Acclaim is back

Those who thought that the last drops of life had been well and truly squeezed out of defunct publisher Acclaim (which closed it doors and flogged off any remaining assets back in September 04) can eat their hats, because the Acclaim brand is well and truly back in business.

Don't fret though, we're not likely to see the return of the likes of BMX XXX, because the canny chaps who bought the brand name - reputedly paying USD 100,000 - are working on a completely different business model for the newly launched Acclaim Games, focusing on free-to-play MMO games.

The first title to emerge from the ashes is BOTS, which is described by the company as "a title that will appeal to everyone." A bold statement indeed, but it certainly looks interesting - we'll give them that.

Featuring a slew of adaptable, upgradeable and admittedly quite cute little robots, there's a full story mode involving some sort of evil virus threat, player vs. player combat, capture the flag and an assortment of additional gameplay modes to tinker around with.

Acclaim promises hundreds of upgradeable options to create 'near infinite' combinations of customizing fun for your little robot friend, and the company is actively seeking Beta testers now.

Head over to the newly launched Acclaim Games website to find out more, register for the Beta test and catch a glimpse of the company's forthcoming titles, which include a martial arts inspired MMO called 9 Dragons.