Free Realms
| Free Realms | |
|---|---|
| Developer | Sony Online Entertainment |
| Publisher | Sony Online Entertainment |
| Engine | ForgeLight |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3 |
| Release | Windows April 28, 2009 Mac OS X November 2, 2010 PlayStation 3 March 29, 2011 |
| Genres | Massively multiplayer online, adventure |
| Mode | Multiplayer |
Free Realms was a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) set in a fantasy-themed world called Sacred Grove. The game was first released on April 28, 2009, for Microsoft Windows. Versions for Mac OS X and PlayStation 3 followed in subsequent years. The game was free-to-play with leveling restrictions, with access to additional content available through a membership fee. The game allowed the player to fight, interact with other players, take up jobs, and more.
The game's servers were shut down on March 31, 2014, in a closure of three other SOE MMOs that year (Vanguard, Wizardry, Clone Wars Adventures). SOE gave as reason that it was necessary to devote resources to other games, and later, to move away from games oriented to children, when SOE President John Smedley stated in a Reddit ask-me-anything that "Kids don't spend well and it's very difficult to run a kids game. Turns out kids do mean stuff to each other a lot."