En Masse Entertainment, the publisher of the popular free-to-play MMORPG TERA, or The Exiled Realm of Arborea, has recently announced that the company will imminently be closing its doors.
The exact reasons for the shutdown have not yet been revealed, and the impact it will have on the company’s published titles is also not clear. In the statement, En Masse Entertainment assured fans that support for its games would continue, and additional announcements can be expected in the coming weeks.
Although probably best known for TERA, En Masse has published a number of games, including CLOSERS, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics, and Stranger Things 3: The Game. Founded in 2009, En Masse had all the makings for success, with a team of game industry veterans hailing from companies like Blizzard Entertainment, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, and NCSoft of City of Heroes fame.
TERA is a South Korean MMORPG developed by Bluehole Studio that features real-time combat from a third-person point of view, as well standard RPG fare such as crafting, questing, and PvP combat. There has been predominantly positive feedback for TERA over the years, although its player base has more recently experienced diminished numbers.
En Masse Entertainment oversaw the Western localization of TERA and helped ensure its successful launch in North America in 2012 as well as its transition to a free-to-play title the following year. The 2015 expansion TERA: Fate of Arun was very well received and, for a time, helped the game earn the status of number one free-to-play MMO on Steam.
TERA is available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Source: Game Informer