Square Enix today announced COREONLINE, a new service allowing gamers to play some of their favorite games in HD in their browser. Developed by Square's Hapti.co studio, COREONLINE allows users to easily play popular, console quality games on the web.
"Square Enix is at the forefront of experimentation of new business and services models in the game industry," said Yoichi Wada, chief executive officer of Square Enix Holdings. "Through our COREONLINE technology service, users can access our content easily through the browser."
Games on COREONLINE are made available via a combination of Google and Square Enix's proprietary technology, which allows for support of Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. COREONLINE is easy to use, allowing players to click on a level and start playing instantly, and giving them the ability to start from any part of the game they wish.
COREONLINE will also enable free content, as long as players sit through some video ads here and there. Thankfully, users will be able to skip advertising by purchasing levels and games.
Players will be able to save and manage their games and achievements are managed in the cloud, and can be accessed from the browser. In the future, COREONLINE services may be a feature of Square Enix's global online services.
The service is expected to launch in October, and the games to be available at launch will be Hitman: Blood Money, Mini Ninjas, and Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. Other games expected include Tomb Raider: Underworld, and Gyromancer.