RuneScape's DarkScape Shutting Down In March

Apparently, DarkScape was too hardcore for its own good and will soon be getting the permadeath treatment after just six months. Jagex announced yesterday that its "experimental gameplay mode with emergent PvP" will be shutting down on March 28, with some "surprises as a 'thank you'" to the RuneScape spinoff's dedicated community.

Jagex gives a not-unexpected reason for the shutdown -- just not enough people were playing. Many came from other versions of RuneScape and then went back to their original games after trying out DarkScape, but the team hopes to take what it learned about PvP back into the main game.

In the meantime, DarkScape players can look forward to "general worldwide chaos" until the showdown, and anyone who logged in 20+ times and logged 10+ hours since the start of the year will get a month's membership in RuneScape.