Codemasters has announced it will not renew its deal to operate MMO ArchLord in the West, but confirmed the title will continue with Webzen taking control.

A Codemasters statement on the ArchLord forum reads: “Our licence for ArchLord is due to expire shortly and unfortunately, after several weeks of negotiations with NHN, the Korean developers of the title, we have not been able to reach an agreement to renew the contract.”

Codemasters’ servers for the game will close October 2nd, with Webzen launching its own servers for the game October 3rd.

ArchLord was released as Codemasters first major foray into the world of MMO, but it failed to sign significant numbers and the firm was soon forced to drop its monthly subscription fee in order to entice gamers.

The UK publisher now runs the far more successful MMO games Lord of the Rings Online and also operates Atari’s Dungeons & Dragons Online. MMO Jumpgate Evolution remains on the publisher’s plans.