Last week, popular World of Warcraft private server Turtle WoW got hit with a cease and desist from Blizzard after a judge ruled in the studio's favor regarding a copyright infringement suit filed last September. Court documents revealed that the two parties reached a settlement that hinged on "certain actions that are required to be taken by certain parties," and today, the other shoe dropped for anyone still playing the modded MMO: a forum post announced a complete shutdown of the project.

"Working on Turtle WoW has been the highlight of our lives," said Turtle WoW developer Torta in the post. "The adventures you had, the battles you fought, and the friends you met are what made it all worthwhile. We hope you will cherish those moments. What we leave behind are fond memories of an 8-year-long journey, and we hope you'll remember it every now and then."

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Justin first became enamored with PC gaming when World of Warcraft and Neverwinter Nights 2 rewired his brain as a wide-eyed kid. As time has passed, he's amassed a hefty backlog of retro shooters, CRPGs, and janky '90s esoterica. Whether he's extolling the virtues of Shenmue or troubleshooting some fiddly old MMO, it's hard to get his mind off games with more ambition than scruples. When he's not at his keyboard, he's probably birdwatching or daydreaming about a glorious comeback for real-time with pause combat. Any day now...