It has been a long time coming, but Korean company Hanbitsoft have finally made an official statement on the US and European publishing of Hellgate: London. No, it's not good news, and no, it's nothing we didn't already know - but it perhaps puts the final nail in the beleaguered MMO's Western coffin, so now we can all put away our widow's weeds and move on. The announcement came tacked on to the end of a press release full of envy-fueling news of the latest patch as Hanbitsoft attempt to lovingly smooth over the game's rough spots. Kee Young KIM, CEO, has the floor:

“There have been many inquiries from US and European Hellgate players surrounding the availability of the game in those respective territories ... HanbitSoft does own the intellectual property of Hellgate: London and is interested in providing the game in the US and Europe, but is unable to do so at this time because Namco Bandai has the publishing rights for those regions. We cannot open up the server in Korea to allow access by US and European players as this will constitute infringing upon Namco Bandai’s publishing rights in the US and Europe. HanbitSoft is currently doing its best to improve the game.”

True optimists mind find reason for hope in this somewhat ambiguous statement, alluding to Hanbitsoft's desire to bring Hellgate: London back to Western gamers, but the cynical and arguably even realists amongst us are no doubt writing the game off for good. If Hanbitsoft and Namco Bandai have been unable to come to a mutually beneficial agreement in the months since developers Flagship Studios went belly up and this situation became foreseeable, it is extremely unlikely that either company will budge from their respective bargaining positions now.

Rather than hashing over the game's faults or bemoaning the details of the patch that will likely be forever unavailable to us, let us remember the good times with fondness, and observe a moment of silence for the passing on of Hellgate: London.