<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
(	O
AC	O
)	O
was	O
a	O
fantasy	B-Application
massively	B-Protocol
multiplayer	I-Protocol
online	I-Protocol
role-playing	I-Protocol
game	I-Protocol
(	O
MMORPG	B-Protocol
)	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
PCs	O
,	O
developed	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Turbine	O
Entertainment	O
Software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Released	O
on	O
November	O
2	O
,	O
1999	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
third	O
major	O
MMORPG	B-Protocol
to	O
be	O
released	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
developed	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
as	O
those	O
earlier	O
games	O
:	O
Ultima	B-Protocol
Online	I-Protocol
and	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
initial	O
success	O
,	O
its	O
subscription	O
numbers	O
dropped	O
as	O
newer	O
MMORPGs	B-Protocol
moved	O
into	O
the	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
host	O
servers	B-Application
remained	O
online	O
for	O
over	O
17	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
original	O
launch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
announced	O
on	O
December	O
20	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
that	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
would	O
close	O
all	O
its	O
servers	B-Application
on	O
January	O
31	O
,	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Set	O
in	O
a	O
heroic	O
fantasy	B-Application
world	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
allows	O
players	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
character	O
,	O
or	O
avatar	O
,	O
from	O
one	O
of	O
six	O
in-game	O
races	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
their	O
monthly	O
updates	O
,	O
including	O
supplementary	O
content	O
,	O
and	O
occasional	O
live	O
"	O
world	O
events	O
"	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
offered	O
"	O
episodic	O
narrative	O
content	O
,	O
periodic	O
new	O
quests	O
,	O
and	O
events	O
that	O
visibly	O
affect	O
the	O
entire	O
world.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
currency	O
is	O
the	O
Pyreal	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Resurrected	O
characters	O
lose	O
half	O
their	O
pyreals	B-Application
,	O
one	O
or	O
more	O
valuable	O
items	O
,	O
and	O
(	O
temporarily	O
)	O
a	O
certain	O
percentage	O
of	O
their	O
constitution	O
—	O
their	O
primary	O
and	O
secondary	O
strengths	O
and	O
characteristics	O
—	O
in	O
what	O
is	O
known	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
vitae	O
penalty	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
most	O
servers	B-Application
,	O
players	O
by	O
default	O
are	O
prevented	O
from	O
attacking	O
each	O
other	O
and	O
must	O
voluntarily	O
change	O
their	O
status	O
to	O
"	O
PK	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
features	O
a	O
unique	O
allegiance	O
and	O
fealty	O
system	O
that	O
creates	O
formal	O
links	O
between	O
players	O
and	O
rewards	O
cooperative	O
play	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
story	O
of	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
spans	O
across	O
several	O
worlds	O
and	O
thousands	O
of	O
years	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Yalaini	O
and	O
member	O
of	O
the	O
royal	O
family	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Application
Realaidain	O
,	O
was	O
born	O
approximately	O
2,500	O
years	O
prior	O
to	O
the	O
time	O
when	O
the	O
story	O
starts	O
for	O
players	O
;	O
when	O
they	O
"	O
arrive	O
"	O
in	O
Dereth	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
after	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	O
birth	O
,	O
a	O
war	O
began	O
between	O
the	O
Yalaini	O
people	O
and	O
an	O
army	O
of	O
Shadows	O
,	O
creatures	O
of	O
darkness	O
and	O
chaos	O
,	O
led	O
by	O
a	O
demonic	O
nemesis	O
named	O
Bael'Zharon	O
,	O
the	O
Hopeslayer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
last	O
resort	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Application
and	O
the	O
Yalaini	O
council	O
of	O
five	O
mages	O
were	O
able	O
to	O
stave	O
off	O
their	O
doom	O
and	O
eventually	O
defeat	O
Bael'Zharon	O
through	O
the	O
arts	O
of	O
planar	O
magic	O
-	O
magic	O
pertaining	O
to	O
the	O
planes	O
of	O
existence	O
and	O
the	O
space	O
in	O
between	O
them	O
known	O
as	O
portal	O
space	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
But	O
Asheron	B-Application
survived	O
,	O
protected	O
by	O
Falatacot	O
Blood	O
