Wizardry Online Launches. Prepare to Die, Permanently.

The free-to-play massively multiplayer online extension of one of the world’s oldest role-playing game franchises is now live in North America, luring players to its servers with the sweet embrace of permadeath. How long will you survive Wizardry Online?

The selling point of Sony Online Entertainment’s Japanese import, besides the prestigious name, is the fact that it’s an MMO where your character isn’t guaranteed to come back from the dead. Every time your character dies, there’s an increasing chance that he or she will be dead for good. No resurrection, no corpse runs — they’re just dead. It scared me during my E3 demo last year, and it still scares me now.

With 99 levels to earn and the specter of Death ever-present, Wizardry Online promises to be an exquisitely tense MMO. You can start playing it for free right here.

Originally written and published by Mike Fahey at Kotaku. Click here to read the original story.