 24/5/08
Yeah and they made the kart rider links vanish only game that Nexon makes that i would play. As far as this game gos leave fps to the pros company's that been making them or know what they are doing. I am not gonna pay money for extras/upgrades when i can go buy a fps game for 1 price and get all the extras and upgrades and mods for free. I don't see this game making it past the beta. Where are they gonna get a fan base for it? All the fpsers got plenty of fps's to play as is now. Also a lot of fpsers have high end gaming machines and are going to want to play the latest and greatest fps's coming out..
zdogg