 | Digital Release | PC April 28, 2009 - Online PlayStation 3 March 29, 2011 (NA) September 28, 2011 (EU) |
| Delisting | March 31, 2014 | |
| Developer | Sony Online Entertainment | |
| Publisher | Sony Online Entertainment | |
| Available On | None | |
| Links | FreeRealms homepage [Archive] |
Delisting
In late January of 2014 Sony Online Entertainment announced that four of their MMO titles would be shutting down over the coming months: Free Realms and Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures on March 31st, and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes and Wizardry Online on July 31st. Individual announcements were made by each team but in a statement to Kotaku at the time, SOE’s Senior Director of Global Communications, Michele Cagle, cited an overall “need to refocus […] resources in other areas” as the cause for these closures. Not apparent at the time, these moves to consolidate resources were likely planned as part of Sony’s sale of SOE to investment firm Columbus Nova which was finalized in February of 2015.
Free Realms Producer, Steve George, posted the following announcement to the game’s homepage in January of 2014:
Hi everyone,
Usually I’m in here telling you about cool new developments in the Realms. Today is a much different day for me. I’m deeply saddened to announce that we will sunset Free Realms on March 31, 2014.
Free Realms has truly been a labor of love for SOE (even our own president’s kids are huge fans and active players of the game!). In a nutshell, the game has reached a stage in its life cycle where players are growing up and moving on to other games.
When we first released the game in 2009, it was one of the very first free-to-play MMO for kids and teens, and we couldn’t be prouder of everything we have accomplished together in the game. While today’s news might be a disappointment, we’re sincerely excited about what’s to come for the game before we say goodbye, including player celebration in-game events and more!
We will share details on the upcoming activities and sunset soon, but we wanted to give you plenty of notice so you can truly enjoy your remaining time left in the game. We thank you for all of the memories we have made together in the Realms!
Steve George – Producer, Sony Online Entertainment
About the Game
Set in a fantasy-themed world, Free Realms allows players to do whatever they want, when they want. Players can customize their characters, explore, quest, battle monsters, and play a wide variety of mini-games in a safe, family-friendly world, packed with stunning visuals, distinctive environments and social networking capabilities.
Attracted to adventure? Love to Explore? Players can take on endless amounts of roles including ninjas, warriors or wizards, while participating in a variety of activities such as adventuring for treasure, playing a soccer game, decorating their player house or even entering a demolition derby! If players are seeking a totally different challenge, they can participate in minigames and quests that include decorating their house, constructing a maze, or exploring the terrain on the back of their T-Rex Ride. Free Realms is a safe place for friends to imagine and have fun!
Fun Now, No Waiting: Free Realms is easy to access! Get in the game quickly and easily from the PlayStation®Store, create a character, and adventure in a fully immersive social game world. Click on the Game Guide to access the Activity Finder, Events Calendar, 3D and 2D minigames, quests, Match Making and more!
Be Whoever You Want: With 15 jobs to get into and more than 30,000 wearable combinations, players can find the perfect profession, or try them all! Jobs include: wizard, blacksmith, medic, archer, warrior, ninja, brawler, chef, miner, demolition derby driver, kart driver, adventurer, postman, soccer star and fisherman.
Fun for Everyone: With so much to do and seeit’s easy for players to find something fun to do! Start by playing minigames like cooking, mining, soccer, Demolition Derby, or Pirate’s Plunder. Players can decorate their player house with a party dance floor, rocket ship or talking tiki head, or create a maze with any number of items and invite friends over to race through it. The action doesn’t stop there; players can participate with the entire community at live event Boss Battles or in holiday quests, attend in-game concerts and learn boom box dance moves.
Vibrant, Deep Environment: There are eight distinct, unique and breathtaking environments for players to explore. Areas include the snowcapped mountain villages of Snowhill, the dark and mysterious swamps of Blackspore, and the sunny shores of Seaside.
Connect with Friends: Whether one’s meeting up with old friends or finding new ones, Free Realms players can connect, play, quest and adventure together. For group quests and multiplayer battles, players just log in to see what their friends have been up to, select them from your friends list, and join them in game.
Play Free or Upgrade: At its heart, Free Realms is free-to-play, with more than 800 quests and the ability to take each job through level four. Players who want to break through to the next level can become Members with access to an additional 400 quests and the ability to level all jobs up to 20. Memberships are offered in terms of one month, three months, six months and lifetime (valid for the life of the game). Members and free players can also purchase a variety of items and wearables through micro-transactions.
Family-Friendly: Recently recognized by Creative Child Magazine with the 2010 Creative Toy Award Seal of Excellence, Free Realms is a fun online experience to share with the entire family. Parental controls on the PC and MAC allow for the customization of safety options, include pre-canned and white-list chat, reporting, and filter for younger players. For kids who enjoy playing on the console, robust parental controls are innate to the system PlayStation3 system.
Free Realms is rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and up with content descriptors of Crude Humor and Fantasy Violence. Online Interactions Not Rated by the ESRB. Free Realms is now available to download on the PlayStation Network for free; with options to purchase one month (US $4.99), three month (US $12.99), six month (US $ 24.50), one year (US $29.99), and lifetime membership (US $34.99).
To play Free Realms on PC or MAC, visit: www.FreeRealms.com.