'Mirage: Arcane Warfare' News: Sword and Magic FPS Became Available for Free for 24 Hours, Now Has Permanent Discount
"Mirage: Arcane Warfare," from the same studio that made "Chivalry: Medieval Warfare," was offered at zero dollars on Steam on Wednesday, Sep. 6, at 1 p.m. EDT. That's a great deal for players. However, Torn Banner Studios gave their game away in the wake of dismal launch sales.
The game was only available for free for exactly 24 hours, as the promo ended on Thursday, Sep. 7, at 1 p.m. EDT on the dot as the developers explained on Steam. After that, the first-person shooter slasher now has a permanent discount, putting it down to $10 after tomorrow.
PC players got the game free from the Steam link that they provided. Adding another $10 got them a buyer the special edition, which adds on a copy of "Chivalry: Medieval Warfare" to the bundle.
The development team of "Mirage: Arcane Warfare" were brutally honest about the reason for giving the game away. "Mirage launch sales were poor. That sucked, and we know it," their post on Steam's community blog said.
"More than anything, we're disappointed for the players who stuck by us and did buy Mirage - but who have struggled to find people to play against. We just want people to play the game we spent years making," the team from Torn Banner Studios added.
This move could be a way to promote the game, should they want to try again and make a sequel in the future. On Steam, the game earned middling reviews, with 52 percent of more than a thousand users rating the title positively.
The game did better on Metacritic, with critics reviewing the title. "Mirage: Arcane Warfare" earned an average of 74 in this regard. An average user score of 3 out of 10 spoils this small victory for Torn Banner Studios, however.
The video below shows off the silly ragdoll physics of "Mirage: Arcane Warfare," as Torn Banner studios presented in the PAX East convention earlier this year.