The MMORPG Moonlight Blade impresses with great graphics, but will we ever be able to play it in Europe? We look back at the beginning of 2020 regarding the status of an EU release.
What is Moonlight Blade? Moonlight Blade is reminiscent of Age of Wulin or Age of Wushu and is a so-called Wuxia MMORPG. This means that the story is based on Chinese mythology and martial arts battles are at the center.
You join one of eight clans. Each of them instructs you in different combat techniques and philosophies. This then leads to conflicts with rival clans. PvP battles are therefore important.
In addition, you can also engage in other activities and become a composer, merchant, scout, or assassin.
On a successful course since 2015
Since when has the game been around? Moonlight Blade was released in 2015 in China through Tencent. It is very popular in China and receives continuous updates. In 2017, the launch in Korea followed through Nexon.
How has the game developed? In addition to updates that brought new classes with interesting skills (including flying), Moonlight Blade also received a battle royale mode. In this, you jump from the air into a combat zone, collect equipment from crates, and fight each other until only one player is left.
What about a release for us? In 2017, Nexon still stated that Moonlight Blade should be released in the USA and Europe. This was also confirmed again in 2018.
However, since then there has been no statement on when we can expect a release of Moonlight Blade in Europe. Since Nexon oversees distribution outside of China, the situation is currently somewhat tense.
Nexon was supposed to be sold but has not found a buyer yet. As a result, there have been restructuring within the company. Several MMORPGs have already fallen victim to this, including the interesting online RPG Peria Chronicles.
Currently, Nexon has other concerns than taking care of a western release of Moonlight Blade. At the moment, there is no information about whether the game will come to us or not. This is strange, as Nexon actually has a presence in the west, but that seems to currently focus mainly on MapleStory and the mobile version MapleStory M.
Nexon is the big uncertainty factor
What is the assessment of a western release? Moonlight Blade is an MMORPG that certainly captures the interest of players. It looks fantastic – even around 5 years after the original release – and it is quite popular in Asia.
However, the failure of Bless Online shows that it is not so easy to position an Asian MMORPG strongly and stably in the market here. The release of an online role-playing game carries risks, and Nexon probably cannot afford to take them in the current situation.
Therefore, one must wait to see how Nexon develops this year before one can see what could happen with a possible release of Moonlight Blade here.
It might be possible for Tencent to take care of a release in the USA and Europe, but this is also unclear. We have no choice but to wait and hope for the best.
