In a very exciting press release that came out this morning, we found out that the popular MMO DOFUS, published by ANKAMA is coming to mobile platforms as early as this summer!

ANKAMA is proud to announce the upcoming release of DOFUSPocket which is being developed by its subsidiary Kalmeo. DOFUSPocket will delight DOFUS fans who will soon be able to play on their mobile phones as well!

“We wish to offer our DOFUS players new content and additional features that will add to the original online game. We do not wish to simply make a shorter version of DOFUS for mobiles.” says Mr. Emmanuel Darras, CEO and co-founder of ANKAMA. “It seems to be the logical follow-up to our development which is centered on innovating cross-media solutions as well as our will to have a total control over our projects.”

A few days ago, DOFUS community members were offered the chance to join the DOFUSPocket beta test to help validate the technical solutions chosen for the mobile application. This application was designed by Kalmeo, the most recent subsidiary of the ANKAMA Group, which has been based in Lyon since the end of 2007 and is directed by Mr. Boris Beaulant, former R&D developer on DOFUS: “This 1st phase is mainly about validating the software platform that we’ve developed and identifying the residual compatibility issues”.

This is a huge step forward for the genre, and I wish the beta testers the best of luck in breaking the hell out of it!  So it can be fixed for the rest of us, of course!

Regarding the contents and features available, they will be integrated progressively during the test period and after the official release. Users will have different features at their disposal, from simple information consultation to data exchange with game servers through “user to user” applications between mobiles or SMS alerts for in-game events! Mr. Bahon, Director of the Ankama Games Products, declares: “We already have several ideas about the content we want to add and how we will distribute it. We also wish to make use of the latest mobiles’ potential to the full including the diffusion of videos produced by Ankama Animations, or even the use of 2D barcodes. Unlike our competitors, we do have within our walls all the necessary resources to develop all the features and content we want to offer our users, even though it’s no longer within the video-game framework.”

Tests started today with restricted access, and they will become open to all users within a few weeks. The official release of DOFUSPocket is scheduled for this summer.

Official Release of DOFUSPocket: June 2008

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DOFUS
www.dofus.com
Treading a lush path between video game and animated cartoon, DOFUS brings a whole new dimension to online Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games.
With its manga-inspired graphics, gripping tactical game play and wild humor, DOFUS has created a unique style of its own for other MMORPGs to follow and currently boasts 7 million players worldwide.

About the ANKAMA Group
Founded by Anthony Roux, Camille Chafer and Emmanuel Darras in Roubaix in 2001, ANKAMA is an independent group which produces digital creations and employs over 250 people. The international success of the group’s MMORPG DOFUS, with more than 7 million players, enabled ANKAMA to branch out into several related industries: online games, publishing, animations, web design, press, mobile phone services, video games for next gen’ consoles. ANKAMA is also currently developing Wakfu, a crossmedia project including animated series/video game/card games and comic books. Find out more on our official website: www.ankama-group.com