Hellgate: London

Hellgate: London is a computer game under development by Flagship Studios. The design of the game is similar in a number of ways to the Diablo series. This is due to influence of Flagship Studios co-founders including a number of ex-Blizzard North employees, including Diablo series creators Erich Schaefer and former President David Brevik. The other founders are Erich's brother Max Schaefer, former Blizzard North Vice President Bill Roper, and Diablo II producer Kenneth Williams.

Hellgate: London is an RPG which has some FPS elements in a futuristic post-apocalyptic setting. Gameplay is based heavily on the character's stats. The FPS element of Hellgate: London will be seen in the Hunter faction and will require some skill to use. Soft-aim will be included in the game as a form of aim assistance.

The game builds heavily upon the core design of rogue-likes. Notably it embraces the game design philosophy of using random generation to allow for a high degree of replayability and countless unique gameplay experiences.

On August 6, 2007, Electronic Arts and Namco Bandai Games announced that the game will be released on October 31, 2007 in the USA, and November 2, 2007 in Europe. However, the game was released on October, 30 in Europe.

Story
Hellgate: London takes place in 2038, 18 years after the start of a war: London has been invaded by demons from Hell. Up until recently, humans have had many champions looking to hold back the flood. Various real-world events are referenced in the background of the Hellgate story as averted crossover attempts. The Crusades were actually undertaken to fight back the minions of Hell, as was the charring of London in the great fire to wipe out the Plague. According to the story line, the famous Knights Templar were the keepers of knowledge on how to battle these demonic forces. Unfortunately, these heroes underwent a charring of their own at the hands of a jealous King Phillip IV (of France), who hated the power they held in the world at large. While the Knights Templar survived as an organization, their numbers were severely diminished and were forced to remain in hiding to stay alive.

As time passed and technology progressed, the old ways began to fade from memory and the secrets of the arcane were lost. When the demons attacked again, they found their enemies unprepared. Ordinary weapons were no use against the demons, who could shrug off an RPG round. The Templars offered their special services to the military, but the leaders balked, refusing to believe in the old truths. Hell quickly took the victory in the battle for Earth. The Burn, a decades-long process of "hellforming", has begun.

However all is not lost, as various groups have been preparing for just such an eventuality. Freemasons built the London Underground to be demon resistant, and as such the stations now act as bases, "safe zones" for would-be defenders. These defenders are armed with a fusion of modern weaponry and arcane magic such as flamethrowers that throw Greek fire or swords covered in locusts. In the game, you play one of these defenders.