rites	O
performed	O
by	O
his	O
mother	O
and	O
a	O
Falatacot-blooded	O
"	O
witch	O
"	O
named	O
Adja	O
just	O
prior	O
to	O
the	O
explosion	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
continued	O
to	O
research	O
planar	O
magic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
these	O
species	O
were	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
Olthoi	B-Application
,	O
which	O
killed	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
explorers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Emperor	O
of	O
the	O
Yalaini	O
demanded	O
that	O
Olthoi	B-Application
be	O
brought	O
back	O
for	O
research	O
and	O
possibly	O
used	O
as	O
weapons	O
for	O
the	O
empire	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Olthoi	B-Application
rebelled	O
and	O
the	O
Yalaini	O
lost	O
the	O
war	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
100	O
years	O
,	O
all	O
surviving	O
Yalaini	O
were	O
pushed	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
island	O
of	O
Dereth	O
,	O
and	O
almost	O
80	O
years	O
later	O
,	O
one	O
single	O
Olthoi	B-Application
Queen	O
arrived	O
on	O
the	O
island	O
and	O
began	O
to	O
breed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
and	O
his	O
disciples	O
cast	O
a	O
powerful	O
planar	O
magic	O
spell	O
known	O
as	O
The	O
Sundering	O
,	O
which	O
sent	O
the	O
Yalaini	O
people	O
into	O
portal	O
space	O
in	O
a	O
state	O
of	O
stasis	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
sending	O
his	O
disciples	O
in	O
as	O
well	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Application
retreated	O
to	O
the	O
last	O
place	O
of	O
safety	O
-	O
his	O
castle	O
on	O
a	O
small	O
island	O
-	O
and	O
alone	O
began	O
working	O
on	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
defeat	O
the	O
Olthoi	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
humans	O
were	O
quickly	O
enslaved	O
by	O
the	O
Olthoi	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
ancient	O
text	O
in	O
the	O
city	O
told	O
of	O
Asheron	B-Application
and	O
his	O
castle	O
's	O
location	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Their	O
leaders	O
left	O
for	O
Asheron	B-Application
,	O
who	O
gave	O
them	O
a	O
poison	O
to	O
kill	O
the	O
Olthoi	B-Application
Queen	O
,	O
which	O
they	O
did	O
at	O
the	O
cost	O
of	O
Cragstone	O
's	O
life	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Olthoi	B-Application
retreated	O
and	O
the	O
humans	O
began	O
to	O
thrive	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Later	O
updates	O
added	O
former	O
enemy	O
races	O
Shadows	O
,	O
Tumerok	O
,	O
(	O
Empyrean	O
)	O
Undead	O
,	O
Lugian	B-Application
,	O
and	O
Gearknights	O
,	O
alongside	O
native	O
Empyreans	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Olthoi	B-Application
were	O
also	O
added	O
as	O
a	O
special	O
PVP	O
only	O
race	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
was	O
technically	O
innovative	O
for	O
its	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
did	O
not	O
use	O
zoning	O
,	O
a	O
technique	O
of	O
partitioning	O
the	O
game	O
world	O
into	O
zones	O
that	O
ran	O
on	O
different	O
computers	O
on	O
a	O
cluster	B-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Instead	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
had	O
a	O
single	O
seamless	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
used	O
dynamic	B-Application
load	I-Application
balancing	I-Application
to	O
determine	O
which	O
computer	O
in	O
the	O
cluster	B-Architecture
controlled	O
which	O
location	O
area	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
one	O
area	O
became	O
overpopulated	O
and	O
sluggish	O
control	O
of	O
part	O
of	O
that	O
location	O
would	O
pass	O
to	O
another	O
computer	O
with	O
a	O
lighter	O
load.Bartle	O
2004	O
,	O
p	O
.	O
28	O
Critical	O
development	O
software	O
included	O
Microsoft	O
Visual	O
C++	O
5.0	O
,	O
Visual	O
SourceSafe	O
5.0	O
,	O
Lightwave	O
5.5	O
,	O
and	O
Photoshop	O
4.0	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
uses	O
Microsoft	O
SQL	O
Server	O
for	O
persistent	O
game	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
client	O
allowed	O
computers	O
to	O
use	O
either	O
3D	O
or	O
software	O
graphics	O
acceleration	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
were	O
six	O
servers	B-Application
available	O
at	O
launch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
launched	O
nine	O
months	O
after	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
on	O
November	O
2	O
,	O
1999	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
