Regensburg/Germany, June 25, 2026 | Development of Persist Online, the new old-school MMORPG from the creators of Tibia, continues to make strong progress. Based on community feedback, numerous mechanics have been reworked, with a particular focus on improving character progression. The next closed playtest is expected to begin during the week of June 29, giving selected players the opportunity to try out the MMORPG’s many deeply interconnected systems. Signing up with an email address at www.persist.online is all it takes for a chance to take part.
“Our main goal is to make character progression more intuitive, consistent, and ultimately more rewarding, while giving players greater control over how they develop their characters and gear,” the developers explain on the Persist Online website. The nearly 20-person team behind the game has detailed the latest changes in three blog posts:
- Progression Overhaul (Part 1): item level requirements, skill unlocks, and Safehouse changes
- Progression Overhaul (Part 2): Elite enemies, spawn mechanics, and new consumables
- Faction Quests: mission types, requirements, and rewards
Crafting and upgrading items in the Safehouse (whose interface and user experience are also set to be reworked later this year) is now faster and less expensive. Elite enemies encountered in the game’s open world, however, have become more dangerous. They can now spawn not only as mutated variants, but also with various elemental effects, allowing them to create pools of acid or deal fire damage. In addition, players can accept new daily quests at the strongholds of the MMORPG’s various NPC factions, adding variety and rewards to life in the harsh post-apocalyptic world.
Persist Online is currently in pre-alpha and can be wishlisted on Steam. A date for the planned Early Access release has not yet been announced. Players can follow the development of the game, which has been shaped by community feedback from the very beginning, directly on Discord.
Artwork, screenshots, and logos are available for download in the press section of the CipSoft website.
About Persist Online
Persist Online is the new game from CipSoft, the genre pioneers who launched Tibia in 1997, one of the first MMORPGs ever. Instead of casting spells on orcs, players must fight zombies with firearms and melee weapons. At its core, however, Persist Online remains a true old-school MMORPG: hundreds of players sharing the same server and enjoying the greatest possible freedom. Persist Online began as a hobby project based on an idea by two long-time CipSoft employees. Today, a core team of just under 20 people, working with the mindset of an indie studio, is preparing for the game’s Early Access release on Steam.
About CipSoft
CipSoft GmbH was founded in Regensburg in June 2001 and emerged from the success of Tibia. As one of Germany’s oldest game developers, the independent company Today generates annual revenues of around 25 million euros and employs more than 100 people. With TibiaME, a mobile adaptation inspired by Tibia, CipSoft released one of the first online role-playing games for mobile phones in 2003. In April 2025, the Bavarian studio took over the browser game The Settlers Online from Ubisoft Blue Byte. Under the name MultiPayer, CipSoft also makes Tibia’s payment system available to other game developers.