Krafton Ends Deal with Ironmace, Dark and Darker Mobile to be Renamed
The mobile adaptation of the popular dungeon crawler, Dark and Darker, is facing a significant shift. Krafton, the game's publisher, has announced the termination of its agreement with developer Ironmace Studio, leading to a name change for the mobile version.
While Krafton claims this decision is unrelated to Ironmace's recent $6 million court loss to Nexon, the timing is undeniably suspicious. Nexon's lawsuit alleges that Ironmace, founded by former Nexon employees, used proprietary information from a cancelled Nexon project (codenamed P3) to develop Dark and Darker.
Despite Krafton's assertions, the termination of the licensing agreement effectively makes the mobile release a standalone project. This means Dark and Darker Mobile (or its successor) will be released under a new name and without direct involvement from Ironmace. The irony is not lost that Ironmace initially sued for copyright infringement.
Impact on Release:
Despite this upheaval, Krafton has confirmed that the global launch date for the mobile game remains unchanged. However, this situation is rapidly evolving, and any further developments will be reported as they emerge. The hope is that the final product maintains the high quality seen in earlier reviews. The implications for the genre and future releases remain to be seen.