had	O
80,000	O
players	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
its	O
first	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2000	O
its	O
subscription	O
rate	O
was	O
third	O
behind	O
Ultima	B-Protocol
Online	I-Protocol
and	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
,	O
with	O
90,000	O
subscribers	O
from	O
200,000	O
box	O
sales	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
neither	O
Turbine	O
nor	O
Microsoft	O
have	O
been	O
forthcoming	O
in	O
releasing	O
exact	O
subscription	O
counts	O
,	O
it	O
is	O
believed	O
that	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
peaked	O
in	O
popularity	O
in	O
early	O
2002	O
at	O
about	O
120,000	O
accounts	O
and	O
has	O
since	O
dropped	O
to	O
below	O
10,000	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Michael	O
Wolf	O
reviewed	O
the	O
PC	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
for	O
Next	O
Generation	O
,	O
rating	O
it	O
three	O
stars	O
out	O
of	O
five	O
,	O
and	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
A	O
deep	O
,	O
complex	O
game	O
for	O
real	O
RPG	O
buffs	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
as	O
easy	O
(	O
or	O
fun	O
)	O
as	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
received	O
generally	O
positive	O
reviews	O
from	O
critics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editors	O
of	O
Computer	O
Gaming	O
World	O
nominated	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
for	O
their	O
1999	O
"	O
Role-Playing	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
award	O
,	O
which	O
ultimately	O
went	O
to	O
Planescape	B-Application
:	I-Application
Torment	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2002	O
,	O
the	O
full-fledged	O
sequel	O
Asheron	B-Protocol
's	I-Protocol
Call	I-Protocol
2	I-Protocol
:	I-Protocol
Fallen	I-Protocol
Kings	I-Protocol
was	O
released	O
,	O
which	O
would	O
be	O
closed	O
in	O
2005	O
but	O
then	O
reactivated	O
in	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2003	O
,	O
Turbine	O
purchased	O
the	O
rights	O
to	O
the	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
franchise	O
from	O
Microsoft	O
and	O
assumed	O
full	O
responsibility	O
for	O
content	O
development	O
,	O
customer	O
service	O
,	O
billing	O
and	O
marketing	O
in	O
2004	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
franchise	O
was	O
unique	O
in	O
providing	O
complimentary	O
monthly	O
content	O
updates	O
and	O
"	O
Events	O
"	O
that	O
added	O
new	O
quests	O
,	O
skills	O
,	O
landmasses	O
,	O
monsters	O
,	O
gameplay	O
dynamics	O
and	O
bug	O
fixes	O
for	O
all	O
subscribers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
originally	O
charged	O
a	O
monthly	O
subscription	O
fee	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
eventually	O
discontinued	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
No	O
further	O
content	O
would	O
be	O
released	O
and	O
there	O
were	O
plans	O
to	O
provide	O
players	O
with	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
host	O
their	O
own	O
servers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
20	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
announced	O
that	O
Turbine	O
would	O
no	O
longer	O
develop	O
MMORPGs	B-Protocol
,	O
with	O
the	O
servers	B-Application
and	O
account	O
system	O
to	O
be	O
transitioned	O
over	O
to	O
a	O
newly	O
formed	O
studio	O
called	O
Standing	O
Stone	O
Games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
IP	O
remains	O
with	O
Turbine	O
and	O
their	O
owner	O
Warner	O
Bros	O
.	O
Interactive	O
Entertainment	O
,	O
the	O
result	O
of	O
which	O
is	O
that	O
after	O
18	O
years	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
would	O
close	O
on	O
January	O
31	O
,	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
closure	O
not	O
only	O
affected	O
Asheron	B-Application
's	I-Application
Call	I-Application
,	O
but	O
also	O
its	O
sequel	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2012	O
,	O
Asheron	B-Protocol
's	I-Protocol
Call	I-Protocol
2	I-Protocol
:	I-Protocol
Fallen	I-Protocol
Kings	I-Protocol
was	O
resurrected	O
,	O
but	O
would	O
also	O
close	O
on	O
January	O
31	O
,	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
servers	B-Application
closed	O
at	O
12	O
EST	O
on	O
January	O
31	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Shortly	O
after	O
the	O
servers	B-Application
closed	O
,	O
the	O
website	O
and	O
forums	O
were	O
taken	O
down	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
official	O
Facebook	O
page	O
.	O
</s>
