Beloved superhero MMO fan server gets an official license, fans rejoice

Superhero MMORPG City of Heroes was officially discontinued in late 2012, but a group of dedicated fans never gave up on the game. And more than a decade after the official servers went down, the largest fan server has been given the all-clear via a license from NCSoft, which is a huge relief for players. 'Your accounts and characters are safe' reads a Homecoming announcementa fan run City of Heroes server. “The development of new content will continue.”

Homecoming is built on the original game code, which was discovered in 2019. ​​The server not only restored the original MMO content, but also included new class features, mechanics, and quality of life updates. Homecoming has its costs covered by donations; playing on the server is free. However, the players were in a kind of limbo, waiting to see if the company with the legal rights to the content would step in and shut down the game.

Technically, NCSoft could still exercise its right to terminate Homecoming, but the people behind the server don't seem concerned about that, saying in the Q&A announcement: “We have had a very positive and productive relationship with NCSoft, so we don't expect there will be any issues.” For fans who missed their old comfort MMO, this is a huge relief; it feels like the Eye of Sauron has moved on and removed an existential threat to the project.

Homecoming is a passion project run by players, for players, and it feels like a belated Christmas miracle to see this agreement between the server and NCSoft made public. There is no game that has managed to reach the heights of this game City of Heroes' superhero crusades and evil schemes, so it's good to know that it will live on thanks to the passion of its player base.