Meridian 59

A little while back, I posted about Meridian 59's owners, Near Death (now referred to "Now Dead") Studios had closed shop and the game was no more.

Looks like news of M59's death were premature:

Psychochild and Q, after some back and forth, have officially ceded ownership of Meridian 59 to Zandramas and Zaphod, the long long long time ago original creators of Meridian 59. While new (or refined) content is to be expected at a later date, Z and Z are currently focused on combating cheats and increasing stability.

And, here's the best part (emph mine):

If you're an old-timer or a new player, feel free to give Meridian 59 a play--especially considering that, for the time being, account creation is free! If you're interested, feel free to e-mail FattyMoo at subscriptions@neardeathstudios.com with an account name, an account password, an e-mail address, and your server preference (you'll probably want 101)

Now, M59 isn't like WoW or Ever crack quest. The graphics are dated (the original graphics were on par with Doom). And, at the moment, it's not playing well with Windows 7. That's Z&Z's top priority right now - get the game running smoothly on the newest operating systems.

The world is considerably smaller, and there are no "levels". Spell and skill levels are based on percentages, so it's possible to have a mage with all six levels of spells in one school with less than thirty hitpoints (they max at 150).

However, the other big point to M59 is Player vs Player (PvP) combat. It's wide open - if you have 30 hitpoints or more, you can be attacked. Guilds go to war with each other all the time, and there's usually a random player killer (PKer) running around preying on unsuspecting players. When there is, there's a group of hunters tracking him or her down. That's what I do.

Another thing about dying? It's harsh. You lose a hit point, and random percentages off your skills and spells. All your stuff drops to the ground, allowing anyone walking by to pick it up. That's where the player community comes in, as some players will grab and hold your "good" stuff till you make your way out of the Underworld. Others will take what they want and taunt you about it. Another PvP opportunity, if you ask me.

There's also some good Player vs Environment (PvE), good critters to fight, quests to run, etc.

Check it out, what do you have to lose but a hitpoint or two?

Gilroy's Meridian 59 Reference is the place to get all your M59 information.

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