Nordic Games and Cliffhanger Productions, who recently announced they were partnering up to release the final version of early access title Shadowrun Online, have revealed a name change for the cyberpunk fantasy MMO.
It’s now going to be known as Shadowrun Chronicles: Boston Lockdown, a title chosen by the game’s community and Kickstarter backers.
It sounds like the rethink was inspired by general confusion over exactly what Cliffhanger’s game actually is. The studio believes some gamers avoided the title because they thought they would have to play multiplayer, when it actually features a campaign that can be played solo or with friends.
“Shadowrun Online has always been a title that invited a wide range of expectations,” says Jan Wagner, the company’s MD. ”Some gamers thought it meant we are doing a full-blown MMORPG with a persistent open world, others believed it meant we are doing a free to play browser title.”
”The core vision of the game has always focused on experiencing the world of Shadowrun together with your friends and meeting other players, swapping stories and exchanging strategies as well as a creating a space for actual role-playing with others. This to us is the core experience of Pen and paper roleplaying – a shared imagination and story experience. But a lot of people thought that the title meant they had to play it in multiplayer and didn’t even check it out.”
Cliffhanger hopes the new name will attract some new blood when the game launches in full on April 28. Right now it’s in early access on Steam.
